Lily Herman's Reviews > Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close

If this book doesn't make you want to get up and call your best friend immediately, I don't know what will.

Seeing as I've been an avid reader, follower, and listener of Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman's work for over half a decade, I'll admit that I was already predisposed to really love this Big Friendship. Even if you've never heard of them or have maybe been on the fringes of their writing or podcasting, you're in for a treat.

Big Friendship tackles our cultural issues with giving platonic relationships the care and attention they deserve, both on a personal and an intellectual level. There's plenty of research and discussion around family dynamics and romantic relationships, but so often friendships get shunted off to the side when it comes to individual and societal introspection. Sow and Friedman tell the story of their own intense Big Friendship™ while masterfully weaving in larger conversations of how our friendships come together and fall apart, taking on everything from the unique struggles of interracial friendships to how friend breakups can often feel more devastating than romantic ones. There's also just a familiar ease to their writing that makes this an easy read.

While Big Friendship definitely stands on its own, I think a little extra context to Sow and Friedman can help you get the most out of this book and fall in love with their work; I recommend going down a slight rabbit hole and reading their popular article on Shine Theory and listening to an episode or two of their Call Your Girlfriend podcast. Again, it's not 100% necessary, but it does help in appreciating just how deep their Big Friendship goes and how poignant their thoughts are.