I seldom read memoirs, but what piqued my curiosity about Alana Best’s book, Around the World in Black & White, was the fact that her biracial blended family traveled for a year – with a newborn (yikes!) – and that she is Canadian. I read lots of books by people who don’t call Canada home, but I was interested to read a travel memoir from the eyes of a fellow Canadian.

I saw a lot of myself in Best – not the courage it would take to travel for a year and travel for a year with a newborn (not a chance) – but in the way we view the world. At the time of their travels, Best, who is white, is a mother of 10-year-old Josephine from a previous relationship and wife to Roland, a black man, with whom they have an adorable little guy, Kymani, who is one month old when the couple start their adventure.

The couple are from Victoria, B.C., and their travels take them to the North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, among other places. While Best does a great job of making the book about their travels – exciting adventures (both the traveling and parenting kind), beautiful scenery and unforgettable monuments – she also touches on what becomes, unfortunately, a common theme – the blatant racism  experienced by Roland, moments that shocked Best and left my jaw dropping as well: people who don’t see much diversity, but only openly stared, pointed and laughed at Roland, the extra security checks, and guards following him around. There was a point in their travels, when Best is ignored and demeaned because she is a woman. I could feel her outrage right off the page. It got her – and me – thinking: she expected Roland to step up and defend her, but realized she wasn’t doing the same when he was being targeted based on the colour of his skin. There were many eye opening moments in this book that made me stop and think.

The book is fairly long, yet it was a fast read because each chapter was a place the family visited, and each chapter only contained a few pages of stories and memories. Best does a great job keeping your attention and wanting you to read more. Each chapter also begins with a family photo and it’s lovely to watch Kymani grow through photos.

My only complaints – a wee bit too much information after the Johannesburg, South Africa, market (was that level of detail really necessary?) and I would have loved a travel list at the back of the book. The family visited some truly cool places that seem off the beaten path. Perhaps a travel book is next on Best’s list.

Around the World in Black & White, Traveling with a Biracial Blended Family by Alana Best retails for $23.99 and is from She Writes Press.

A copy of this book is courtesy of She Writes Press for an honest review. The opinions are my own.