Bunkered in Place? Get a Taste: Reviewing Big Girls Don't Cry by Connie Briscoe
Bunkered in Place? Get a Taste: Reviewing Big Girls Don't Cry by Connie Briscoe
Written by: Elyana Riddick || Date: January 13, 2021
Just like any other day stuck quarantined over Winter Break, I was extremely bored. Scrolling through Twitter brought nothing new, Hulu and Netflix had nothing to watch, and network T.V. at 4 o'clock in the afternoon really had nothing exciting to watch. All of these factors created the perfect conditions for reading a book--an activity that I hadn't participated in in a while.
I couldn't rely on my bookshelf (since I had read all of the books on it), so I took to my parents' personal library for some literary interest. My eyes locked upon Connie Briscoe's Big Girls Don't Cry after seeing the black woman on the cover adorned in red and surrounded by a crowd of business-mundane white folk. It was as if she was demanding me to give her the time of day: that I might find something that I like.
That's exactly what I did.
The book surrounds approximately 15 years of Naomi Jefferson's life--her triumphs, her pitfalls, and everyday antics. The novel beautifully addresses problems associated with living in a black woman's reality. Naomi struggles with her career, self-image, relationships, and her identity. Not only these, but Naomi also finds herself having to legitimize herself in a world so quick to belittle her abilities solely on the basis of her skin and gender. What makes this novel great to read is seeing Naomi processing her situations; Briscoe makes a critical position in showing the interplay of intrinsic thought and extrinsic circumstance, most specifically its implications on mental health and confidence.
I commend Briscoe greatly for addressing sexual frustrations head on. Naomi often finds herself in compromising positions within sexual encounters and relationships she experiences. She questions whether her encounters are simply pleasurable for herself, instances of escapism, or emboldened passion. One of many of Naomi's story arcs consists her struggles with taking romantic risks. Rather than pursuing the man who would one day become her husband, Naomi instead finds herself indulging in men with fleeting feelings and ulterior motives. This is a big factor in Naomi's journey, and one that sometimes guides decisions outside of romantics, intersecting with other problems in her everyday life.
After reflecting on the story, I can say that this book puts a magnifying glass on the consciousness of the "Strong Black Woman." Naomi does a great job in keeping her struggles to herself when it comes to her career and relationships; she's often depicted retreating from friends and loved ones when her life gets difficult. She's torn down, broken, and unresolved constantly because of situations many times outside of her control. Briscoe puts it clearly that coming to success as a black woman is not all rainbows and unicorns--it's grueling, back-breaking work with little reward. I view the narrative of Big Girls Don't Cry more as a testimony of the Strong Black Woman archetype rather than an enabler.
Briscoe's writing is excellent at personifying emotion. You feel sadness and joy dance around you as you read this book. With three parts each spanning over approximately five years, your perception of Naomi grows with Naomi. Feelings transform as Naomi does, and I found myself at times imagining myself as Naomi. She's relatable, loving, and yes, worth the time of day.
Connie Briscoe's Big Girls Don't Cry is available for purchase from Thrift Books. The book is pretty old, so I wasn't able to find a black-owned bookstore that still carries copies. If you know a black bookstore that carries it, let me know in the comments below and I will feature them here. Let us know what you think about the book in the comments below! We'd love to hear from you!
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