Day 23 - Glory Edim

“When did you first see yourself in literature?” Glory Edim

As the only girl with older brothers, reading was always my escape when my brothers limited my play time with them. “Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry” was one such book to which I’d escape during my girlhood. It was the first time I saw myself in literature. It never mattered how many times I’d read it; I would escape in Cassie’s world over and over. 

As a lover of all things “reading books”, I was more than excited to run across Glory Edim, the founder of the Well-Read Black Girl (WRBG).  In 2015, Edim initially launched WRBG on Instagram. An avid reader, Edim’s friend gifted her a t-shirt with the WRBG moniker. When Edim wore her shirt, she was frequently asked about it by strangers, which often turned into conversations about what she was reading at the time.

The goal of WRBG is to showcase the universality of Black women through literature. Through reading the WRBG community addresses racial inequity in publishing and pays homage to the literary legacies of Black women writers. This community of Black women also discusses their interest in literature by Black women writers.

On Instagram, Edim’s posts feature an archival photo of a Black woman writer a quote by the writer. Because of the comments to her post, Edim launched a book club for WRBG. 

Edim published her anthology, “Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves” which includes authors at various stages in their careers.  Interestingly, Edim studied anthologies by Toni Cade Bambara, our Day #9 Revolutionary Black Woman for her anthology. Grounded and guided with Black women writers answering the question, “When did you first see yourself in literature?”, a seemingly simple question but opening a glorious Pandora’s box, sparking a telling journey of how Black girl readers become Black woman writers.

Although Edim corrals the writings of Black women, her own writing is observed in the foreword.  Edim states that her desire is to “replicate the intimacy you have in a book club within the community, where it feels like someone is sitting next to you and telling you a very personal and loving story."

… so, when did your revolution happen? 

Tell us, “When did you first see yourself in literature?”

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