The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

Deesha Philyaw’s collection of nine short stories about Black women gives insight in a life behind closed doors, rules unknown to many of us, a secret double life nobody sees or wants to see. The book was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction and was awarded, among others, the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and the Los Angeles Book prize. All stories centre around Black women and Christianity highlighting contradictions and hypocrisy and also a group of women who accept their place given to them by powerful men. They all endure the double discrimination of being Black and being a woman – until they don’t anymore.What most women share is the fact that they lead a kind of double life they are forced into. For the outside word, they dress decently, lead a God abiding life, do not speak up and care for their children. Yet, at home, behind the closed door, among themselves, they speak freely, they know that even the clergymen have bodily needs they fulfil. They are not perfect, often far from, but they try to make the best of it and teach their daughters what they need to know about life and its double-standards.The variety of women we get to know is large, from homosexual spinsters still searching for husbands, over half-sisters mourning their always unfaithful father, to a young girl who finally comes to understand that how easily you can be trapped in a situation where wen exert power over you and your body.The author captures the decisive moment when desires and religious rules collide. They need to cope with contradictions, build their lives around it, always threatened by the verdict of the public and the parish. They are never free, not even those who try to flee from the south, who work and study hard for a better life - ultimately, it all comes back to them.The tone is funny at times, desperate and harsh at others, always reflecting the characters’ moods on the one hand, which, on the other, will often not leave their house or even their body. The collection shows a life hidden, a life in the shadow of big and strong men, a life worth narrating.

A brilliant collection of juicy short stories about black women, their place in their community, their dreams, desires and their very different ideas of being good. Each story is unique and memorable in its own way - reading them feels daring, joyous and liberating.Many thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for an Advance Review Copy.

Short stories are not normally my thing. I either struggle to connect with the characters or am left wanting more. This was not the case with this beautiful collection, which covers themes of love, desire and sexuality among Black women, as set against the religious beliefs and upbringing that denies them.Without exception, the women’s voices are raw and honest, and often drenched in guilt; their conflicting emotions portrayed with an intimacy that is both haunting and fierce.My favorite of the nine stories was Snowfall, about two women whose ‘forbidden’ relationship had forced them to move far from home in order to live openly in their love. I was struck by the conflict between romantic and familial love; the nostalgia and longing for one’s roots, while accepting that ‘home’ is a person and not a place.Overall, I found this a powerful and very readable anthology and would recommend it both to short story lovers and those who perhaps struggle with this genre.Thanks for reading my review. I hope you found it helpful. You can find more candid book reviews on my Amazon profile page.