Wash Day Diaries
- Downloads：6943
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-07-24 09:51:57
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Jamila Rowser
- ISBN：1797205455
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
From writer Jamila Rowser and artist Robyn Smith comes a captivating graphic novel love letter to the beauty and endurance of Black women， their friendships， and their hair。
Wash Day Diaries tells the story of four best friends—Kim， Tanisha， Davene， and Cookie—through five connected short story comics that follow these young women through the ups and downs of their daily lives in the Bronx。
The book takes its title from the wash day experience shared by Black women everywhere of setting aside all plans and responsibilities for a full day of washing， conditioning， and nourishing their hair。 Each short story uses hair routines as a window into these four characters' everyday lives and how they care for each other。
Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith originally kickstarted their critically acclaimed， award-winning slice of life mini comic， Wash Day， inspired by Rowser's own wash day ritual and their shared desire to see more comics featuring the daily lived experiences of young Black women。 Wash Day Diaries includes an updated， full color version of this original comic—which follows Kim， a 26-year-old woman living in the Bronx—as the book's first chapter and expands into a graphic novel with short stories about these vibrant and relatable new characters。
In expanding the story of Kim and her friends， the authors pay tribute to Black sisterhood through portraits of shared， yet deeply personal experiences of Black hair care。 From self-care to spilling the tea at an hours-long salon appointment to healing family rifts， the stories are brought to life through beautifully drawn characters and different color palettes reflecting the mood in each story。
At times touching， quiet， triumphant， and laugh out loud funny， the stories of Wash Day Diaries pay a loving tribute to Black joy and the resilience of Black women。
Wash Day Diaries tells the story of four best friends—Kim， Tanisha， Davene， and Cookie—through five connected short story comics that follow these young women through the ups and downs of their daily lives in the Bronx。
The book takes its title from the wash day experience shared by Black women everywhere of setting aside all plans and responsibilities for a full day of washing， conditioning， and nourishing their hair。 Each short story uses hair routines as a window into these four characters' everyday lives and how they care for each other。
Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith originally kickstarted their critically acclaimed， award-winning slice of life mini comic， Wash Day， inspired by Rowser's own wash day ritual and their shared desire to see more comics featuring the daily lived experiences of young Black women。 Wash Day Diaries includes an updated， full color version of this original comic—which follows Kim， a 26-year-old woman living in the Bronx—as the book's first chapter and expands into a graphic novel with short stories about these vibrant and relatable new characters。
In expanding the story of Kim and her friends， the authors pay tribute to Black sisterhood through portraits of shared， yet deeply personal experiences of Black hair care。 From self-care to spilling the tea at an hours-long salon appointment to healing family rifts， the stories are brought to life through beautifully drawn characters and different color palettes reflecting the mood in each story。
At times touching， quiet， triumphant， and laugh out loud funny， the stories of Wash Day Diaries pay a loving tribute to Black joy and the resilience of Black women。
Reviews
D。T。 Henderson
，
Loved this！ But do know it’s very open-ended for those who don't like Slice of Life。 Seeing the lovely ladies， the New York setting， and the passages of parting hair， braiding hair， and adding conditioner warmed my heart and glazed my metaphorical donut。 Loved this！ But do know it’s very open-ended for those who don't like Slice of Life。 Seeing the lovely ladies， the New York setting， and the passages of parting hair， braiding hair， and adding conditioner warmed my heart and glazed my metaphorical donut。 。。。more
Sheba Hector
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This was just so good。 I was giggling and grinning the majority of the time。 I really enjoyed reading this and it needs to be on a list。 It was just a chill time。
Molly
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This felt very authentic。 Even good friends say the wrong things sometimes （looking at you， Cookie， and your citrine）。 You don't get alot from each character， but just enough to hope there's more in the future。 This felt very authentic。 Even good friends say the wrong things sometimes （looking at you， Cookie， and your citrine）。 You don't get alot from each character， but just enough to hope there's more in the future。 。。。more
Sammy
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This was a cute little window story into the lives of four friends: Kim， Nisha， Davene， and Cookie。 There is not a ton of plot besides just a look at what goes on in their day。 Think Our Town but with 4 Black girls in their 20s。 It does nod at the struggles of Black Girl Mental Health， which I think is a really important conversation that needs to be louder for people in the back。 （If your brain doesn’t make the chemical， store-bought is fine） No shame in the self-care game。 This is an adult gra This was a cute little window story into the lives of four friends: Kim， Nisha， Davene， and Cookie。 There is not a ton of plot besides just a look at what goes on in their day。 Think Our Town but with 4 Black girls in their 20s。 It does nod at the struggles of Black Girl Mental Health， which I think is a really important conversation that needs to be louder for people in the back。 （If your brain doesn’t make the chemical， store-bought is fine） No shame in the self-care game。 This is an adult graphic novel but I will include a content warning for nudity， intercourse， depression， and language。 。。。more
