Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America

For some reason, I believed this book will simply talk about how to maintain natural hair. After reading the first chapter it was obvious my initial thought was wrong. This book speaks about the history behind African American texture hair dating back to pre-slavery days. For anyone who enjoy history lessons and preferably about our hair this book is a must read.

For some reason in today’s time there is a battle between relaxed and natural sisters. Now personally, I do not understand the battle because it is pure nonsense. When I think of natural hair and the issues surrounding it, my thoughts lie with women. However, in Hair Story the book talks about the issues with natural hair faced with both men and women. Our black men experienced struggles with accepting their natural hair and conforming to what society deemed as “acceptable”. My favorite quote from the book was by Rochelle Nichols. Nichols decided to go against “the norm” and her mother’s disparagement to embrace her natural hair. She was quoted in the book, “When I die I will be happy; because Jesus will love me with my hair nappy”. I love it!

Again, the book details the history of black hair from year 1400-2000. It was amazing to read how proud our ancestors were of their hair. Sadly, today many of us are afraid to know our natural hair. This book details the love/hate relationship blacks have with their hair for centuries. Additionally, the book gives a chronological time line of the cultural and political aspects behind the changes in black hair. This book is great for understanding the history of our hair; a must read for anyone who desires to know the roots of black hair in America.