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4.6 AVERAGE
4.6 AVERAGE
I still don’t know how I feel about this book, maybe this review will help me figuring out. The audiobook was an renewed at least once to get through it all. Maybe anthologies are too long for me. I appreciated some of the characters and setting, but I never felt fully engaging the book. My thoughts kept drifting else where. I left with takeaways, but not an message imprinted on me like I want out of a book like this.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It is rare that an author with this ultimate level of storytelling is able to fully express themself on the page. I find myself lucky that Jeffers was able to do so in The Love Songs of WEB Dubois because of how the story held me from the very first page, to the last. Follow a family across multiple generations and see how every little thing shapes their journey.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Classism
I am giving this book five stars. Not for its perfection, for the novel could have been shortened, but for the intent of the book. Ms. Jeffers has written a historical novel, juxtaposing early American history with the present.
She set her book in a small town in Georgia, close to Atlanta, and in "The City," a fictious northern urban area. I thought Cincinnati or Richmond? The unnamed city gives the book an otherworldly feeling which is fertile ground for spirits, ghosts, and mysterical characters. However, this is not a fantasy novel. The book deals with current issues of race and gender.
There are two stories, one past and one contemporary, which begin disparate but come together at the conclusion of the book. The first story begins in an area of Georgia and elucidates the years before slavery was at its height. Native Americans were the first inhabitants. As white men moved to the south of the United States, they tricked the indigenous by becoming their friends and then stealing their land. Enslaved peoples had already arrived. There were also free Blacks at this time. The big plantations had not been built yet. The institution of slavery was in its infancy.
Gradually, the white men forced the native peoples out. The white settlers became the illegal property owners and possessed increasing acres. Cotton became "king," and the wealthy white men realized the financial benefits to gain with the planting of cotton and cheap labor (the enslaved). The impact of the cotton gin is well known.
As this situation evolved, native Americans and enslaved peoples joined together in relationships and bred offspring. I do not think many people realize this; I certainly did not. I remember a Black activist I met who said she was part Creek. I did not think about it further. Now I understand. Well documented by now, the native peoples left the verdant South, with its fertile soil, and were forcefully marched to Oklahoma and nearby states.
As the plantation economy reached its height, along with slavery, the owners and overseers raped the Black women. The author noted that some of the white men fell in love with their mistresses and supported their children. Though, this is probably the exception to the rule.
The other story centers around a middle class family with three daughters who live in "The City." Parents are well-educated and assimilated. They raise their daughters to value education and strong family values. However, the ugly real world interferes in many ways. This family visits the south every summer, the aforementioned area of Georgia. Here the daughters mingle with their relatives during carefree summers.
The middle daughter is curious as she becomes an adult and travels frequently to Georgia to spend time with friends and family. She spends many years searching for her identity and realizes that history, specifically her own, is her passion. Through her graduate studies, she discovers her family's history and that of most African Americans.
Throughout this narrative, skin color is a motif which is reflective of the history of sexual abuse by white men. In rare cases, some of the men fell in love with Black women. I am aware of the skin color issue, but I will not explain the phenomenom further, as I am not a Black person. I have no right to discuss an issue that is not mine. It should be noted, that today's American Blacks originate from Indigenous, European, and African peoples.
Sprinkled throughout the book are quotes--the "songs"-- from W.E.B. DuBois, the great African American thinker. The quoted material introduces the chapters from the past. Two of the characters argue about who is more significant for African American history--Booker T. Washington or W.E.B. DuBois? The former fought more for the workers of the land. DuBois was the philosopher who favored education and felt the future of the race depended on the topmost intelligent scholars.
This book, in my opinion, ranks as one of the best among current African American novels.
She set her book in a small town in Georgia, close to Atlanta, and in "The City," a fictious northern urban area. I thought Cincinnati or Richmond? The unnamed city gives the book an otherworldly feeling which is fertile ground for spirits, ghosts, and mysterical characters. However, this is not a fantasy novel. The book deals with current issues of race and gender.
There are two stories, one past and one contemporary, which begin disparate but come together at the conclusion of the book. The first story begins in an area of Georgia and elucidates the years before slavery was at its height. Native Americans were the first inhabitants. As white men moved to the south of the United States, they tricked the indigenous by becoming their friends and then stealing their land. Enslaved peoples had already arrived. There were also free Blacks at this time. The big plantations had not been built yet. The institution of slavery was in its infancy.
Gradually, the white men forced the native peoples out. The white settlers became the illegal property owners and possessed increasing acres. Cotton became "king," and the wealthy white men realized the financial benefits to gain with the planting of cotton and cheap labor (the enslaved). The impact of the cotton gin is well known.
As this situation evolved, native Americans and enslaved peoples joined together in relationships and bred offspring. I do not think many people realize this; I certainly did not. I remember a Black activist I met who said she was part Creek. I did not think about it further. Now I understand. Well documented by now, the native peoples left the verdant South, with its fertile soil, and were forcefully marched to Oklahoma and nearby states.
As the plantation economy reached its height, along with slavery, the owners and overseers raped the Black women. The author noted that some of the white men fell in love with their mistresses and supported their children. Though, this is probably the exception to the rule.