the。between。lines
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i like how the friend’s didn’t always give the best advice to eachother， felt realistic。 also the art！！
Rod Brown
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Some gentle slice-of-life stories about hair， love， and friendship with a group of four Black women。 I liked all the insight into the intricacies of hair care， and the rest was pretty good too。If you enjoy this， be sure to check out Hot Comb by Ebony Flowers。 Some gentle slice-of-life stories about hair， love， and friendship with a group of four Black women。 I liked all the insight into the intricacies of hair care， and the rest was pretty good too。If you enjoy this， be sure to check out Hot Comb by Ebony Flowers。 。。。more
Hannah O'Donnell
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This was gorgeous
Rayhan
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too good， defos need a sequel theres so much story to explore for each character we need it i’ll wait however long for it so its just as good as this one hehe :）
Norma
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If you are looking for a fun fast and funny book to read， pick up Wash Day Diaries。 It is a comic book type format。 Four ride or Die friends。 Living in the Bronx。 Kim Nisha Davene and Cookie are true friends and show you what Black Sisterhood really means。
Yasmin
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More like 3。5 stars。。。cute short stories， great graphics。 Wonderful stories about four good friends。 Just wish that several issues would have been dealt with more and that the book was longer。
Chamaree
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this was truly a love letter to black girls and our hair。 the struggles we go through and the amount of time and love we put into it。
Frey Frey
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This was just so so lovely！ Very happy I stumbled upon this story <3
cass
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wholesome depiction of Black sisterhood and friendship， just a overall lovely graphic novel <3
Bryanna Shanté
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this graphic novel is a love letter to black women everywhere。 i could feel it and see it， and i love iti love all these women individually and i see a little bit of myself in each of them。 this story just made me feel seen。 i was like this is literally my life on these pages lmaoobut not only did it touch on those heavy topics， this story was hilarious。 nisha’s entanglement situation and davene pulling that jamaican flag out of her bra tickled me （the latter especially because i’m jamaican and this graphic novel is a love letter to black women everywhere。 i could feel it and see it， and i love iti love all these women individually and i see a little bit of myself in each of them。 this story just made me feel seen。 i was like this is literally my life on these pages lmaoobut not only did it touch on those heavy topics， this story was hilarious。 nisha’s entanglement situation and davene pulling that jamaican flag out of her bra tickled me （the latter especially because i’m jamaican and we’re really prideful like that😭）the last 3 pages made me tear up a little which i wasn’t expecting at all😩。 they were just so beautifulbeyond that though， the graphics are amazing。 jamila and robyn snappedthe last thing i have to say is: kim， nisha， davene cookie， and black women everywhere， i love you 。。。more
Nore
，
Very cute， and deserving of at least a solid three stars: I liked it！ The care and styling of hair is used to look at how women with textured hair care for themselves and others - whether that be taking time to take care of your hair yourself， paying for a new style that makes you feel confident， having a friend come over to do it， whatever。The main drawback is that because this comic attempts to tackle so much in so few pages， it's not as deep or complex as it could be; some of the stories felt Very cute， and deserving of at least a solid three stars: I liked it！ The care and styling of hair is used to look at how women with textured hair care for themselves and others - whether that be taking time to take care of your hair yourself， paying for a new style that makes you feel confident， having a friend come over to do it， whatever。The main drawback is that because this comic attempts to tackle so much in so few pages， it's not as deep or complex as it could be; some of the stories felt very surface-level， and we don't get much insight into the characters other than a few basic traits: Cookie is the MPDG。 Davene's entire personality is The Depressed One。 Cookie's scene with her abuela was probably my favorite in the book。 Touching， painful， and heartwarming all at once。 。。。more
E
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3。5 starsCute。 Short & sweet。
Nourhan
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Idk
roe♡
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This was so amazing。 Like truly the most comforting graphic novel I’ve ever read。 As a black girl， it’s so rare to see these every day experiences depicted in this way， and it made me feel so warm inside。 The illustrations are absolutely beautiful and the stories inside were so… real。 I love the way Wash Day Diaries covers the ups and downs of romantic and familial relationships， mental health， and ties it up in a beautiful bow that highlights the true friendship of these four black women。 Love， This was so amazing。 Like truly the most comforting graphic novel I’ve ever read。 As a black girl， it’s so rare to see these every day experiences depicted in this way， and it made me feel so warm inside。 The illustrations are absolutely beautiful and the stories inside were so… real。 I love the way Wash Day Diaries covers the ups and downs of romantic and familial relationships， mental health， and ties it up in a beautiful bow that highlights the true friendship of these four black women。 Love， love， love this！！ 。。。more
