📚 Book Review: Token Black Girl by Danielle Prescod

🌟 4/5 Stars 🌟

Token Black Girl is a raw, powerful memoir about Danielle Prescod’s experience navigating the beauty and fashion industries as a Black woman. She dives into topics like racism, beauty standards, and identity with honesty and vulnerability.

It’s an eye-opening read that sheds light on how societal pressures and expectations shape self-worth. Prescod’s story is relatable, insightful, and so important for the conversation around race and representation.

If you enjoy thought-provoking memoirs, this one is worth picking up!

This book was a great read. Prescott uses biting humor, sharp critique, and transparent honesty in her memoir as she addressing everything from racism in corporate America, beauty standards, love, and everything in between. In so many ways, Token Black Girl is a familiar story for many black women who are simply trying to succeed while playing the cards they are dealt, with varying results. The writing style is accessible for any audience, regardless of education level, so I think the book will do really well.

I learned a lot from this book and it helped me understand our culture in many ways. I’ll have to sit with it for awhile to decide how I think about it

I had a hard time getting into this one though I usually enjoy memoirs. I could relate to experiences shared by the author which were rich and descriptive I felt I was living the experience. We don’t see often discussions of eating disorders among black women. This exists and I’m glad the author shared her personal journey. The author discusses race and class which are always challenging no matter who you are. Well written, thought provoking and book relevent to our current times.

Danielle Prescod's new memoir is a sharp and biting exploration of the authors position as a fashion and beauty insider. Prescod's prose is so engaging, it's almost as if when we're reading, we're able to visualize her in front of us. Token Black Girl is an essential and powerful read.

So many things to say about this one. The first time I saw Danielle Prescod name I was inviting her and her sister to NYFW and awaiting their confirmation or denial to attend. Danielle was at Hearst and her presence mattered to our clients as well as to my employer. Danielle in a lot of ways looked like me and I wondered greatly how she got the role, the recognition, the responsibility to represent big publications and what her story was. So when this book released last year I had to have it. And after reading it, I cried, I laughed. I think if anyone had questions about my black clothing, my makeup obsession, my eating habits; they’ll read this book and understand me better because I understand myself better as often the only PR black girl in white spaces that after 2018 had to figure out who I was and why. I wish I wrote out more of my conclusions at this time.

If I ever had a desire to commit to hosting a book club, this would be the first book we read. The first question I asked was, “who taught the people who taught you?” The last question I asked was, “what do you do with your experiences that you don’t realize in the moment were harmful to you?”

Prescod explores being a token black girl with her employer, with her friends and in education. She explores what limited access it meant to be black in media did to her identity and how she thought she needed to represent herself at work and on social media. “I minimized the importance of race in my life and sought to assimilate by worshiping at the altars of the same things my white friends did.”

One of the biggest burdens with being black in white spaces is microagressions in work to relation to what is implied by us advocating for ourselves and establishing boundaries on where we don’t want others touching our hair and how we want to be treated.

My only regret with this book is devouring it and not annotating. Surely, one day I’ll get a few token black girls to release. Has anyone else, read this one, would love to read reviews and thoughts.

I am typically the Token Black Girl in situations, so it was so refreshing to read a book that perfectly covered exactly how I have felt and feel. This book is relatable to those who grew up Black in predominately white spaces, and should be required reading for others to learn how to do better.

No need for me to write a memoir, this book is basically my life beat for beat except I grew up in the Midwest. Finally a book where I feel seen and could see myself reading this over and over

This honest book was really eye-opening and thought-provoking. It is shocking in places but there is humour in the writing too which makes it an engrossing and enjoyable read.

This was an incredible first hand account that helped me gain a deeper understanding of a culture and experience that I am not a part of. I will use this knowledge to be a stronger advocate and ally.

A fascinating look at race and size in fashion. I deeply appreciated Prescod's candor and vulnerability and enjoyed her memoir a lot.

Loved this book, it was a fascinating insight into the writers life, but also that of girls born in the 90’s

This book showed a good representation of being a black girl in this day In. I thought the character was relatable and the plots were amazing and easy to follow.

I enjoyed reading this book! I thought it was interesting and well-written. I look forward to this author’s next work!

I stopped rating memoirs (publicly!) a few years ago, but I did really enjoy Danielle Prescod’s memoir! So many good 90s and 2000s references! I started following her in 2020, and this deep dive into her life and upbringing was interesting and eye-opening.

This personal memoir was such an emotional and eye opening read. The author details her experiences growing up, sometimes being the only or one of the few black people in a space. Some of us have experienced what the author has, and some of it I personally have not experienced. There were and have been many times I've experienced being the "Token Black Person" in majority white spaces.

I received a copy of the book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review of my own personal thoughts and opinions.

A very important read, and very engaging. It made me think back to how people of color may have felt at my mostly all white college, and what I could have done differently as a result. I appreciated this memoir.

I don’t generally rate memoirs because who am I to put a rating on someone’s personal experiences? But this memoir is absolutely a 5 star read.

I’ve followed Danielle Prescod on Instagram since 2020 and have a great respect for her, her honesty, and her taste in books (I’ve loved everything I’ve read by her recommendation).

Her memoir is tremendously written and if you have a chance to listen to the audiobook, I highly recommend listening to Ms. Prescod’s poignant story in her own words. I finished this book in 2 sittings.

Ms. Prescod has a gift with words, which I do not, so I’m just going to bullet point some of the things I took away from this book, which is so much more than a memoir!

- Practical, uncomfortable, and jolting examples of white privilege and white supremacy
- Fascinating commentary on pop culture, fashion, media, representation
- Poignant reflections on body image
- Brutal, refreshing honesty
- Fascinating, jarring look inside the fashion industry
- Literal jaw dropping micro aggressions and racism

This should absolutely be required reading for all women, especially fellow white women.

I listened to the audio AND followed along on Kindle so I could highlight passages. I have never highlighted more in a book!

Really odd book. I was expecting this to be about black female empowerment, instead it was about someone who seemed to be ashamed she is black? She was giving this very odd vibe, and I don't quite understand what this book was trying to achieve.

This book was eye opening to how much subtle racism is in our everyday lives, that is considered normal, starting from a young age. I’m mixed and was able to relate to a lot of what Danielle was talking about. Except for the eating disorder, which I believe there should be a trigger warning for.
This book was well written, raw, and insightful.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.