Thank God I'm Natural--The Ultimate Guide to Caring for and Maintaining Natural Hair [Paperback]

Chris-Tia Donaldson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2009

Thank God I'm Natural: The Ultimate Guide to Caring for and Maintaining Natural Hair has been hailed by Essence magazine as "The Natural Hair Bible" and for good cause. Inside the 200 plus natural hair-care guide are product tips for natural hair, homemade hair care recipes and myths about going natural that author and Harvard law graduate Chris-Tia Donaldson debunks. The book, which features the advice from celebrity stylists who have worked with  Jill Scott, Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu and others, helps women of all ages properly transition from relaxed to natural hair. Along with the book, readers can also visit tginblog.com for current information on natural hair care including trimming natural hair, how to develop a healthy hair routine after you've done your Big Chop and other useful tips. Both the book and website are for women who are tired of spending their entire Saturday in the hair salon only to find their hair is dry, damaged and breaking. Going natural is a life changing choice, that is filled with ups and downs, let Thank God I'm Natural be your guide to reaching your natural hair potential.

Special Features:

• Homemade Hair Recipes
• Hair Style Photos
• Celebrity Stylist Product Reviews-
• Daily Routines for Natural Hair and Locs
• Natural Hair Myths & Misconceptions
• Relaxers Beware
• Greatest Moments in Black Hair History
• Natural Salon Directory

Readers will get ALL the information they have always needed -- to look good on the outside and most importantly, feel good on the inside. You won't want to do your hair again until you have read this lifesaving, reference book and heartfelt narrative from cover to cover!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Your Natural Hair Bible" --Essence Magazine

About the Author

Chris-Tia Donaldson is a Harvard graduate with a true passion for hair. By day, Chris-Tia is a successful lawyer for a software company. By night, she is a freelance writer and entrepreneur looking to launch her own product line for naturally kinky tresses. For this revolutionary book, Chris-Tia has interviewed hundreds of women -- from all walks of life -- about everything from the epidemic of hair loss in the black community to the historical effects of slavery on black women and their hair care practices. Chris-Tia currently lives in Chicago -- where she is active in a wide variety of civic, educational, and charitable organizations.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: TgiNesis Press; 1st edition (June 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 098209440X
• ISBN-13: 978-0982094402
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #151,038 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

By day, Chris-Tia is a successful lawyer for a software company. By night, she is a freelance writer and entrepreneur looking to launch her own product line for naturally kinky tresses. Chris-Tia has been featured in USA Today, Essence Magazine, the Chicago Tribune, the Detroit Free Press, as well as many other national newspapers for her thoughts on the growing natural hair trend, in addition to issues related to black women, beauty, health, and self-esteem. Chris-Tia is originally from Detroit, but currently lives in Chicago, where she is active in a wide variety of civic and professional organizations. For more information about Chris-Tia or Thank God I'm Natural, please visit Chris-Tia's website at www.thankgodimnatural.com or her blog at http://thankgodimnatural.wordpress.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

126 of 127 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book for those wanting to make the natural hair transition October 25, 2009

By Tgirl

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I really liked the book for it's candid approach to why so many Black women are afraid to wear their own natural texture. Like the author I also grew up in an upper middle class white community. While the author was growing up watching Wonder Years and such, my TV icons were more like Charlie's Angels. The "Farrah" Flip was all the rage along with the Dorothy Hammill bob! What was a black girl to do! To add to it my mother was a trained hair dresser. She believed my hair didn't grow because I had bad hair. So I had relaxers starting in grade school. I often thought that I suffered this exact story alone and for that I really thought the book was on track. I commend the author for putting her story out there in an effort to educate and unite a group of women who feel ignored by the beauty industry at large.
I made my transition to natural hair more than 10 years ago when it wasn't popular and there was one book on the market that addressed the issue(Lonnice Bonner's book). I also work in an industry that is all about your look and at first I encountered some flack from a few people but knew that if I rocked my natural with confidence they would have less issues the more they saw me. I agree with the author that it was one of the most liberating things I've done for myself letting go of the relaxer.

