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greglhoward's review against another edition
5.0
I cannot overstate how glad I am I read this book. It can be hard to read because it's a non-fiction tragedy. But I doubt there's a better way to understand this neighborhood and its history than reading this book. And I doubt anyone could read it without having an emotional response to society's ills.
kmcclellan220's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty incredible story. In particular, I found MacDonald's perspective of the busing/desegregation of Boston Public Schools really thought provoking.
mclanew's review against another edition
4.0
Really cool to be able to visualize EXACTLY where things are happening in the book. Really interesting but also heartbreaking to learn about how different and scary southie was in the 70s, 80s, and 90s
magmae's review against another edition
4.0
A Southie story, with a local's touch, albeit one that's a bit made-for-movie. A really great read.
ari__s's review against another edition
5.0
I'm not sure how I stumbled across this book initially, but I picked it up to read because it was part of the required reading for a Social Work Trauma class I've just started taking as part of my Master's program. That being said, even if I wasn't reading this specifically looking for content that was reflective of trauma experiences and usable for a 6-8 page paper due in a couple weeks, NOT seeing the trauma experienced by so many people and on so many levels (individual, interpersonal, systemic...) would be fairly impossible. I thought this memoir brought to light a part of history that is largely overlooked or oversimplified by confining viewers to a singular perspective or ignoring context. Even with his personal biases and jaded outlooks, MacDonald raises hugely important social justice and systemic oppressions that still have not been fully addressed or answered twenty years later. Multifaceted, heart-wrenching, numbing, activating, frustrating, and infuriating - this book is like accelerant on any social justice-minded person. A harsh reminder that no issue is two dimensional, and that the U.S. society (not just Boston) has a long way to go to repair the damages done and to minimize the harm that continues today in our communities.
goldmorgane's review against another edition
5.0
This book was assigned to me in my history class, and it's really not my usual genre of choice- I can't even remember the last time I read an autobiography. However, MacDonald's story was so compelling that I found it hard to put this book down. It was emotional and eye opening, but I also learned a lot about the Irish-American ethnic enclave of South Boston. I sympathized with MacDonald's family, and cried over his losses, but most of all, I rooted for his success. This book totally surpassed my expectations, and left me both heartbroken and hopeful.
dyerra's review against another edition
2.0
I was honestly not a fan of this book and had a hard time getting through it. I recognize that the subject matter is important and "good for me" to know, but much like a plate full of brussels sprouts, I had to slog through this book one bite at a time. I felt that the author wrote this book as he would a textbook, and despite living through these events and being intimately affected by them, he wrote about them from a removed angle. I understand that psychologically he may need to do this to protect himself from his past trauma, but that does not make for good reading. The only part where the author seemed emotionally engaged was in regards to the trial. At first I thought that the author's style was meant to reflect his childhood acceptance of these tragic events as normal life, but as the book continued without reflection upon the events, I became increasingly disappointed.
I think that this book had potential to be a good read. I generally like memoirs and reading about the lives of others. However without the personal touch of the author's reflection or voice upon the story line, events unfold like a textbook and are never gathered for reflection.
I would recommend researching the topic in this book to others, but I probably would not recommend this book.
I think that this book had potential to be a good read. I generally like memoirs and reading about the lives of others. However without the personal touch of the author's reflection or voice upon the story line, events unfold like a textbook and are never gathered for reflection.
I would recommend researching the topic in this book to others, but I probably would not recommend this book.
nataliation's review against another edition
3.0
http://www.goodreads.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&query=all+souls#