Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
I heard Mr. Sellers speak at a leadership conference over the summer and was interested in reading this book after seeing how he presented himself and how he spoke. I think he is very professional, polished, put together and knows how to phrase things. This book was not what I expected, but it was still enjoyable, and I feel like I learned more about the African American community in South Carolina as well as South Carolina politics in general. Overall an interesting read in a digestible way.
I read this book because it was compared to Hillbilly Elegy (a book I loath), only it's supposed to be about "America’s forgotten black working-class men and women" in the South, so I thought it would be a rebuttal in a way. It is not. It's more of a birds-eye view of Bakari Sellers' life and key moments in history, but I feel like it lacks a core argument like J.D. Vance's book had--that the problem with poor southern whites is a matter of culture (a poorly recycled theory). If the book had been pitched differently, then I might have enjoyed it more. Then again, if I had known that a significant portion of the book is dedicated to him running for office, I might not have read it at all.
Picked this one after hearing a great interview on The Stacks podcast and it did not disappoint. This is Bakari Sellers’ memoir about his experiences growing up the son of a civil rights activist in rural South Carolina and how that led to his career as a young politician. Sellers addresses a lot of different topics throughout the book but I particularly enjoyed his sections on health equity, anxiety, and the connections between the work done by his father’s generation and his own. Great book and I’d highly recommend it on audiobook too- it’s read by the author which is always a plus for me and he had a great voice for it.
So incredibly well written. I read memoirs because I want to learn about different people's stories and perspectives and this was a story I did not even know my mind was craving. I am lucky enough to be born into a middle class Asian family so I had absolutely no understanding of growing up in a rural town. But Bakari points out how the media often only pays attention to white poverty leaving those in black poverty to be stuck there forever. However, Bakari provides a voice to those people. Bakari's story is one of love, strength, humility, resilience, honesty and bravery. It is absolutely worth a read because his story and stories like his are the ones that need to be heard.
I hadn't heard of Bakari Sellers before I read this (I live in the Northwest). However, while I was reading it during the 2020 election, I saw him doing commentating on CNN. So that connection made reading his memoir a whole lot more real.
I really enjoyed learning about his back story, his political life and his thoughts on race...as well learn about his personal life. He is an intriguing person and definitely has Obama vibes.
I really enjoyed learning about his back story, his political life and his thoughts on race...as well learn about his personal life. He is an intriguing person and definitely has Obama vibes.
reflective
slow-paced
This wasn’t what I was expecting after seeing him on PBS. He is passionate about his family and helping the disenfranchised but it just fell short for me. It didn’t feel like he got below the surface.
3.5 but didn’t like it enough to round up to a 4. It started and ended really strong but I almost DNF’d somewhere in the middle. I decided to listen to the audio because I enjoy listening to the author speak in his interviews but his narration wasn’t as engaging as I expected. I did enjoy the way he incorporated the history of SC in this memoir.
I bought this as it was billed as similar to Hillbilly Elegy. This was nothing like that- it was mainly a run down of his father’s political activism and Mr Seller’s lifetime achievements. Whilst I admire his work as a political commentator on CNN and an always interested to hear what he has to say then, this was really dull. Like another reviewer, I was hoping for more experiential writing about growing up in the South, rather than this. He is understandably very proud of his father’s and his own successes but it doesn’t make for a scintillating read.
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced