Taylor Cassidy is a popular TikTok creator of the series "Fast Black History." She's in her early twenties and already very popular. This book is a compilation of bios of Black people who did notable things, told in a conversational style. Let me note right up front that I'm an older white lady, and I am not in the intended audience! She takes a very casual tone, as I'm sure works beautifully on her TikTok channel, talking firsthand with teens.

In every chapter, she includes a sort of sidebar with a different color background and the heading "Tay Story." She tells about something in her own life that relates to what the person featured in that chapter went through - and how she learned from them and you can, too.

I'm not very near to the trials of high school, so I wasn't as interested in those parts as in the bios they were interrupting, but I think teens will relate to most of the things she describes. And that got me thinking about something in my life, so it seems only fair to insert this:

Sondy Story

Last summer, I went to a Christian writers' conference, and one of the editors who was speaking said that everybody's first Christian book is a memoir.

And I had to plead guilty. I have a book about Psalms (and I recently signed with a literary agent!) - and I illustrate each type of Psalm by telling my own story and how different types of Psalms were helpful at different times.

But the editor continued. It's okay to include your own story if it illustrates something bigger. Strangers don't necessarily care about your life - but if you can use it to illustrate something bigger, that can work and add a personal touch. I think I've managed that in my Psalms book.

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And I also think Taylor has managed it in her book. Her stories show teens how the qualities found in these Black heroes can inspire you to get through difficulties in your own life. I wouldn't want to read a straight memoir from Taylor - She's so young! But a series of profiles of Black heroes peppered with personal experiences that relate? It ends up being an interesting and readable book.

As a librarian, I'd like some notes in the back as to her sources, but she did try to include in the text where she got a lot of the information. This is Black History that is the opposite of a textbook, and I think kids from middle school up will enjoy her fresh take - and probably learn even more on her TikTok channel.