Joan Morgan, a music journalist and critic, is an expert at what she does and I can’t pretend to be. All I can offer are my fond memories of listening to Lauryn Hill in high school and basking in the glow of her performance at the 41st Grammy Awards (that white ensemble? I die).

As a causal music consumer, I really enjoyed this thoughtful look at Lauryn Hill’s career, her impact on the music industry and what it meant for black girl magic.

Buuut, I couldn’t appreciate the overall organization and structure of this book, which is nonlinear and often lapses into digressions that I felt were derailing. For example, I think it’s important to provide context on Black Power and the policy-making of the Clinton administration at the time but for a book that’s not even 200 pages, it’s a lot to wrap my brain around.

Overall, this is an excellent analysis of Lauryn Hill’s career and mystique that captivated all of us when she released The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. But casual music fans or a younger generation who didn’t grow up with her album might find themselves a little lost. ( )