For me being a long time natural the book didn't bring any new revelations so I wouldn't recommend this if you already are a natural and have a good hair routine that works for you. The DIY hair recipes might be helpful but these can be found on a lot of the hair blogs and black hair care sites for free. I also don't belong to the trim your ends club every six weeks to promote hair growth unless your hair is really damaged. Now that I have be a healthy natural I don't need all the trimming either. I also wished the photos were better quality and in color. The hair styles pictured were small and in black and white and the paper quality just flattened the detail. The Q & A section just was a rehashing of the books contents nothing informative there. The salon listings not very in depth. I found that the most important ingredients that one should look for in cleansing and conditioning products are Collagen, Keratin, and Amino Acids. The building blocks that make up hair and the three ingredients lost and leeched from hair when you use chemicals and heat--were not strongly if at all addressed in this book.

Overall, if you are new to the natural world this book will be of service to you and with that I can recommend. If you are already a natural lady who is on point with her hair I would pass.

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not quite a natural hair Bible...but still good. January 16, 2010

By silhouette_of_enchantment

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I officially did the "Big Chop" two months ago, yesterday. I'm glad I bought "Thank God I'm Natural." The book is inspirational and encouraging, but unfortunately, somewhat of a disappointment.

I liked reading about Chris-Tia's natural hair care journey, and her brief historical overviews of relaxers, and her descriptions about various hair classification systems (which include information on Andre Walker's and the LOIS hair care system.) The book also includes information about coloring, essential vitamins, taking down locks, and transitioning tips. She also gives sample routines, choosing the proper "Denman" Brush for natural hair, and dismantles natural hair care myths.

I also loved the production quality of the work: very classy. The cover vector artwork is cute, the layout simple and elegant. (Loved the near Edwardian font for the numbers on the edges too.)

Although Chris-Tia did an excellent job, her book does have its shortcomings. Essence Magazine touted this as a Natural Hair Care Bible. When I think "Bible," I think of essential information being compiled in one place.

I was astonished at the information that was excluded from the book. There were pictures of natural hairstyles, with no directions on how to recreate those styles. Instead, the author tells readers to visit her Website online. This makes no sense, other than from a marketing ploy to get readers to eventually purchase her products. In my opinion, it probably would have made more sense to include the information, then go for the marketing ploy (that would have been more straightforward).

Chris-Tia also included recipes from Motown Girl, the diva of natural hair care, in her book. It's wonderful to have it hard bound and in print, but you can nab her natural haircare recipes for free from the main Motown Girl site (Google it!) You can also get the step-by-step instructions on recreating natural hairstyles (like afro puffs, curly fros, braid outs, twists outs, etc;) from that site that Chris-Tia excludes.

Other exclusions include the mention of Curly Nikki's fabulous site. (Google it if you get a chance). Although Chris-Tia mentions products for use on natural hair, she fails to mention natural haircare staples like Kinky Kurly Custard (KKC), Oyin products, Karens Body Beautiful, etc; I also wish there were color photographs of different hairdos.

Even though, "Thank God I'm Natural" is not perfect, but it's still worth owning. Just know what you're getting.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars not what i expected April 9, 2010

By RH

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

i purchased this item in hopes that it would help me with hairstyles. i've been natural for five years but had locs for three and needed help adjusting back to my hair being loose. this book seems to be aimed at transitioning naturals or newly naturals (since it uses the term "guide" in the title) so i thought it would have some good information about styling- something i needed when i first went natural. despite having a "stylin and profilin" section in the book, this chapter only provides the reader with pictures. the authors refers the reader to her website for detailed instructions on creating these styles. why the author would send a reader who has purchased her book to a free website is beyond me. further, her website has none of the details she mentioned. it's more of a natural hair blog, which is fine- but not what the author stated it would be. i ended up returning the book.

i would give this item 1 star but I think SOME of the information presented might be useful to new naturals.