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4.6 AVERAGE
4.6 AVERAGE
Often when a book is praised as much and with as much volume and vigor as has been THE LOVE SONGS OF W.E.B. DUBOIS, I can be fairly certain I am not going to feel the same way. This is the rare and welcome exception.
Yes, it is a daunting 800 pages long. But there are very few wasted words or digressive sections which you read saying, "Well what's the point of this?" In fact, there were parts of the story, characters in the telling, I would gladly have spent more time reading about.
This is compelling, extremely well written, enlightening, emotionally gutting, educational (and I hesitate to use that word --- it is not pedantic nor lecturing nor hectoring, rather, educational in that it reveals within the story facts and truths about history of which I --- and I suspect most others --- have never heard before, never known), and just a damn good read.
The only thing that could have made it better for me was if I'd been able to read it during a blizzard or some other time when I could have had it be the only thing I was doing for the days it took me to read.
And, truth, a better family tree/chart in the frontage pages of the book. The meanderings through time serve the story, but they also make it a little difficult (or, made it difficult for me, anyway, reading it over a 4 day period) to follow who is related to who in what way. And the chart at the front of the book was not always as helpful as I needed it to be, so I did a lot of flipping back and forth to make sure I was making the right connections.
Other than that, a definite and very strong 5 stars.
Yes, it is a daunting 800 pages long. But there are very few wasted words or digressive sections which you read saying, "Well what's the point of this?" In fact, there were parts of the story, characters in the telling, I would gladly have spent more time reading about.
This is compelling, extremely well written, enlightening, emotionally gutting, educational (and I hesitate to use that word --- it is not pedantic nor lecturing nor hectoring, rather, educational in that it reveals within the story facts and truths about history of which I --- and I suspect most others --- have never heard before, never known), and just a damn good read.
The only thing that could have made it better for me was if I'd been able to read it during a blizzard or some other time when I could have had it be the only thing I was doing for the days it took me to read.
And, truth, a better family tree/chart in the frontage pages of the book. The meanderings through time serve the story, but they also make it a little difficult (or, made it difficult for me, anyway, reading it over a 4 day period) to follow who is related to who in what way. And the chart at the front of the book was not always as helpful as I needed it to be, so I did a lot of flipping back and forth to make sure I was making the right connections.
Other than that, a definite and very strong 5 stars.
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“This is the tragedy of slavery. These are the grains of power. There isn’t a true innocence for children whose parents are shackled.”
An engrossing and encompassing story of one family’s roots, stolen land, the brutality of slavery, and the racism of modern day America, this is a masterpiece of a book. It’s long but never drags, the characters are real and wonderful, it made me angry and it made me cry and it gave me hope. Highly recommended.
An engrossing and encompassing story of one family’s roots, stolen land, the brutality of slavery, and the racism of modern day America, this is a masterpiece of a book. It’s long but never drags, the characters are real and wonderful, it made me angry and it made me cry and it gave me hope. Highly recommended.
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book. It took me so long to read it but oh wow. It broke me. I bawled my eyes out on a plane reading it yesterday. And I wish I had made a family tree as I read it, so I could’ve felt the lineage of the book instead of trying to remember names, but oh my god. Everyone go buy this book. It’s worth it.
A beautiful yet haunting depiction of the traumas and joys passed from Black mother to Black daughter throughout the generations of Ailey Garfield’s family. This novel is one I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
My full review is at https://www.jonyag.com/blog/love-songs-of-web-dubois
This was a wonderful read. It was not a light read because of the topics and trauma in the lives of its characters, but it was those characters who pulled me in. I cared about them even before I knew how it all would tie together. As the history, secrets, trauma, and wonderful parts of their past unfolded, it brought more light to who they were. The book made me think, feel, and learn while being highly entertaining to read.
I have seen many great reviews of this book online for quite an extended period. I added this to my want-to-read list a while ago and just got around to it. I was a bit late to find it, but that is normal. I don’t usually keep up with book releases, so reading anything late is normal. This was released in June of 2021. I have recently read other books to expand my understanding of the history of black America, slavery, and cultures that I feel I need more knowledge of. This book fits that category and has terrific reviews, so the time for my reading had finally arrived.
I didn’t go into this book with much background or understanding. I didn’t have expectations or even deep reviews with spoilers that I had read, so I did not know what to expect other than very high-level ideas. I had an idea that it covered multigenerational stories of a family from slavery to the current time frame. I went in the cold. I was pleasantly surprised many times as the tapestry unfolded in so many different and, to me at least, unexpected ways.
