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11corvus11's review against another edition
3.0
After reading what he thinks about his writing on rape (basically he wouldn't want to deal with being called out again because it wasn't very fun, but he stands by his comments and just wished he was more articulate about them,) I did some reading (I hadn't heard about this controversy until this book.)
The worst things he said are left out of his book (as far as I noticed) such as suggesting we "educate women" not to drink too many shots on the "first, second, or third date..." lest they be raped and then somehow partly responsible. More here: https://www.theroot.com/in-a-rape-culture-women-are-still-to-blame-1790889637
This memoir is also full of misogyny but I was writing it off as a dude talking about his youth where most boys learn to be terrible and many of us were not very awake in our youth. He was accountable somewhat but then takes 3 steps back. I decided I'm not going to give this dude any more of my time, plenty of books by Black women on my to-read that would be better time spent.
It's a shame because outside of this, the book is well written, funny, and has a lot of Pittsburgh nostalgia. I would have rated a little higher for that, but it already has high stars and will survive my lowly rating just fine.
(Edit: I am adding more stars because white people are showing up with low ratings based in low-kay-at-best white supremacy and I'm balancing them out)
The worst things he said are left out of his book (as far as I noticed) such as suggesting we "educate women" not to drink too many shots on the "first, second, or third date..." lest they be raped and then somehow partly responsible. More here: https://www.theroot.com/in-a-rape-culture-women-are-still-to-blame-1790889637
This memoir is also full of misogyny but I was writing it off as a dude talking about his youth where most boys learn to be terrible and many of us were not very awake in our youth. He was accountable somewhat but then takes 3 steps back. I decided I'm not going to give this dude any more of my time, plenty of books by Black women on my to-read that would be better time spent.
It's a shame because outside of this, the book is well written, funny, and has a lot of Pittsburgh nostalgia. I would have rated a little higher for that, but it already has high stars and will survive my lowly rating just fine.
(Edit: I am adding more stars because white people are showing up with low ratings based in low-kay-at-best white supremacy and I'm balancing them out)
ajb24's review against another edition
4.0
Unique and funny essays that discuss a life experience totally different from mine and therefore I found it valuable (in a "broadening of perspective" way).
The author also narrated the book which was nice, but sometimes I couldn't make out what he was saying. Dunno if it's the fault of mumbling or a Pittsburgh accent or a combination of both.
The author also narrated the book which was nice, but sometimes I couldn't make out what he was saying. Dunno if it's the fault of mumbling or a Pittsburgh accent or a combination of both.
literary_ya's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
bootman's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely loved this book. I used to think that I didn’t like collections of essays, but maybe I only like well-written ones. A lot of collections of essays in this memoir format are very basic just telling you what the author thought they found interesting in their life, but it’s the most surface-level grew-up-in-the-suburbs type book. This book from Damon Young is much different, and the summary of the book definitely did it justice.
Damon Young is extremely real in this book discussing his experience growing up as a young Black man and his experiences as an adult and father now. It’s really interesting listening to his experience and how he perceives the world, but on top of that, the dude is funny and has an amazing wit about him. At one point, he went on a rant about a teammate on a bus ride back from a game, and I was in tears laughing.
The book gives a really interesting perspective on racism in America, but Damon also covers topics about his relationships with women, his parents, and himself. This is just an all-around really great book, and I wish more essay books were like this one.
Damon Young is extremely real in this book discussing his experience growing up as a young Black man and his experiences as an adult and father now. It’s really interesting listening to his experience and how he perceives the world, but on top of that, the dude is funny and has an amazing wit about him. At one point, he went on a rant about a teammate on a bus ride back from a game, and I was in tears laughing.
The book gives a really interesting perspective on racism in America, but Damon also covers topics about his relationships with women, his parents, and himself. This is just an all-around really great book, and I wish more essay books were like this one.