Listen to a sample
Firstborn Girls
- Author
- Bernice L. McFadden
- Narrator
- Robin Miles, Bernice L. McFadden
- Publisher
- Random House
- Publish Date
- 6 March 2025
- Run Time
- 12 hours 19 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
Not available in your country
We don't have the rights to sell this audiobook where you are. If it's already in your library you can still listen to it in My Books.
What to expect
Brought to you by Penguin.
A memoir about four generations of women whose lives illuminate a century of American history, by the author of Richard and Judy Book Club pick Sugar
On her second birthday in 1967, Bernice McFadden died. She was in a car crash on the motorway turnoff to Detroit. For a few minutes, she was clinically dead. From the moment of her resuscitation, we follow a remarkable life, all the way up to the publication of her first novel, Sugar.
In 80s Brooklyn, growing up in terror of her alcoholic father, young Bernice loses herself in books. But it’s not until she reads Alice Walker and Toni Morrison, stories about ‘messy, beautiful, joyful Black people’ so reminiscent of her loved ones, that she sees herself within their pages.
Bernice’s family story begins in Sandersville, Georgia, with freedwoman Louisa Vicey Wilson in 1870. Her descendants survived Reconstruction, Jim Crow, joined the ‘great migration’, cried when Dr King was assassinated during The Civil Rights Movement. Wisdom, secrets, and fierce love are passed down through generations of women like Lou’s handmade quilt.
Tracing her roots gives Bernice the strength to write her own story. A memoir of many threads, Firstborn Girls is an extraordinarily moving account of a life shaped both by family history and a drive to be something more.
'Riveting... one of America’s most creative and necessary writers' SAPPHIRE
'McFadden’s ability to tell a story makes this one of the most engrossing memoirs I have read in a long time… People will talk about these First Born Girls for years to come!' TARANA BURKE, activist and author of Unbound
'Remarkable... Firstborn Girls is an absolute treasure' DEESHA PHILYAW, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
© Bernice McFadden 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025
Critics Review
-
Written with brio and brought to life with sharp dialogue, this book is an absorbing account of her struggles to become a writer. It is also a vibrant account of the environment that produced her; an intimate snapshot of how it is to be menaced by a hostile inner city, and what it takes to survive
TLS
-
Firstborn Girls, Bernice McFadden’s riveting memoir, cements her position as one of America’s most creative and necessary writers
SAPPHIRE, New York Times best-selling author of Push and The Kid
-
McFadden’s ability to tell a story makes this one of the most engrossing memoirs I have read in a long time… People will talk about these First Born Girls for years to come!
TARANA BURKE, activist and author of Unbound
-
Remarkable… Firstborn Girls is an absolute treasure
DEESHA PHILYAW, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies
See more reviews See fewer reviews
-
What makes McFadden’s book so absorbing is the way it quietly demonstrates how history is ‘a hard thing to shake’… A powerful, richly tapestried book about race, history, love, and the healing power of the written word
Kirkus
-
McFadden delivers the captivating, multigenerational stories of her family in a poignant memoir
BOOKLIST
-
McFadden has given us a significant work that demands our attention, respect, and, most importantly, our gratitude for her courage in telling her story
CAROLYNN BAIN, Afrori Books
User Reviews
No reviews yet.
Details
- Author
- Bernice L. McFadden
- Narrator
- Robin Miles, Bernice L. McFadden
- Duration
- 12 hours 19 minutes
- Release Date
- 6 March 2025
- ISBN
- 9781529918380
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Random House
- Genre
- Memoirs, History of the Americas, Autobiography: writers
Synopsis
Brought to you by Penguin.A memoir about four generations of women whose lives illuminate a century of American history, by the author of Richard and Judy Book Club pick SugarOn her second birthday in 1967, Bernice McFadden died. She was in a car crash on the motorway turnoff to Detroit. For a few minutes, she was clinically dead. From the moment of her resuscitation, we follow a remarkable life, all the way up to the publication of her first novel, Sugar.In 80s Brooklyn, growing up in terror of her alcoholic father, young Bernice loses herself in books. But it’s not until she reads Alice Walker and Toni Morrison, stories about ‘messy, beautiful, joyful Black people’ so reminiscent of her loved ones, that she sees herself within their pages.Bernice’s family story begins in Sandersville, Georgia, with freedwoman Louisa Vicey Wilson in 1870. Her descendants survived Reconstruction, Jim Crow, joined the ‘great migration’, cried when Dr King was assassinated during The Civil Rights Movement. Wisdom, secrets, and fierce love are passed down through generations of women like Lou’s handmade quilt.Tracing her roots gives Bernice the strength to write her own story. A memoir of many threads, Firstborn Girls is an extraordinarily moving account of a life shaped both by family history and a drive to be something more.'Riveting... one of America’s most creative and necessary writers' SAPPHIRE'McFadden’s ability to tell a story makes this one of the most engrossing memoirs I have read in a long time… People will talk about these First Born Girls for years to come!' TARANA BURKE, activist and author of Unbound'Remarkable... Firstborn Girls is an absolute treasure' DEESHA PHILYAW, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies© Bernice McFadden 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025
About xigxag
xigxag is an independent, UK-based audiobook platform and the UK's only B Corp certified audiobook company. We offer nearly 150,000 audiobooks, all with professional human narration. No AI-generated voices. xigxag is rated an Ethical Consumer Best Buy for audiobooks and a top-rated ethical bookshop.
There is no subscription. You buy the audiobooks you want, you own them permanently, and prices start at $13.95. The more you listen over the year, the less you pay per book, and there is always a selection in Listen for Less from $7.95. You can also send audiobooks as gifts using our audiobook gift cards or in-app gifting.
Every audiobook on xigxag has honest reviews covering both the book and the narration, and our community features make it easy to share what you are listening to, discover what others recommend, and find your next listen.
Download or stream on iOS, Android, or in your browser. Browse the full catalogue at xigxag.co.uk.