Akona
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So precious！ I loved each one of the stories。 The illustrations are also crazy good。
Morgan
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This is such a cool graphic novel， the illustrations are absolutely beautiful and perfect。 I loved the concept of this book， it follows 4 best friends， and has glimpses into each of their lives and their hair。 I think it explored some important topics but my only complaint is I wish it had gone just a bit more in depth because it felt like some of it was left unresolved or not mentioned again。 But maybe this will become a series and we’ll get more of these girls！
Margaret Gerberding
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A graphic novel that explores the lives of four female friends trying to make their living in the Bronx。
emily
，
need more of them immediately
Mariam
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Absolutely loved the illustrations in this book。 Each Black girl had her unique hairstyle and I love how each story showed us a glimpse of taking care of natural hair。 The textures， the hair care products， even the broken brush were so realistic and I wish more stories include curly girl hair care because-WHY THE HELL NOT。 The colour palettes used for each character beautifully portrayed their unique personalities。 It was definitely well thought out， in that aspect。I wish I could say the same fo Absolutely loved the illustrations in this book。 Each Black girl had her unique hairstyle and I love how each story showed us a glimpse of taking care of natural hair。 The textures， the hair care products， even the broken brush were so realistic and I wish more stories include curly girl hair care because-WHY THE HELL NOT。 The colour palettes used for each character beautifully portrayed their unique personalities。 It was definitely well thought out， in that aspect。I wish I could say the same for the stories， but unfortunately I cannot。 I truly wish the book gave us more content because the stories started and ended way too soon than expected。 Kimana's past with Malik， Cookie's past with her abuela， Nisha's choice between Daniel and Carl and Davene's struggle with her mental health were questions I wish the book had answers for。 Especially the latter， given Cookie's complete insensitivity towards Davene's emotions and stigmatising anti depressants and handing her a crystal to help her， was a great start to highlight mental health issues and change people's mindset about anti depressants， but it was not explored well enough。。。or at all。 Which is why I've got to say this book was a little disappointing， and left me wanting so much more。 。。。more
Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
，
a new all time favourite - I feel so emotional typing up this review。 I have never read a book quite like this before - it was like a warm book-shaped hug
Vanessa （V。C。）
，
All that I kept saying out loud to myself as I read Wash Day Diaries is: "HOW CUTE！" Like many readers， I've never read a graphic novel before that showcased four "ride-or-die" Black women and their natural hair in all its diverse， lush， and regal， gorgeous glory。 Wash day is more than a day when Black women， on a weekly or bi-weekly basis， wash， condition， and style their hair; it's a ritual where we not only take care of and protect our crown but connect closer with our inner-beauty。 This， in All that I kept saying out loud to myself as I read Wash Day Diaries is: "HOW CUTE！" Like many readers， I've never read a graphic novel before that showcased four "ride-or-die" Black women and their natural hair in all its diverse， lush， and regal， gorgeous glory。 Wash day is more than a day when Black women， on a weekly or bi-weekly basis， wash， condition， and style their hair; it's a ritual where we not only take care of and protect our crown but connect closer with our inner-beauty。 This， in juxtaposition to the spotlight on each character and her story， was something quite refreshing and easily relatable。 Every character had their distinct look， style， personality and even cultural Afro-Latina background; I instantly fell in love with all of them。 The graphic art itself？ Oh， just oh so pretty and colorful。 The attention to detail to the natural hairstyles and their texture from 4A， 4B， and 4C， and to the actual wash-day ritual itself， gave me all the feels。 New York City also came to life and brought me there as someone who frequents Brooklyn all the time。 I also loved the way these characters talked to one another， as they sounded exactly like how many young Black women （and young Black men） talk to each other in real time， cursing and texting and all。 Above all else， this was an Own-Voices project， which was why it was so authentic and real in every way。 This graphic novel had my heart and resonated with me on so many levels and made me feel so proud that such a graphic novel for young adults exist！ What sadly fell short here， unfortunately， were the stories themselves。 They felt largely rushed。 2/4 stories were lighthearted as they explored the women's fun and chaotic dating lives， but one of the stories where it addresses a character's mental health issues was woefully unfinished and incomplete。 There is only an implication of why she feels this way， and she says she is going to get help for this and take a medication for that， but that was it。 The other stories all had some continuity with each other， but not so much with this one。 We don't get any updates on how the character is feeling later on or if anything of what they're doing is helping。 