Something Like Beautiful: One Single Mother's Story by Asha Bandele


  • When Asha Bandele fell in love with a prisoner serving a twenty-to-life sentence and became pregnant with his daughter, she had reason to hope they would live together as a family. But soon after Nisa was born, Asha’s dreams were shattered. Her husband, Rashid, was denied parole and told he’d be deported to his native Guyana once released. Suddenly a statistic—a black single mother in New York City—Asha kept it together on the outside while falling apart on the inside. Despite having a great job at a high-profile magazine and a beautiful daughter whom she adored, Asha began drinking and smoking and stumbled into a relationship that opened new wounds—descending into depression when her life should have been filled with love and joy.

    A lyrical, astonishingly honest memoir, Something Like Beautiful is not only Asha’s story but also the story of thousands of women who struggle daily with little help and much against them.

  • Something Like Beautiful: One Single Mother's Story

    By Asha Bandele

    Paperback: 208 pages

  • “Once again asha bandele has a poignant story to share in Something Like Beautiful. It is the love that comes through that makes this such a compelling tale.” (Nikki Giovanni, poet)

    “We should all be blessed with the intellect and insight bandele brings to motherhood—the struggles, the joys, the fears, and the hope. Indeed, this is a fine portrait of what it means to be a single mom—a mom, period—in America.” (Denene Millner, Reality Check columnist, Parenting magazine)