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yarafadel's review against another edition
4.0
This is a heavy book to read, the author speaks of his experience living in the Jim Crow south, then eventually moves north to Chicago for a better life. Highly recommended.
I don’t usually read book reviews until I am done with a book so as not to skew my opinion on what I’m reading. Reading reviews of this book was another prime example to show how micro aggressions and racism is very well thriving. You’ll read in the reviews that people claim this book was not about Wright’s own life, but any generic Black person’s life in the south at the time. This is an attempt to dehumanize yet another Black experience. I’ve also read in the reviews that the book sounded like an ongoing complaint where he did not do anything to change his circumstances - that made me ironically laugh. Wright did indeed do his best to save himself the best he could during one of the darkest times in history. Reading those reviews is beyond disappointing and frustrating.
I don’t usually read book reviews until I am done with a book so as not to skew my opinion on what I’m reading. Reading reviews of this book was another prime example to show how micro aggressions and racism is very well thriving. You’ll read in the reviews that people claim this book was not about Wright’s own life, but any generic Black person’s life in the south at the time. This is an attempt to dehumanize yet another Black experience. I’ve also read in the reviews that the book sounded like an ongoing complaint where he did not do anything to change his circumstances - that made me ironically laugh. Wright did indeed do his best to save himself the best he could during one of the darkest times in history. Reading those reviews is beyond disappointing and frustrating.
nnnickiwi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.75
thehobb's review against another edition
1.0
Can I see the literary merit?
Yes.
Can I see the importance?
Yes.
Do I have sympathy for Richard?
Yes.
Did I like it?
No.
And that’s what the star rating reflects. My opinion—not the value.
Yes.
Can I see the importance?
Yes.
Do I have sympathy for Richard?
Yes.
Did I like it?
No.
And that’s what the star rating reflects. My opinion—not the value.
pumpkinejuice's review against another edition
1.0
I'm surprised that I seem to be of the minority who really didn't like this book. Not only did I not like it, I think its my least favorite book I have ever read. Its sad because I know that this is someone's memoir and this is someone's life. I think what bothers me is how when I read it for school so many people put Wright up on a pedestal for fighting racism.
The book seemed like a series of bad events that happened to Wright that can be blamed 30% on circumstances and 70% on his own stupidity, then blaming that stupidity on his race. White people hated him because he was stupid, black people hated him because he was stupid, he had problems with his family because he was stupid. He was stupid because he had his head stuck up his ass-hole too far to see anyone else's perspective.
The book seemed like a series of bad events that happened to Wright that can be blamed 30% on circumstances and 70% on his own stupidity, then blaming that stupidity on his race. White people hated him because he was stupid, black people hated him because he was stupid, he had problems with his family because he was stupid. He was stupid because he had his head stuck up his ass-hole too far to see anyone else's perspective.
aidan_walker's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
rachaeldulaney's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
I enjoyed this book I did, but I found myself really only enjoying the parts where he was re-counting his life not where he was analyzing Everyone and everything. That got a bit tiresome and tedious at times. my class only required us to re-part one and part two as it was only about 130 more pages. If it was a recount of his life or only it probably would have been up to a 3.75 maybe even four stars however it still may have felt a little long. I just lost a lot of it’s appealed to me because when he went on analyzing things sometimes it was easy to get lost in his vocabulary or even lost in your own thoughts and not in the best way instead simply drifting away from what he was saying.
tonyv379's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
4.25