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informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
This book has a lot of important information, and it is a good book to listen to or read and learn from. The way it was organized was a bit hard for me to follow, but maybe that is because I was listening to the audio version. It was difficult to have all 3 meshed together rather than approaching each woman separately. Also, I wish overall it was more about them. There is a lot of information about events through history and the last part is sort of a list of dire statistics, which is all important. Also, though, I wish the book was more focused on the 3 mothers themselves.
3.5 rounded up
I love the idea of this book so much. As the author acknowledges, there is just not a lot recorded by and about these women (why the book is needed), but that also means that the narrative runs into a couple of significant issues: 1) a lot of conjecture (eg “she must have felt…she might have thought…”) and 2) a lot of repetition both of events in the three women’s lives and of the author’s points.
Of course later in their lives there is more information because that’s when their famous sons were alive, so I enjoyed the second half of the book much better. I loved reading the specific quotes from the children about what their mothers taught them. And I really appreciated that the author validated the different priorities the women had as mothers.
The book didn’t live up to my expectations, but I’m still glad I read it and I would recommend it to others.
I love the idea of this book so much. As the author acknowledges, there is just not a lot recorded by and about these women (why the book is needed), but that also means that the narrative runs into a couple of significant issues: 1) a lot of conjecture (eg “she must have felt…she might have thought…”) and 2) a lot of repetition both of events in the three women’s lives and of the author’s points.
Of course later in their lives there is more information because that’s when their famous sons were alive, so I enjoyed the second half of the book much better. I loved reading the specific quotes from the children about what their mothers taught them. And I really appreciated that the author validated the different priorities the women had as mothers.
The book didn’t live up to my expectations, but I’m still glad I read it and I would recommend it to others.
Listened to this on audiobook in a few days and it was perfect. I didn’t love that the author read it, because she was a bit monotonous but I ended up getting over it after the first hour. The stories were told as a whole, not broken up by each woman. It was nice to see how their lives intersected in history. This was beautifully written and so well researched.
Really loving the new books emphasizing and celebrating Black women’s lives and history! Anna Malaika Tubbs’s, The three mothers, about Louise Little, Alberta King and Berdis Baldwin was a wonderful examination of their lives and influence, not only on their sons but on American history as a whole. Tubbs says it best: “This book acts as a site of resistance to the dehumanization Berdis, Louise, and Alberta continue to face posthumously and to the dehumanization Black women and mothers face all over the country today.” Tubbs does an amazing job piecing together the history of these women’s lives despite there being very little written by or about them - something her book does an excellent job to correct.
emotional
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
dark
informative
sad
fast-paced
informative
reflective
fast-paced
this book is much more historical and speculative than biographical, mostly for contextual purposes around the mothers’ lives. i was kind of let down by this, though it is no fault of the author, because as she states in the conclusion, most of these women’s lives were relegated to footnotes compared to that of their sons and husbands. the conclusion also places a lot of faith in democratic leaders, who have proven time and time again that they let down marginalized communities. but nonetheless, it provides incredibly important history and anecdotes of three incredibly important women.
A phenomenal read. The only thing I can think of that really would’ve made this book stronger were photographs to go along with Tubbs’s work. Much less dense than the typical nonfiction read, this book flowed conversationally, though professional; emotionally, though extremely factual; lovingly, though often illustrating the greatest heartbreaks. I’m grateful I had the chance to read this book on these incredible mothers and I would be so thrilled to be able to read more by Tubbs, especially exploring these legacies beyond their sons’ movements.
Anna spent 3.5 years researching this book and it shows. I love her writing, and I love how she included quotes from the relevant time period at the beginning of each chapter and wove them into the women’s lives. The quotes highlight the dehumanization and erasure of Black women. Many parts of this book are hard to read—and should be. Anna is a wonderful storyteller and these stories needed to be told.
Five stars isn’t enough. Please read this book.
Five stars isn’t enough. Please read this book.