The character that was physically with her in this scene dismisses her feelings， doesn't truly listen to her， and suggested that she'd carry around a crystal instead of going on medication。 She never even asks how her bestie's been doing since， not even as much as asking if the crystal is working。 As important as the story arc and subject matter is， and while I understand that some people IRL do recommend healing crystals over modern medicine， there's no point in having mental health for representation's sake when the whole storyline is just completely dropped and never brought up again。 The story where one of the character's visits her grandmother at the nursing home also fell short。 I adored the queer representation， and appreciated the warmth， honesty， vulnerability， and tenderness of these two as they confront their issues with each other， but it felt like this story was doing too much too quickly。 While I'm glad they had their happy ending， it didn't feel all that realistic to me that a lifetime of generational trauma between two generations of women could easily be compromised over a short wash day session。 All these stories， though， left me wanting more; just about everything was too surface level， even for a YA graphic novel。 That is partly the reason why Wash Day Diaries is a one-sitting read， but when the pacing is that fast， it undermines all the complex themes and nuances of the natural Black hair girl experience that this graphic novel was setting itself out to do。 I think it would have been better and more well-rounded and consistent if Wash Day Diaries solely focused on their relationships/love lives。 The issues that were addressed in two traumatizing stories smacked between two fluffy ones are far too complex to be glossed over so quickly， and as readers， we aren't given enough time to digest them。 I think they should have been their own thing， in two separate graphic novels entirely。 The execution could have been much better。 The pacing was way， WAY too fast and the themes were too underutilized and too big for how short this book is。 It really needed to be longer so everything could be fleshed out more and so it could flow better。 Nonetheless， Wash Day Dairies was ADORABLE， and is 1000% worth going out of your way to read ESPECIALLY if you're a Black woman or Black teenaged girl who proudly sports their natural hair！ Wash Day Diaries is not only a love letter to Black natural hair and Black girl friendships， but a testament to the beauty and power of what happens when publishing lets BIPOC have agency over their own stories。 。。。more
Kit A
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This book was truly a pleasure to read--I grew to love the characters a lot in a relatively short time。 The drawings are incredible， and the storytelling and visuals work perfectly together， sometimes creating hilarious， and often beautiful moments。 I smiled almost the whole time I read it。 I hope there are more stories from these creators coming！ I'd love to see so much more of this。 This book was truly a pleasure to read--I grew to love the characters a lot in a relatively short time。 The drawings are incredible， and the storytelling and visuals work perfectly together， sometimes creating hilarious， and often beautiful moments。 I smiled almost the whole time I read it。 I hope there are more stories from these creators coming！ I'd love to see so much more of this。 。。。more
amani
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 i wish this comic was longer…it was healing to read experiences of black women， black queer women and black women being unapologetic。 god cookie going to see her grandmother and her getting a genuine apology yea no that took me out even though her grandmother won’t remember it she does and it made me sob
Debbie
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Wash Day Diaries follow four friends。 Kim， Cookie，Nisha and Davene。 Each character has a story outside of the friend group， but the four share everything with each other。
Lexy
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A feel good graphic novel about friendship and sorority！ I didn’t knew I need to read this， but I’m so glad I did！ I love the girls， they were great and their friendship feels so genuine！ I love it！
Rana ♡
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I was so excited for this book prerelease！ I was so happy when it arrived。 I believe that Wash Day Diaries is an important read for young black women because it is a reflection of ourselves and what we go through with our hair。 The artwork is absolutely beautiful and the little details like the text conversations and parts where characters break the fourth wall are so fun。 This book made me feel seen， heard， and loved。 It also is a great reminder to always put yourself first。 Like others I loved I was so excited for this book prerelease！ I was so happy when it arrived。 I believe that Wash Day Diaries is an important read for young black women because it is a reflection of ourselves and what we go through with our hair。 The artwork is absolutely beautiful and the little details like the text conversations and parts where characters break the fourth wall are so fun。 This book made me feel seen， heard， and loved。 It also is a great reminder to always put yourself first。 Like others I loved this so much I hope that it becomes a full comic series。 Because I truly see this going in that direction。 We learn a lot about the four women but I wish that we went deeper into their lives at certain points。 I think the shortness may have purposefully left the door open for their to be more books within a series。 If it does continue I can’t wait to get every volume！ 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Wash Day Diaries
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Wash Day Diaries&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Wash Day Diaries&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0