The Love You Save

A Memoir

By: Goldie Taylor

Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

“The Love You Save will console and inspire countless people."—J.R. Moehringer, New York Times bestselling author of The Tender Bar

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings meets Educated in this harrowing, deeply hopeful memoir of family, faith and the power of books—from acclaimed journalist and human rights activist Goldie Taylor

Aunt Gerald takes in anyone who asks, but the conditions are harsh. For her young niece Goldie Taylor, abandoned by her mother and coping with trauma of her own, life in Gerald’s East St. Louis comes with nothing but a threadbare blanket on the living room floor.

But amid the pain and anguish, Goldie discovers a secret. She can find kinship among writers like James Baldwin and Toni Morrison. She can find hope in a nurturing teacher who helps her find her voice. And books, she realizes, can save her life.

Goldie Taylor's debut memoir shines a light on the strictures of race, class and gender in a post–Jim Crow America while offering a nuanced, empathetic portrait of a family in a pitched battle for its very soul.

Profoundly moving, exquisitely rendered and ultimately uplifting, The Love You Save is a story about hidden strength, perseverance against unimaginable odds, the beauty and pain of girlhood, and the power of the written word.

RESILIENCE

Loved the story. Felt like I lived it. Glad for the daughter and mother towards the end. I, too, survived those 89 blocks. Good for Goldie!!

Characters Come To Life

The reader was excellent and drew me in to the characters immediately. The narrator made the story even greater then it already is. Highly recommend.

Best Read of 2024 !

I can see the nook by the basement stairs, hear auntie‘s scowl every time she called her niece’s name, and feel the sudsy water when Goldie’s has to do dishes yet again. I shared a similar longing to be carried away from other people’s hands at this age. The reader was absolutely fabulous!

I don’t have words to describe

Love - it is complicated. Goldie Taylor a masterful job presenting her story and acknowledging the complicated aspects of love. A must listen!!!

Beautiful Story

This was an absolutely brave and beautiful story. I identified with so much of it. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.