Award-winning actor, director, producer, and activist Kerry Washington shares the deeply moving journey of her life so far, and the bravely intimate story of discovering her truth.
While on a drive in Los Angeles, on a seemingly average afternoon, Kerry Washington received a text message that would send her on a life-changing journey of self-discovery. In an instant, her very identity was torn apart, with everything she thought she knew about herself thrown into question.
In Thicker than Water, Washington gives readers an intimate view into both her public and private worlds—as an artist, an advocate, an entrepreneur, a mother, a daughter, a wife, a Black woman. Chronicling her upbringing and life’s journey thus far, she reveals how she faced a series of challenges and setbacks, effectively hid childhood traumas, met extraordinary mentors, managed to grow her career, and crossed the threshold into stardom and political advocacy, ultimately discovering her truest self and, with it, a deeper sense of belonging.
Throughout this profoundly moving and beautifully written memoir, Washington attempts to answer the questions so many have struggled with: Who am I? What is my truest and most authentic self? How do I find a deeper sense of connection and belonging? With grace and honesty, Washington inspires readers to search for—and find—themselves.
Please note: Based on listener feedback, we have updated the audio of this edition. If you experience any issues, please re-download.
Download and start listening now!
"If Kerry Washington's superpower in acting is that she can make the viewer feel intimate with someone we've never known, her writing superpower is that she can make us relive a life we've never lived. Utterly immersive, beautifully descriptive, and radically honest, this book takes a compassionate sledgehammer to the facades that so many of us create about ourselves and our families. It's such a gift."
— Trevor Noah, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Born a Crime
“Washington is more honest in these pages than she has to be, and the result is a book that will heal hearts and relationships.”
— Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author“Washington takes us along her hard-won transformation from a sheltered young girl growing up in the Bronx, to a brilliant actor…All the while, she shines a light on the acting world, the traumas and triumphs of womanhood, and the true, full meaning of family.”
— Isabel Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling authorI read Thicker than Water in one sitting, astonished by Washington’s thrilling story and shimmering writing. Washington is more honest in these pages than she has to be, and the result is a book that will heal hearts and relationships. Thicker than Water will keep readers up at night—flipping pages and thinking: Good Lord, she can write, too??? Yep, she sure as hell can.
— Glennon Doyle, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller UntamedWith a true gift for prose, Kerry Washington conveys an intoxicating passion and gratitude for her life. I found myself captivated by every chapter, at her side, inspired by the full spectrum of her experience.
— Gwyneth Paltrow, actor and founder of goopKerry Washington is an Emmy-winning, SAG, and Golden Globe-nominated actor, director, and producer, as well as an activist and organizer. She has been honored as one of Time magazine’s 2022 Women of the Year, in addition to appearing on the magazine’s Most Influential People list in 2014. She also received the 2013 NAACP President’s Award, the 2015 GLAAD Media Vanguard Award, and the 2016 ACLU Bill of Rights Award.