Review: The Body is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor

“When we liberate ourselves from the expectation that we must have all things figured out, we enter a sanctuary of empathy.”

Release Date: Janurary 2018

Genre(s): Non-fiction, Feminism

Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Pages: 137

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis

The Body is Not an Apology offers radical self-love as a response to the systems that damage the relationships we have with our bodies. Sonya Renee Taylor guides us to realize our own body shame and reconnect with our bodies, our minds, and our strength.

Review

While The Body is Not an Apology has been on my radar for quite some time now, I never understood what the book was really about until I finally read it. Even the first chapter details what this book is, and what it is not. But what I got from reading this book was unlike what I expected. From recognizing our origins to creating actionable steps for change, The Body is Not an Apology teaches so much about the world around us and the impacts that we may not realize. 

Sonya Renee Taylor starts from the beginning and explains the idea of radical self-love, defining radical as realizing the point of origin. Through this, we understand that how we feel about our bodies are not truly our own thoughts, but what the world has to say about it and how those things stay with us. Throughout The Body is Not an Apology, there are many points of reflection to help readers understand topics in terms of their own experiences. There are also reflection points to help readers understand when they may have been unconsciously biased against others in many ways, and what beliefs may have led to that bias. Somewhere in this book I read that there will soon be an accompanying workbook, and this book seems like a perfect fit for that. 

In addition to discussing our bodies and identities, Sonya Renee Taylor shows how radical self-love can be applied to just about anything and how we can shift our perspectives. Additionally, Taylor discusses actionable steps in the response to systems that damage the relationships we have with our bodies, as well as marginalized identities in general. In particular, she talks about how to have those difficult conversations, and how to better advocate for people of color, the LGBT+ community, and neurodivergent and disabled people. 

All in all, I’m glad I not only read The Body is Not an Apology, but also have a physical copy on my shelves. I personally don’t tab physical books often, but I found myself stopping very often to mark quotes that really stood out to me (and there were a lot). While many of these concepts may be very familiar to those that read many feminist books, it’s definitely still worth the read. I thought I had a very positive relationship with my body until I read this, and the new perspectives this book gave me helped me think differently. The Body is Not an Apology is definitely a book I’ll be referencing often and one whose message will stick with me for a long time.

Goodreads |Bookshop