Dee Book Review || Gabrielle Union. “We’re Going To Need More Wine”

I spent majority of my December searching for free pdf versions of Gabrielle Union’s “We’re Going to Need More Wine”. “I don’t want to spend my money on this book when I can download it but I WANT TO READ IT SO BADLY” I thought.

The contradiction right!

Let me give you a brief background into my reading life, it doesn’t exist. I buy books, loads and loads of them. In fact, in that area you can call me a hoarder. I’m drawn to motivational and inspirational books, poetry as well as autobiographies. I have always had a thing for reading people so autobiographies are the next best thing to that. However even though I spend money buying books, and go as far as carrying them around. I never get past a few chapters. my restless ass just doesn’t like to read. I’m a film over books person.

In December, I had thought to explore audio books however, it wasn’t until my cousin offered to send me a few books that I budged. I started with ITunes but unfortunately only people in the same country as you can gift you books so I ported to Amazon’s audible.

Audible gives you credit for two free books and guess what I chose first? Yes, you are correct. Gabrielle Union’s “We’re Going to Need More Wine”.

And so the journey began….and ended 21 chapters, 7 hrs & 48 mins, three days after.

Gabrielle Union’s “We’re Going to Need More Wine”

This book opens up with a chapter that introduces you to the Gabrielle union or should I say the Nickie (Her nickname gotten from her middle name Monique). Ladies and gentlemen, we don’t know this Nickie. The smart little girl who tried so hard to fit in, in a predominantly white neighbourhood her parents had moved to with the hope of Keeping up with the joneses like she puts it. She takes you on her numerous visits to her grandmas’, sharing details about her times with her cousin, aunty and how the world around them evolved.

I was particularly taken by what she said at some point while talking about those she had come to know at her grandma’s who were involved in selling crack, she said

 “None of These people changed. The environment around them did. They were all good people who made choices that ended up having insane consequences, but their hearts never changed. They were playing roles assigned to them, the same way I did...

She continues to take us on a journey on how she finds and eases back into her blackness and then her sexuality, sharing details of dating, how she lost her virginity to a guy who was known for being the deflower.

She shares with us a million stories about her life but one of the most touching and sincere one is about her rape. It explores how she was randomly raped at gun point by an ex-employee because of negligence on her employer’s part. she recaps the day with the smallest details. And ends it by exploring her journey as a rape victim to being a rape survivor with a few stories about How she just couldn’t go out to places that had money exchange and back restaurants doors for the fear of being raped again and her therapy.

Another very fascinating part of her book was when she talked about her dog, and the time she met a coach who asked her to list 10 things that made her happy and how initially she just couldn’t think of anything. She finally could name three things all of which were food.

Gabrielle union found a way to share all this tough and scary times in her life with humour and getting to hear her read it out with the right amount of emotions and exaggeration was also something.

her relationships with boys and her friendships was a strong theme throughout this book, her parents’ divorce, her own divorce from her first husband who she found was cheating less than 24hours after their engagement. how she had gone ahead to forgive and stay for the fear of being labelled a failure one of her many fears. how she had gotten married even though the priest mispronounced her name. how they both cheated on one another as well as how she was the breadwinner for a while and how she finally left him and still wanted him to like her so she funded his lifestyle six month in advance from when she left.

and then there was the hard part, the struggles and joy of being a step mother and the sadness of having miscarriages in a world where the media won’t stop speculating. the journey through realizing that your money can’t cure your friend of stage 4 breast cancer and the fear everyone especially women face of being outgamed by someone younger, as well as the insecurity that comes as a result of skin colour.

the themes of this book are thought provoking and relatable, friendships, love, sex, infections, breakups, divorce, survival, self-discovery, self-recognition, light skin vs dark skin problems, hollywood and so much more. these themes will leave you apprehensive about wallowing in your pain, it will give you hope, as well as open your inner mind and take you two steps forward through these journey of life.

I am still awestruck about how much this woman has gone through in so few years and how she continues to slay through it all. Now when I see Nickie Union, I see a smart woman who inspite of it all, as chosen to unlearn all that she has learnt, learn through her experiences and through others and continue to bloom.

Of course, you are going to need more wine while reading or listening to this art work except you are driving while listening in which case #Don’t drink and drive.

xo,
Dee