Rebecca Walker

In this book, Rebecca Walker tells the story of herself, from birth through adolescence. Occasionally, she relates a scene from her adulthood to the events in the book, but largely, the biography covers her coming of age.

Rebecca Walker is born in Jackson, Mississippi, to the first legally married interracial couple in Mississippi. Her father works as a civil rights lawyer, her mother as an author and activist. From an early age, Walker's parents encourage independence. They push her to walk to preschool, down the block, by herself. Later in life, Walker seems to take this push for independence as avoidance, if not neglect. From her early teen years on, Walker experiences few meaningful interactions with her parents. Her father, after giving up his activism for mainstream law, brushes aside her concerns. Walker's mother avoids confrontation and communicates with her daughter through notes left in the kitchen...