Interesting and well written I just personally couldn’t get into the story. Difficult to follow at times and a little slow. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Journalist, podcast host, attorney and media personality Eboni K. Williams shares how Black unity is crucial for individual and collective success in her new book titled Bet on Black: The Good News About Being Black in America Today. It is a call to action. Through personal experiences, in depth research and accurate facts, she shows readers what it means to be Black today and our worth.

Bet on Black is a book that I will frequently reference. I have more highlighted passages than not. The shout-outs to specific historical events, quotes from Frederick Douglass and the keep-it-real directives as we move forward in society. There are so many key takeaways.

Eboni K. Williams' goal of writing her second book is to unite us. We will not let our futures be dictated by anti-Black nonsense. Bet on Black is inspiring, relatable and a celebration of Blackness. It goes without saying this is the best nonfiction book I've read thus far in 2023.

Happy Belated Pub Day, Eboni K. Williams! Bet on Black: The Good News About Being Black in America Today is now available.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~LiteraryMarie

I'm a huge fan of Eboni K Williams. This woman is a straight shooter. Tells the truth and holds nothing. Bet on black gives readers the motivation to know who you are as an African American. Ms Williams gives uplifting words in this book. I could not put it down. I would definatelty "BET ON BLACK"

This book needs to be in schools! Williams intellectually explains her journey and what Blackness is to her! Eboni explains why we should be happy to be Black as well as explaining how the White America has made us inferior to make us weak while white people succeed with no intellect in the positions they possess! Literally we as Black people need to be unapologetic about our culture!

Thank you to Net Galley and @legacylitbooks for access to an advance reader copy (eARC) of Bet on Black. I was not at all familiar with the author prior to hearing conversation through Black Bookstagram community on this highly anticipated read.

This book is a manifest to Black people in America encouraging expansion and growth within all who read. It’s a love story of sorts to the lived Black American experience, the brilliance and resilience within it. It is an excellent read to move into Black History Month with. Highly recommended.

4/5⭐️

Before reading this book, my first introduction to Eboni K. Williams was through the Real Housewives of New York. The show did not do her justice. Williams has such a diverse background - lawyer, journalist, reality show star, podcaster, etc. This book is described as Williams inviting us to join her on the quest to show the world what Blackness really is. The author also relates this back to her own life and we get to see what has influenced her decisions overtime. With such a unique resume, it was insightful to see why she chose certain paths in her life. There’s also a lot of history interspersed within the book that was valuable for me to learn.

Thank you NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review!

The title of this book caught my attention & peaked my interest. That interest led me to request an advance copy from Netgalley. Admittedly, I had heard of Eboni Williams in passing but I really didn't know a lot about her. Where do I begin with this review? I read this book in just almost one setting. As a Black Woman in America, I can relate to almost every element of content here. In the past, I have not been so comfortable owning my blackness in certain spaces for fear of how others would react. I am now owning this space & I don't dim my unapologetically blackness anymore. This book gave me even more confidence in owning my place in these spaces. Because of reading this book, I'm also a new listened of Williams' podcast Holding Court. Williams' tagline from her RHONY days "I've had to work twice as hard for half as much, but now I'm coming for everything" is my new motto!!! We coming!!!!

Thanks, Netgalley, the publisher & Eboni Williams for this advance copy.

I had never heard of Eboni before this book. I picked it up based on the title because I've been on a bit of a "Blackness in America" reading spree. Eboni's book gives a good overview of Black history and the barriers Black women face while focusing on strengths of the Black experience and tips for achieving personal and professional success in the present.

As a lifelong reader, I related to Eboni's story of having to go above and beyond regular school curriculum to educate herself and learn about Black leaders like Malcolm X and Marcus Garvey. The stories she shared about triumphing when no one believed in her were inspiring and her advice is clear and relatable.

This book is a love letter of sorts to black people in American as much as it's a time to wake up and live in your truth instead of shielding your true self to appease society. The more you read the more you'll see that it's not a fuss at you or make you feel bad about not realizing that we sometimes placate to the colonization and treatment around us type book. It's a so you can see that we are so use to hiding our black identity because others are uncomfortable that we are oblivious sometimes to know it's wrong. The book takes you Through Blackness as it is frown upon by others, but also why you should love it even through the pain, heartache, and suffering. I love the way the author invites us to take up space where they say we can't and do it with your Blackness that is regal and strong. The play by play of the black experience while at the same time giving an instructional blueprint on starting the path of loving your Blackness. This also is a divorce letter to colonization and a love letter to the Blackness within self. My favorite chapters were counsel and process...especially counsel " As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another proverbs 27:17" this reminds me of the movement in which black women on social media apps have decided to come together to build and support each into success. This book is so good from the quotes to the references of black leaders. Outstanding read!

Eboni is an absolute powerhouse and I adored getting a glimpse of her life on RHONY. This was great and so insightful. Thank you netgalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review!

In Bet on Black, Eboni K. Williams writes that her purpose is to unite the Black community so that we can "collectively refuse" to internalize anti-Blackness in whatever form it takes. Eboni K. Williams is an African-American lawyer and television host. I've always admired how she has used her influence to disrupt harmful narratives and she does the same in this exciting upcoming book release. Williams wants us to reimagine and reframe our possibilities as a people by reauthorizing a truer and more empowering narrative about who we have always been and who we are within the context of American culture and history. She references influential figures in Black history and within the present times and uses the truth of our history to remind us of our greatest strengths and gifts.

Among many of my favorite one liners is this one: "I'm the complete and total shit because the blood of Harriet Tubman runs through veins." I immediately wrote it down to reference for myself on days when I need a powerful affirmation and reminder of who our ancestors are. As Black people, we have always been taught how to navigate white spaces and how to code switch and move through life with a double consciousness but at what cost - for many of us the cost has been mental, emotional, psychological and has taken a deep toll. Williams reminds us that it takes five positive comments to cancel or outweigh a negative one. It will take work to undue the harm of internalized racism and racial trauma. The starting point of the healing journey is to acknowledge our own history reflective of the grit, excellence and individuality of the Black experience.

In Bet on Black, Williams also shares why she chose to leave her career as an attorney, the challenges of her experience as a broadcaster and journalist in the world of media, and her overall experiences as a Black woman in this country who strategically navigates the duality of the Mammy and Jezebel narrative everyday. She also shares poignant financial insights and advice for those who want to make smart money moves and puts all of her analysis within cultural context. Bet on Black is a love letter to Black Americans and a mirror reflecting back to us the beauty of who we are reminding us that we are more than enough and have always been.

"Just love being Black. Don't be bamboozled or hoodwinked into minimizing your Blackness in hopes that it'll get you anywhere in this nation, because I assure you, it will not."

Thank you to the author and publisher for the e-arc copy!