Review of Homebodies by Tembe Denton-Hurst

*Homebodies* by Tembe Denton-Hurst (2023). Published by Harper.

When I say I’ve been waiting for this book to come out, I literally mean that the minute I saw the book announcement on Instagram I had this prepped and ready to add to my Goodreads.

I even requested my local library purchase a copy, and when I got the confirmation they did buy copies, I put myself on the first spot on the waitlist. I followed Tembe on Instagram for a hot minute, before I ended up getting rid of my private account, and several of her friends in media. I’m been very into the New York City media crowd because I once though I, too, could join this elite club.

Which is why I was so interested in this book. As someone who did editorial writing and went to a New York fashion school, I know for a fact it’s a completely different experience if you’re someone of color.

I’m white passing and got away with it most of the time, but when professors found out I was Iranian, oh man the racist comments would happen. It was not uncommon to talk to people about the sheer amount of racism that one would face not only at my university, but in the industry as a whole. That’s why I wanted to read Homebodies; it resonated.

I’ve rambled enough already! Here’s my review.

After losing her coveted media job, Mickey temporarily moves back home to Maryland and writes out a manifesto.

Things aren’t going so well for Mickey Hayward at the beginning of Homebodies. She’s been working at a dream job magazine for a bit now, but as a Black woman in the media industry, she’s about to face an unfortunate truth about the racism that permeates throughout the industry as a whole.

Despite all the flashy parties and A-list invites to some of the hottest events in New York City, Mickey ends up getting fired from her job and is replaced by another Black girl. She is told to sign an NDA on the way out about the company’s policies and secrets, which she does because she will be denied her severance pay if she does not do so, but Mickey tells off the supervisor before she leaves about the performance politics going on here.

At the same time, Mickey has hit a bump in her relationship. Her partner, Lexi, takes her to her mother’s house, where Mickey realizes Lexi has been hiding her promotion from work. Lexi’s mother also hates Mickey, making passive aggressive comments about her despite knowing she’s a room over, and Lexi defends her mother.

After Mickey loses her job, it also ends up frustrating Lexi because Mickey clearly is depressed, doesn’t shower or go out, and has been spending all of her severance pay on ordering food. The two end up getting in a massive argument after heading home from Lexi’s house, where they agree to take a break.

So Mickey packs all her belongings up and heads down to Maryland. Lexi is shocked to see her leave, but Mickey is going to take her break whether Lexi likes it or not.

She heads down to Washington D.C. to spend time with her grandparents, and, while the signing the NDA should shut her up, Mickey ends up posting an entire manifesto about the racism and aggressions she’s experienced as a Black woman and posts in on Twitter. No one ends up responding, and she realizes that she’s been iced out of all the industry group chats she’s been in. Everyone probably saw it, but no one cares to help her after this.

Mickey arrives in Maryland, where she spends time with her grandparents. She doesn’t tell any of her family she lost her job, and is sent on normal routine chores like going to the grocery store and being dragged to church. But at the grocery store, while she’s checking out, she runs into her old flame Tee.

Tee was a talented female basketball player with a promising future, but an injury ended up finishing her career before she could ever make it big. Now she just works at the grocery store.

Although Lexi is calling her constantly and trying to make up, Mickey ends up getting tangled back with Tee, who still lives with her mother in the area.

The good chunk of the novel is Mickey trying to reconcile with her past and Tee, her job and what has happened, as well as the future ahead of her as Lexi tries to make things better while Mickey just ignores all of her calls. The culmination of all of this blows up when one of the higher-ups at the media company is busted for being a straight up racist, and then Mickey’s Twitter manifesto goes viral. She gets invited to talk shows, people love her, and suddenly her career might’ve ended for real, but it’s also getting started in a different way.

Overall Thoughts

I saw a bunch of people on Goodreads giving this a bad reviews and saying they did not finish it, but, if we’re going to be honest, I genuinely enjoyed Homebodies.

Some people crash after working in toxic industries and need to run away, and as someone who ran away from New York back home to Maryland myself after breaking down because of the school and people in it, I could really relate to Mickey. This is a well-written novel, but there are some loose ends.

It’s kind of an open ending as to what happens, as she ended up being with Tee during her time in Maryland, yet she returns to Lexi when she comes back to New York.

I understand the whole having two different lives thing when in a different place like New York, but I think I wanted to see more as a reader. But I enjoyed the novel overall; I ended up devouring it in about an hour and a half.

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