I read this book very quickly. I’m not the fastest reader because I tend to read many books simultaneously, but once I was maybe 15% or so into it, I couldn’t put it down. The writing was beautiful and flowed easily from page to page.
The novel follows Ailey Pearl Garfield, a contemporary Black woman, as she seeks to understand her family’s history and reconcile her struggles with the legacies of slavery, segregation, and racism. Ailey’s narrative is intertwined with historical accounts of her ancestors, reaching back to the Indigenous and African-descended peoples who lived in Georgia centuries before her. Ailey’s family lives on land that was stolen from Native Americans centuries earlier.
The novel is richly layered, combining family secrets, historical trauma, and the enduring resilience of Black and Native peoples. The writings and maybe even the philosophy of W.E.B. Du Bois, including his concept of "double consciousness," are a recurring touchstone throughout the novel, lending additional insight into the characters and their cultural experiences. Du Bois spoke of “sorrow songs” in his seminal work *The Souls of Black Fork* (1903). He was referring to African American spirituals, which were rooted in the experience of enslaved people. These songs are deeply significant to African American history and culture, as well as the culture of America as a whole. The historical sections of the book, which include narratives from periods long before Ailey’s time, are titled “Songs.” In the author's words, “The history of slavery provides the spine of this novel.”
“This is a Black feminist novel. I’m unapologetic about that.” Jeffers stated that in the Coda section of the book.
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois is a richly layered novel, ideal for readers who appreciate multigenerational family sagas, historical fiction that includes social commentary, character-driven storytelling, and explorations of identity and race. The book is full of African American history, culture, literature, challenges, and celebrations. It is also full of resilience, healing, and self-discovery.
It is one of those books you want to read again for the first time if only to experience the characters. It is easily in the top five books I read this year, and I would recommend it highly to almost anyone.
This was a wonderful read. It was not a light read because of the topics and trauma in the lives of its characters, but it was those characters who pulled me in. I cared about them even before I knew how it all would tie together. As the history, secrets, trauma, and wonderful parts of their past unfolded, it brought more light to who they were. The book made me think, feel, and learn while being highly entertaining to read.
I have seen many great reviews of this book online for quite an extended period. I added this to my want-to-read list a while ago and just got around to it. I was a bit late to find it, but that is normal. I don’t usually keep up with book releases, so reading anything late is normal. This was released in June of 2021. I have recently read other books to expand my understanding of the history of black America, slavery, and cultures that I feel I need more knowledge of. This book fits that category and has terrific reviews, so the time for my reading had finally arrived.
I didn’t go into this book with much background or understanding. I didn’t have expectations or even deep reviews with spoilers that I had read, so I did not know what to expect other than very high-level ideas. I had an idea that it covered multigenerational stories of a family from slavery to the current time frame. I went in the cold. I was pleasantly surprised many times as the tapestry unfolded in so many different and, to me at least, unexpected ways.
I read this book very quickly. I’m not the fastest reader because I tend to read many books simultaneously, but once I was maybe 15% or so into it, I couldn’t put it down. The writing was beautiful and flowed easily from page to page.
The novel follows Ailey Pearl Garfield, a contemporary Black woman, as she seeks to understand her family’s history and reconcile her struggles with the legacies of slavery, segregation, and racism. Ailey’s narrative is intertwined with historical accounts of her ancestors, reaching back to the Indigenous and African-descended peoples who lived in Georgia centuries before her. Ailey’s family lives on land that was stolen from Native Americans centuries earlier.
The novel is richly layered, combining family secrets, historical trauma, and the enduring resilience of Black and Native peoples. The writings and maybe even the philosophy of W.E.B. Du Bois, including his concept of "double consciousness," are a recurring touchstone throughout the novel, lending additional insight into the characters and their cultural experiences. Du Bois spoke of “sorrow songs” in his seminal work *The Souls of Black Fork* (1903). He was referring to African American spirituals, which were rooted in the experience of enslaved people. These songs are deeply significant to African American history and culture, as well as the culture of America as a whole. The historical sections of the book, which include narratives from periods long before Ailey’s time, are titled “Songs.” In the author's words, “The history of slavery provides the spine of this novel.”
“This is a Black feminist novel. I’m unapologetic about that.” Jeffers stated that in the Coda section of the book.
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois is a richly layered novel, ideal for readers who appreciate multigenerational family sagas, historical fiction that includes social commentary, character-driven storytelling, and explorations of identity and race. The book is full of African American history, culture, literature, challenges, and celebrations. It is also full of resilience, healing, and self-discovery.
It is one of those books you want to read again for the first time if only to experience the characters. It is easily in the top five books I read this year, and I would recommend it highly to almost anyone.
dark
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes