Black Girl in Paris

1 Pages 333 Words

Black Girl in Paris is a coming of age story about a smart, young girl named Eden who boldly states in the first chapter, “I’m not afraid of anything.” Embracing the courage and determination of this young woman’s adventuresome spirit to buy a one-way ticket to Paris, I flipped pages wondering what would become of her.
Eden many times has to remind herself of the same thing in France. She is following her dream to live in Paris, following, too, in the footsteps of some of her mentors, most notably, James Baldwin. Along the way, Eden learns many lessons and is forced to make sacrifices of her own personal dignity.
She takes jobs that she wouldn’t put on her “dream job” list, but does so out of a need to survive. Much of this book chronicles these "alternative" modes of employment. And each chapter is named after her new professional exploit. The jobs stretch the gamut: museum guide, traveling companion, artist’s model, au pair, poet’s helper, lover, English teacher, and thief. Throughout, she is challenged to reinvent herself, and forced to question and reassess the core of her being.
Moving from job to job, Eden explores issues of who to trust, where her sexuality lies, and what it is really like to be black in Paris? Much of her journey is focused on her desire to write, to prove that she can write, and that she can somehow rub up against the talent of other fellow Black writers by following in their footsteps.
Shay Youngblood took a similar trip to Paris as a young girl and this story could be mistaken for memoir. Regardless of how accurate these accounts are, this novel is a tale of the vibrant spirit of a strong young woman. It is a testament of the adaptability of the human spirit and how our path of survival pushes us to become more resilient....