The other story centers around a middle class family with three daughters who live in "The City." Parents are well-educated and assimilated. They raise their daughters to value education and strong family values. However, the ugly real world interferes in many ways. This family visits the south every summer, the aforementioned area of Georgia. Here the daughters mingle with their relatives during carefree summers.
The middle daughter is curious as she becomes an adult and travels frequently to Georgia to spend time with friends and family. She spends many years searching for her identity and realizes that history, specifically her own, is her passion. Through her graduate studies, she discovers her family's history and that of most African Americans.
Throughout this narrative, skin color is a motif which is reflective of the history of sexual abuse by white men. In rare cases, some of the men fell in love with Black women. I am aware of the skin color issue, but I will not explain the phenomenom further, as I am not a Black person. I have no right to discuss an issue that is not mine. It should be noted, that today's American Blacks originate from Indigenous, European, and African peoples.
Sprinkled throughout the book are quotes--the "songs"-- from W.E.B. DuBois, the great African American thinker. The quoted material introduces the chapters from the past. Two of the characters argue about who is more significant for African American history--Booker T. Washington or W.E.B. DuBois? The former fought more for the workers of the land. DuBois was the philosopher who favored education and felt the future of the race depended on the topmost intelligent scholars.
This book, in my opinion, ranks as one of the best among current African American novels.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Rape, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Incest
I waver between three and four stars on this one. After looking at reviews, I had high hopes of a five star book here, but the many shortcomings in style, not story, left me underwhelmed. First, virtually every character, and there are a lot of them, is a cliche/stereotype whose entire personality and character can be summarized in about four words. "Paper thin" would be a compliment to some of them. Second, when writers lean on the dreams of characters corresponding with reality and influencing the story, we know they're in trouble, and Jeffers does this multiple times. This is reality, not fantasy - a mother doesn't sit bolt up from a dead sleep at the moment her daughter loses her virginity. Third, the plot is utterly predictable every step of the way. Ten pages before a character becomes a drug addict, we know it's coming; before the flirting is underway, we know this guy is going to be an ass and the girl will be pregnant, and on and on. Furthermore, there are several obvious errors that any editor should have caught. For example, (no spoiler here) at one point an enslaved male runs away and the narrator tells us that this is the end of his story, that we won't be told if he lives or dies, learns to read or write, etc., and about 60 pages later, we are offered a letter that he later sent to his former owner. And finally, character traits that aren't mentioned or hinted at early in the book suddenly become key as the plot needs them - an adult woman whom we have been following since childhood is suddenly blessed with a "near photographic memory" another woman is described within about six pages as being "brilliant" by four different people. We've had no reason to doubt her intelligence, but this sudden awing of everyone she meets seems unnecessary. I could go on. Individually, these complaints may seem like minor quibbling, but collectively, they are irritating, especially since most of them could be dealt with in the editing and revision stages of the book.
This story was absolutely beautiful. Honoree absolutely did that! The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois is an incredible tale of generational curses and blessings. It’s a case of multiple perspectives working. The author approaches racism, addiction, abuse, sexual assault, child abuse and more in such a careful but necessary way. These topics can be so difficult to approach in fictional pieces, sometimes feeling like trauma porn and this is not that. If I could compare it to anything, I’d compare to the legendary roots. A mandatory read.
how do you just...sit down and write an 816 page book?
i can barely even read them.
but i wouldn't have cut a single page from this one.
i don't know how to convey how incredible this book is, except to say that it's over 800 pages and i understood the purpose of all of them; that it covers several generations and dozens of characters and i could distinguish each one; that it's character-driven and in many ways nearly plotless and yet unputdownable and endlessly interesting.
the upside of long books is that to finish one is to love it, and i loved this. i spent two weeks reading it by the tens of pages and i missed it when i was done.
bottom line: i'm a short book girl, but team long books has made some points.
4.5
i can barely even read them.
but i wouldn't have cut a single page from this one.
i don't know how to convey how incredible this book is, except to say that it's over 800 pages and i understood the purpose of all of them; that it covers several generations and dozens of characters and i could distinguish each one; that it's character-driven and in many ways nearly plotless and yet unputdownable and endlessly interesting.
the upside of long books is that to finish one is to love it, and i loved this. i spent two weeks reading it by the tens of pages and i missed it when i was done.
bottom line: i'm a short book girl, but team long books has made some points.
4.5
challenging
dark
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape
Moderate: Drug abuse, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Grief
The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois was not a book I would have gravitated to by myself. I picked it up on a genre swap with a friend. An ambitious historical fiction that made me ponder quite a bit. None the less a very impressive book.
Lots of the themes and conflicts inside this story are incredibly difficult to unpack. Trying to empathize with each and every character and all the trauma each had experienced was exhausting and unfathomable. Ultimately it came to a point where I was just along for the ride.
It will be a book that will stick with me for quite a while.
Lots of the themes and conflicts inside this story are incredibly difficult to unpack. Trying to empathize with each and every character and all the trauma each had experienced was exhausting and unfathomable. Ultimately it came to a point where I was just along for the ride.
It will be a book that will stick with me for quite a while.