In this deeply personal memoir, told in her distinctive, wry style, Anita Heiss gives a first hand account of her experiences as a woman with an Aboriginal mother and Austrian father, and explains the development of her activist consciousness.

Backcover blurb from her book.

Am I Black enough for you by Anita Heiss is a fantastic book. I really loved that although the court case against Andrew Bolt was the genesis for the book, it actually plays very little part in the story. Heiss, unsurprisingly, gives a really good explanation for why the claimants chose the Racial Discrimination Act to take Blot and his publisher to court and once I read it I realised that there really was no other option for them to achieve the ends they wanted to and ultimately did.

This book is like a 101 for people like me who have some little understanding of the First People of my country, but not nearly enough. Heiss writes with a lovely chatty tone and explains so many things that I have been unsure of before this. I am going to buy a copy for myself because I want my kids to read this. I will also be seeking out Anita Heiss’ other books and novels [Not Meeting Mr Right, Avoiding Mr Right, Manhattan Dreaming, Paris Dreaming, Who Am I? The Diary of Mary Talence Sydney 1937] because I like her writing style so much, plus taking note of the Aboriginal authors* she mentions throughout the book and extending my reading list.

Heiss also talks about her career and the frustrations of being an Aboriginal woman writing about Aboriginal people and being passed over for white ‘experts’ who write about Aboriginal people and are somehow supposed to be objective. Throughout the book her determination to overcome the issues she faces with grit and integrity shines through. If you haven’t read this book I recommend you get your hands on a copy as soon as you are able.

*Alexis Wright, Melissa Lucashenko, Bruce Pascoe, Kim Scott, Tara June Winch, Nicole Watson, Philip McLaren, Doris Pilkington, Terri Janke, Sally Morgan. ETA: Larissa Behrendt (this is not an exhaustive list, if anyone is missing from this list it is more likely because I forgot to tag the page they were mentioned on not because the author didn’t mention them ~M)

Categories: arts & entertainment, Culture, education, gender & feminism, indigenous, Life