Listen free for 30 days

  • This Is Major

  • Notes on Diana Ross, Dark Girls, and Being Dope
  • Written by: Shayla Lawson
  • Narrated by: Shayla Lawson
  • Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
This Is Major cover art

This Is Major

Written by: Shayla Lawson
Narrated by: Shayla Lawson
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $32.62

Buy Now for $32.62

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Tax where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

From a fierce and humorous new voice comes a relevant, insightful, and riveting collection of personal essays on the richness and resilience of Black girl culture - for fans of Samantha Irby, Roxane Gay, Morgan Jerkins, and Lindy West.

Shayla Lawson is major. You don’t know who she is. Yet. But that’s okay. She is on a mission to move Black girls like herself from best supporting actress to a starring role in the major narrative. Whether she’s taking on workplace microaggressions or upending racist stereotypes about her home state of Kentucky, she looks for the side of the story that isn’t always told, the places where the voices of Black girls haven’t been heard.

The essays in This Is Major ask questions like: Why are Black women invisible to AI? What is “Black girl magic”? Or: Am I one viral tweet away from becoming Twitter famous? And: How much magic does it take to land a Tinder date?

With a unique mix of personal stories, pop culture observations, and insights into politics and history, Lawson sheds light on these questions, as well as the many ways Black women and girls have influenced mainstream culture - from their style, to their language, and even their art - and how “major” they really are.

Timely, enlightening, and wickedly sharp, This Is Major places Black women at the center - no longer silenced, no longer the minority.

©2020 Shayla Lawson (P)2020 HarperAudio

What the critics say

"Shayla Lawson's agile narration adds another layer of depth to this collection of essays about Black girlhood and womanhood.... What's especially remarkable is how Lawson alters her voice to fit her material. In an essay about performing For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/ When the Rainbow Is Enuf in high school, her tone is somber and reflective. In a piece about racism in the workplace, she infuses her voice with sharp humor. When she's talking about singer Diana Ross, you can hear the smile beneath her words. Her narration is as varied as the essays, making this audiobook a true pleasure to listen to." (AudioFile magazine)

What listeners say about This Is Major

Average Customer Ratings

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.