This Here Flesh: Spirituality, Liberation, and the Stories That Make Us (Unabridged)
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4.9 • 16 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In her stunning debut, the creator of Black Liturgies weaves stories from three generations of her family alongside contemplative reflections to discover the “necessary rituals” that connect us with our belonging, dignity, and liberation.
“This is the kind of book that makes you different when you’re done.”—Ashley C. Ford, New York Times bestselling author of Somebody’s Daughter
“Reaches deep beneath the surface of words unspoken, wounds unhealed, and secrets untempered to break them open in order for fresh light to break through.”—Morgan Jerkins, New York Times bestselling author of This Will Be My Undoing and Caul Baby
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The Root, Library Journal
“From the womb, we must repeat with regularity that to love ourselves is to survive. I believe that is what my father wanted for me and knew I would so desperately need: a tool for survival, the truth of my dignity named like a mercy new each morning.”
So writes Cole Arthur Riley in her unforgettable book of stories and reflections on discovering the sacred in her skin. In these deeply transporting pages, Arthur Riley reflects on the stories of her grandmother and father, and how they revealed to her an embodied, dignity-affirming spirituality, not only in what they believed but in the act of living itself. Writing memorably of her own childhood and coming to self, Arthur Riley boldly explores some of the most urgent questions of life and faith: How can spirituality not silence the body, but instead allow it to come alive? How do we honor, lament, and heal from the stories we inherit? How can we find peace in a world overtaken with dislocation, noise, and unrest? In this indelible work of contemplative storytelling, Arthur Riley invites us to descend into our own stories, examine our capacity to rest, wonder, joy, rage, and repair, and find that our humanity is not an enemy to faith but evidence of it.
At once a compelling spiritual meditation, a powerful intergenerational account, and a tender coming-of-age narrative, This Here Flesh speaks potently to anyone who suspects that our stories might have something to say to us.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Part memoir, part spiritual guide, Cole Arthur Riley’s This Here Flesh bridges the divide between divinity and human experience. Using her own life plus those of her father and his mother as anchors, she explores various themes—including “Dignity,” “Justice,” and “Belonging”—from the perspective of a Black woman raised amid the systemic racism of the United States. Versed in Western Christian traditions but not bound to them, she seeks a truth that ties belief to experience. Her vision of God isn’t a passive spirit, but one just as concerned with earthly suffering as any heavenly reward. She unapologetically tailors her message, including her own rage and lament, to Black people generally, and Black women in particular. The suffering and hope of her grandmother, who survived repeated occurrences of childhood sexual abuse, serve to galvanize her purpose. Acting as narrator, her voice conveys the conviction behind her wisdom. Her words demand contemplation, and the reward is a deeper understanding of the godliness that is all around.
Customer Reviews
My personal devotional
This book is an invitation back to humanity. It helped save my life. Thank you Cole.
Heartfelt
This was deep. I could feel her emotions in every word.