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christinajcraig's review against another edition
4.0
Tracy K. Smith's memoir resonated with me in a lot of ways. She describes her relationship with her mother, the trouble she faces with her religion, and the joy she receives from the written word.
"At seventeen, I hadn't seen anything. I only knew how much distance I wanted to cross but nothing of what it would look or feel like or what it would leave me with.
"I didn't yet know what was important to me or what would remain important down the line, after the thrill of experiencing these first few freedoms, and the weight of living with what they brought, had passed. I was right when I told myself that the God I'd learned to believe in so long ago was still there, bigger and more real than I had imagined, and that He was long - suffering, abiding, that whatever He was would blaze bright and undeniably near when the thing that led me to Him was not obligation in fear.
"It was neither the end of one chapter nor the beginning of anther but rather a deep, vacant, weight less now that would last as long as it lasted and lead to wherever it led."
"At seventeen, I hadn't seen anything. I only knew how much distance I wanted to cross but nothing of what it would look or feel like or what it would leave me with.
"I didn't yet know what was important to me or what would remain important down the line, after the thrill of experiencing these first few freedoms, and the weight of living with what they brought, had passed. I was right when I told myself that the God I'd learned to believe in so long ago was still there, bigger and more real than I had imagined, and that He was long - suffering, abiding, that whatever He was would blaze bright and undeniably near when the thing that led me to Him was not obligation in fear.
"It was neither the end of one chapter nor the beginning of anther but rather a deep, vacant, weight less now that would last as long as it lasted and lead to wherever it led."
sandmountain's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.75
lauturec06's review against another edition
4.0
I remember reading the prologue of this book for my college Research Writing class, and being insta rly captivated by Smith’s writing. Eventually finishing this book, Ordinary Light certainly did not disappoint. Smith articulated her life’s moments, from adolescence to adulthood, so well I could envision myself with her growing up in Fairfield, CA. Although I felt a bit lost in her prose at times, Smith effortlessly captures the peaks and pitfalls of a relationship between mother and daughter.
ronilynnreads's review against another edition
I honestly can’t remember where I stopped reading. And I don’t think I stopped on purpose. It’s just that I never picked it back up. I didn’t feel compelled to. I know this is her story and her life, I just wish it didn’t read to tedious. AND IT’S A FAIRLY LONG BOOK! 😬
I didn’t read her first book so I honestly don’t know what I was expecting. I just thought I could relate to her life just a bit since I also lost my mom to lung cancer and writing as a career has always been one of my goals. Anyway, I don’t feel bad either way. I guess because I never had a chance to get emotionally invested.
I didn’t read her first book so I honestly don’t know what I was expecting. I just thought I could relate to her life just a bit since I also lost my mom to lung cancer and writing as a career has always been one of my goals. Anyway, I don’t feel bad either way. I guess because I never had a chance to get emotionally invested.
saraa_t's review against another edition
4.0
Smith writes beautiful poetry (I'm a particular fan of [b:Wade in the Water: Poems|35438018|Wade in the Water Poems|Tracy K. Smith|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1497495605s/35438018.jpg|56819357]), and I couldn't wait to read her narrative work in the form of a memoir. While it often seems that authors (especially those who write fiction as a profession) write memoirs for their fans, as a way to give their readers a glimpse into the life of someone they admire and look up to, Smith writes in a way that feels very private and removed from her audience, which I found particularly compelling.
Ordinary Light centers around Smith's relationship with her mother, and she tells the story of her own youth to adulthood while delicately weaving in the ways her mother affected nearly every aspect of her life.
Smith's intention was to use this memoir as a way to introduce her children to her mother (since they will never meet), and the attention to detail is heart-aching. She touches on her mother's habits, moods, feelings, and youth, while returning to her own feelings and fears about disappointing her mother.
In a way I wasn't expecting to appreciate as much as I did, Smith also entwines God into the narrative, and details the changing relationships both she and her mother have with Him over the course of their lives.
As a poet, Smith excels at creating a narrative that is both compelling and beautifully written:
Ordinary Light is an exemplary memoir that deals with race, grief, love, religion, growing up, and forging your own way in the world. Highly recommend.
