“It's like summer wear the world out, and by October everyone is just ready for a nap”
― The Water Dancer
― The Water Dancer
“I realized that if we aren’t vigilant, we can move through our entire lives feeling smaller than we actually are—by playing it safe, by unconsciously giving away our power, by dimming our radiance, by not recognizing there is always so much more waiting for us on the other side of fear.”
― More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are
― More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are
“As Naomi Wolf puts it, “A culture fixated on female thinness is not an obsession about female beauty, but an obsession about female obedience.” Thin bodies are the bodies of women who behave themselves.”
― Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
― Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
“If suicide is coupled, then it isn’t simply the act of depressed people. It’s the act of depressed people at a particular moment of extreme vulnerability and in combination with a particular, readily available lethal means.”
― Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know
― Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know
“Voting once or even twice for a Black man is not enough to undo years of anti-Black social conditioning. Fear and feelings, especially about racism, have to be managed constantly.”
― Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower
― Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower
Vanessa’s 2025 Year in Books
Take a look at Vanessa’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.
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