Nigerian American actress Uzo Aduba, most known for her performances in Orange is the New Black, In Treatment, and Painkillers, released her debut memoir The Road Is Good: How a Mother’s Strength Became a Daughter’s Purpose, published by Viking Books, on September 10. 

The Road Is Good: How a Mother’s Strength Became a Daughter’s Purpose follows her childhood in an all-white neighborhood, her mothers determination rooted in her sense of self as a Nigerian woman, and Aduba plans to instill the same worth in her child(ren). 

Aduba writes about her family feeling left out in their white Massachusetts suburb. It felt like matter what room she was in, she stood out. Though she was grounded by her mothers wisdom, and sense of worth in their Nigerian identity and history. She believes that the balancing act of standing out and fitting in has contributed to her success today. The Road Is Good is more than just a history of Aduba’s childhood into adulthood, it is a journey of self-discovery in which Aduba explores her family’s story guided by her mother’s wisdom. 

In an interview with Shondland, Aduba highlights the need for the preservation of her identity and culture because;

The immigrant experience is one of dreaming. It’s people who come from a place with a desire for there to be more. They want a better life for their kids. That is similar to the dream most parents have for their children. There’s a lot of navigating and code-switching — which I talk about — that happens for Black Americans too and people who are “other” or “the only” in a larger body of people. It’s managing how to hold on to your culture and the place from which you come, and how to marry that with this new place that you live.

In a world where Aduba felt she was alone, her Mother and her culture were pillars of support. This memoir serves not only as a glimpse back in time, through her childhood and the things others sacrificed to get her here, but as a way to preserve her culture, and her mother’s memory, forever in ink.

 

Buy Aduba’s debut Memoir  here