Ordinary Light centers around Smith's relationship with her mother, and she tells the story of her own youth to adulthood while delicately weaving in the ways her mother affected nearly every aspect of her life.
Smith's intention was to use this memoir as a way to introduce her children to her mother (since they will never meet), and the attention to detail is heart-aching. She touches on her mother's habits, moods, feelings, and youth, while returning to her own feelings and fears about disappointing her mother.
In a way I wasn't expecting to appreciate as much as I did, Smith also entwines God into the narrative, and details the changing relationships both she and her mother have with Him over the course of their lives.
As a poet, Smith excels at creating a narrative that is both compelling and beautifully written:
"I felt, rising up out of my fear, the thrill of that nameless going. It was neither the end of one chapter nor the beginning of another but rather a deep, vacant, weightless Now that would last as long as it lasted and lead to wherever it led."
Ordinary Light is an exemplary memoir that deals with race, grief, love, religion, growing up, and forging your own way in the world. Highly recommend.
hatrireads's review against another edition
3.0
I love that this is my first book of 2019. Tracy K. Smith's memoir really touched me. She used simple clear language to describe her life in a chronological, orderly story. As I realized at the end, what she was really doing was creating her portrait of her mother. She tells us everything she can remember about the faithful, kind woman who raised her. We only see her mother through Tracy's eyes, but it is a lovely portrait of a mother by a daughter. A daughter who is now the Poet Laureate of the United States. I heard her speak last June at the American Library Association and was so impressed with her gentle, kind demeanor. Now I know where she got it. I have loved her poems, now I am also a fan of her prose.
kategci's review against another edition
4.0
I picked this up as I had a chance to meet the author and is always true with me, I liked it more after listening to her discuss it. I do not read a lot of memoir and I didn't want to read this story of her and her mother and her mother's death, but I am so glad I did. We would not seem to have much in common, but I lost my mother soon after I graduated from college as Tracy did and her descriptions of her feelings of loss and grief mirrored my own. She is a beautiful and eloquent writer and this memoir of her family and her relationship with her mother resonated with me. I was very glad to meet this author and I was able to thank her for sharing her personal story which seemed to be a part of my story too.
pattydsf's review against another edition
3.0
“Wasn’t it strange that a poem, written in my vocabulary and as a result of my own thoughts or observations, could, when it was finished, manage to show me something I hadn’t already known? Sometimes, when I tried very hard to listen to what the poem I was writing was trying to tell me, I felt the way I imagined godly people felt when they were trying to discern God’s will. “Write this,” the poem would sometimes consent to say, and I’d revel in a joy to rival the saints’ that Poetry—this mysterious presence I talked about and professed belief in—might truly be real.”
Apparently, I have high expectations about how writers, or maybe just poets, live. Even though Smith uses the word ordinary in her title, I was expecting something different than this memoir. Fortunately, Smith had what might be referred to as a common life. She grew up the last child in a loving family. Her mother was able to devote time to her and her siblings and her father did the same. The Smith family believed in books and education; they were supportive and a positive influence in each other’s’ lives.
I think I expected that Smith’s story would be more about her writing – how she became a poet. Smith however, had a different idea. She told her story by beginning with her mother’s death. Then she went back to show what her family was like and especially what her mother was like. Once I changed my expectation, the story fell together. I was better able to understand what Smith was sharing with her readers.
Apparently, I have high expectations about how writers, or maybe just poets, live. Even though Smith uses the word ordinary in her title, I was expecting something different than this memoir. Fortunately, Smith had what might be referred to as a common life. She grew up the last child in a loving family. Her mother was able to devote time to her and her siblings and her father did the same. The Smith family believed in books and education; they were supportive and a positive influence in each other’s’ lives.
I think I expected that Smith’s story would be more about her writing – how she became a poet. Smith however, had a different idea. She told her story by beginning with her mother’s death. Then she went back to show what her family was like and especially what her mother was like. Once I changed my expectation, the story fell together. I was better able to understand what Smith was sharing with her readers.