"In the decade since Whitney Houston's passing, the world has mourned her death amid new revelations about her relationship to her Blackness, her sexuality, and her addictions. Didn't We Almost Have It All is an exploration of Whitney's life as a woman in the spotlight who often had to hide who she was. This is the story of Whitney's whole life, told with grace and honesty. A once-in-a-generation talent, blessed with the grace of the church and the wisdom of a long lineage of famous gospel singers, Whitney became a queen of the pop charts and a box-office powerhouse. But all the while, she was forced to rein in who she was amid constant accusations that her music wasn't Black enough, original enough, honest enough. Gerrick Kennedy deftly peels back the layers of Whitney's story and pulls the narrative apart into the key elements that informed her life--growing up in a famous family; her relationships with Robyn Crawford and Bobby Brown; her connection to her own Blackness and the Black community; her drug addiction; and, finally, shame ... Didn't We Almost Have It All contextualizes her struggles against the backdrop of tabloid culture, mental health stigmas, and racial divisions in America"--Dust jacket flap.
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