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A review by neshaisabookworms_book_review
Church Girl by Naima Simone
5.0
5 phenomenal fucking stars!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
10/10 DO RECOMMEND!!!
Whew! Okay y’all I have some really big feelings about this book and how I felt reading it. I’ll do my best to get the point across.
I’m a Bisexual Black Woman who’s originally from Mississippi. I grew up in the church in the middle of the Bible Belt. I was a praise dancer, an usher, Sunday school teacher, VBS teacher, in the choir, and I did whatever else I was voluntold to do. My mom was the church secretary, in the choir, on the usher board, and went on to become ordained as a minister. I have Auntie’s and Uncles who are Pastors and Ministers, and the heads of ministries and boards. Church is who we were. It was our life. I spent so much of my time at church growing up. Revival, church anniversary, pastor anniversary, choir rehearsal, etc. I swear we were at church just as much as we were at school! I never celebrated Halloween or got to trick or treat. Instead we went to church for Hallelujah Night. I didn’t get to dress up or experience Halloween until I went to college.
In short, I was a church girl.
The way this book just hit on EVERYTHING!!! Whew child! I saw so much of myself in Aaliyah. So many of us church girls either wind up like Aaliyah, Tamara, or some weird combo of the two.
The writing painted a picture so vivid that while I was reading it played out in my head like a movie. It was like a 3D movie experience in book form! I could see, hear, smell, and feel everything. Reading this book I became Aaliyah.
This is my favorite Naima Simone book which is wild because I’ve been reading her books for a long time. I found her through the WAGS series and fell in love with her books and writing. This book though, it just hits different! It was a beautiful representation of Black Culture. The AAVE, the banter, the church folks, the recovering from church hurt, the friendships, etc. it was all so beautifully and perfectly done.
Naima Simone took Black Culture, put it on page, and told a story that will resonate with so many people. I absolutely loved it!!!
This is a book that I will re-read over and over again. I can’t wait for Tamara’s story, is it 2026 yet?
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
10/10 DO RECOMMEND!!!
Whew! Okay y’all I have some really big feelings about this book and how I felt reading it. I’ll do my best to get the point across.
I’m a Bisexual Black Woman who’s originally from Mississippi. I grew up in the church in the middle of the Bible Belt. I was a praise dancer, an usher, Sunday school teacher, VBS teacher, in the choir, and I did whatever else I was voluntold to do. My mom was the church secretary, in the choir, on the usher board, and went on to become ordained as a minister. I have Auntie’s and Uncles who are Pastors and Ministers, and the heads of ministries and boards. Church is who we were. It was our life. I spent so much of my time at church growing up. Revival, church anniversary, pastor anniversary, choir rehearsal, etc. I swear we were at church just as much as we were at school! I never celebrated Halloween or got to trick or treat. Instead we went to church for Hallelujah Night. I didn’t get to dress up or experience Halloween until I went to college.
In short, I was a church girl.
The way this book just hit on EVERYTHING!!! Whew child! I saw so much of myself in Aaliyah. So many of us church girls either wind up like Aaliyah, Tamara, or some weird combo of the two.
The writing painted a picture so vivid that while I was reading it played out in my head like a movie. It was like a 3D movie experience in book form! I could see, hear, smell, and feel everything. Reading this book I became Aaliyah.
This is my favorite Naima Simone book which is wild because I’ve been reading her books for a long time. I found her through the WAGS series and fell in love with her books and writing. This book though, it just hits different! It was a beautiful representation of Black Culture. The AAVE, the banter, the church folks, the recovering from church hurt, the friendships, etc. it was all so beautifully and perfectly done.
Naima Simone took Black Culture, put it on page, and told a story that will resonate with so many people. I absolutely loved it!!!
This is a book that I will re-read over and over again. I can’t wait for Tamara’s story, is it 2026 yet?