Somebody’s Daughter – Ashley C. Ford

“Somebody’s Daughter” first hit my radar over the summer when #Bookstagram was going gaga for the debut memoir. Not one to usually pick up memoirs by people I haven’t heard of (although this year has proven that is often a shortsighted view), I initially brushed it off.

Then people I know started posting about the book — and rarely do my book friends and IRL friends read the same things — so it was time to investigate. That’s when I learned Ashley C. Ford, hails from my home state and is a graduate of my alma mater. Now I was intrigued!

Tracing her earliest memories through post-college, Ford presents a candid view of her life as a lower middle class Black kid in Fort Wayne, a mid-sized city in Indiana that is not economically or racially diverse.

Her father is in jail (although she won’t learn why until her teens) and she has a volatile relationship with her mother, a woman who struggles to keep her children safe and healthy while also providing for them as a single parent.

Ford’s story is unique in that it paints a picture of real America. Similar memoirs, like Tara Westover’s “Educated,” are often rooted in the fringes of society, but here we see life through the eyes of a person that could be a friend, neighbor or coworker.

She has family support, but still experiences severe trauma at the hands of people that are supposed to care for her. No matter how hard her mother works, they are still one unexpected bill away from complete poverty. She doesn’t see college as viable option even though she excels at writing. And through it all hangs the specter of her father, someone she only knows from letters, but who she feels knows her better than anyone else.

No doubt my enjoyment of “Somebody’s” was aided by the connections Ford and I share by proxy, but you cannot help but admire her candor and cheer for her as she shares her truths, reconciles the past and finds success. She also narrates the audiobook, which allows her personality and humor to shine through — two things that certainly aided her ability to overcome obstacles.

She is an author to watch.

Rating (story): 4/5 stars

Rating (narration): 3/5 stars

Formats: Audiobook (library loan)

Dates read: October 16 - 19, 2021

Multi-tasking: Good to go. I mostly did yardwork and house organization.