Thicker than Water: A Memoir

It was a great read. There were many themes that resonated with me.

Deep insights from this book. I enjoyed how vulnerable she was on every aspect of her life. It surely challenged her to write this book, I can see and relate on every page.

“Blood may be thicker than water, but love is thicker than blood…Leaning into my curiosity is perhaps the single most important tool my mother has given me. Swimming in the deep end is most definitely my superpower.” “I learned a long time ago that FINE can be an acronym for fucked-up, insecure, neurotic, and emotional…We are as sick as our secrets, and there is healing in community.” Lying is “positioning the truth in a way that was most acceptable to others…I was not abandoning myself to fit in–I was flexing my capacity to feel at home in diverse environments…I went to the imaginary, looking for some truth. And I found it there.” “As an actor…You are the instrument of your expression, and your humanity is on the line…Acting for me was the magical practice of using detailed characters and specific stories to be a mirror, to reflect some truths about humanity back to an audience that does not see us, the actors, but rather sees a version of themselves….I take information and turn it into a life.” “Character, in acting terms, is often defined by how a person does things. Everyone engages in behavior: sleeping, walking, talking; and everyone has feelings: joy, sadness, fear, excitement. How we do those things, and how we express those feelings, helps define a character. How life is expressed uniquely by an individual is part of what makes us who we are.” “Being Olivia Pope had helped me step into being Kerry Washington: actress, advocate, activist, fashion and beauty personality, producer, wife, mother.” Kerry Washington’s Thicker Than Water is luminous!

Thicker than Water~ a memoir by Kerry Washington. 🖊️ Deidra Provost “This book is the result of my attempts to make sense of myself and my family and to accept the truth about who we are. I’ve written this account to more fully understand this truth, to affirm it, and to embrace it. This has given birth to a deeper compassion and love for my parents, and for myself. And I share with you because I do not want to hide.” ~ Kerry 💦 Thicker than Water is a memoir worth reading. It’s not too heavy, but it’s enough to keep you engaged. Kerry takes her readers back, as she chronicles her journey on finding who she is and the person she was becoming. The memoir goes into various aspects of Kerry’s upbringing, offering snippets of a life she had not shared before. Known for living a very private life, here, we learned about Kerry’s family life, where she comes from, and how her family relationships molded her into the actress she is today. Kerry’s life moments reveal the influence of each character and role she played on who she became. Kerry discusses her performance as Olivia Pope on the hit TV series Scandal, which made her a household name. Life chapters opened for readers to read of her years, growing up in the Bronx, her academic successes which lead her to attending The Spence School on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Her college years and the highs and lows of her professional career. She bravely shares dark, difficult moments with her readers as well. If you are interested in Kerry Washington the “sweet heart” of Hollywood. I recommend reading, Thicker than Water. - Deidra Provost, moderator This BrowneGirl Reads book club #thisbrownegirlreads #tbgrbookclub

Such a beautiful, vulnerable share of Kerry’s life and experiences. So much of her identity questions and doubts and ways of navigating and coping resonate with many of us on our life journey