Those Sandals: A Memoir of Portia Shipman

Before Portia arrives and wows you with her words, her life, and her spirit, I want to ask you a question: who is your favorite superhero? And don’t worry this is a tangent that will make sense in a few seconds. Is it Wonder Woman? Superman? Cat Woman? The Black Widow? Super Girl? No matter who you picked, I bet the reason that particular superhero is your favorite doesn’t just have to do with their power. My guess is they’re your favorite because of what you know about them. There’s power in vulnerability. We don’t all connect to our favorite heroes’ and sheroes’ powers and strengths. We do, however, connect with their vulnerabilities. Portia Shipman is a shero. You will quickly understand why very soon. Though sheroes inspire us to save lives, they also inspire us to be the best version of ourselves. What you have in front of you is not just a book, it is a shero’s diary. You have the very words of a beautiful Black woman, who overcame much abuse, anguish, uncertainty, and pain to raise four wonderful children and start two home care businesses that earned her over a million dollars.