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felbooks1975's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
5.0
lillimoore's review
5.0
America is not like a blanket—one piece of unbroken cloth, the same color, the same texture, the same size. America is more like a quilt—many patches, many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread, and so is this beautiful and very unique quilt of writing that, like the quilt of America described by the Reverend Jesse Jackson, is all tied together by a common thread: the history of Black America. From the time the first recorded people of African descent arrived to what is now the United States in 1619, Black people have faced intense racism, beginning with slavery and continuing through the Jim Crow Era, Civil Rights Movement, and Black Lives Matter movement. Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain have gathered 90 Black writers and poets to each create their own square of this quilt and weave it together, told through stories that capture the essence of being African American in each 5 year time period from the landing of the White Lion—the first recorded ship carrying slaves to America—in 1619 through to the ongoing fight of the Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality and the mistreatment of Black people in America today.
This is a heartbreaking and beautiful book. It is hard to give it 5 stars and categorize it as a favorite—even though with its gorgeous, diverse styles of writing it quickly became one—because the reality of what Black Americans have endured in the past 400 years continues to break me. So if it breaks me, a white person living in rural Colorado with a hell of a lot of other white people, how much is it breaking the millions of Black people who endure daily the lasting legacies of racism, segregation, police brutality, and injustices by both the United States government and its white citizens? But they've never broken, not completely. What this book is at its core is a showcase of Black excellence and resilience as much as it is a funeral service in words, mourning all that has befallen this group of people at the hands of white supremacists promoting and benefiting from institutional frameworks that have caused and continue to cause systemic racism throughout our nation's history.
There are so many nuggets of history in these pages that so many Americans never heard about in history class, myself included. There are so many compelling authors featured that I can't wait to dive further into. I learned a staggering amount from this book! Some of the topics and authors that really stood out to me were Nikole Hannah-Jones' recollection of the arrival of Black people to this land in 1619, Maurice Carlos Ruffin's story of Anthony Johnson in the colony of Virginia, Mary E. Hicks' harrowing account of the Middle Passage, Alexis Pauline Gumbs' chapter on Phillis Wheatley, a discussion of the Fugitive Slave Act by Deirdre Cooper Owens, Derrick Alridge's nuanced look at the life of Booker T. Washington, Jasmine Griffin's ode to the Harlem Renaissance and what it meant for Black creative expression, Bakari Kitwana's explanation of the cultural significance of hip-hop, and so many more excellent essays and poems that told Black history in such a unique fashion.
As with many historical compendiums, some readers may find themselves wanting more. More detail on each story, more focus on significant moments in history. But that's why I awarded this 5 stars—it is a poignant if somewhat surface level introduction to all of these stories making up this centuries-old quilt, that belongs in the collection of any and all students of history and sociology, which ought to be all of us. The narration of this audiobook was also very cool and I really enjoyed hearing so many different voices lend themselves to so many different perspectives on Black history, but I'm eager to check out a physical copy, because there is a lot of information packed into this book and it can be easy to miss important moments when listening. Expertly curated and edited, this is a book you should be sure not to miss, because these are stories we should never have missed in the first place.
This is a heartbreaking and beautiful book. It is hard to give it 5 stars and categorize it as a favorite—even though with its gorgeous, diverse styles of writing it quickly became one—because the reality of what Black Americans have endured in the past 400 years continues to break me. So if it breaks me, a white person living in rural Colorado with a hell of a lot of other white people, how much is it breaking the millions of Black people who endure daily the lasting legacies of racism, segregation, police brutality, and injustices by both the United States government and its white citizens? But they've never broken, not completely. What this book is at its core is a showcase of Black excellence and resilience as much as it is a funeral service in words, mourning all that has befallen this group of people at the hands of white supremacists promoting and benefiting from institutional frameworks that have caused and continue to cause systemic racism throughout our nation's history.
There are so many nuggets of history in these pages that so many Americans never heard about in history class, myself included. There are so many compelling authors featured that I can't wait to dive further into. I learned a staggering amount from this book! Some of the topics and authors that really stood out to me were Nikole Hannah-Jones' recollection of the arrival of Black people to this land in 1619, Maurice Carlos Ruffin's story of Anthony Johnson in the colony of Virginia, Mary E. Hicks' harrowing account of the Middle Passage, Alexis Pauline Gumbs' chapter on Phillis Wheatley, a discussion of the Fugitive Slave Act by Deirdre Cooper Owens, Derrick Alridge's nuanced look at the life of Booker T. Washington, Jasmine Griffin's ode to the Harlem Renaissance and what it meant for Black creative expression, Bakari Kitwana's explanation of the cultural significance of hip-hop, and so many more excellent essays and poems that told Black history in such a unique fashion.
As with many historical compendiums, some readers may find themselves wanting more. More detail on each story, more focus on significant moments in history. But that's why I awarded this 5 stars—it is a poignant if somewhat surface level introduction to all of these stories making up this centuries-old quilt, that belongs in the collection of any and all students of history and sociology, which ought to be all of us. The narration of this audiobook was also very cool and I really enjoyed hearing so many different voices lend themselves to so many different perspectives on Black history, but I'm eager to check out a physical copy, because there is a lot of information packed into this book and it can be easy to miss important moments when listening. Expertly curated and edited, this is a book you should be sure not to miss, because these are stories we should never have missed in the first place.
crybabybea's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
3.75
Extremely informative, each of the writers chose a lesser-known topic to write about which was refreshing. Having 90+ writers made each chapter feel fresh, which really helped the pacing issues that history books seem to struggle with. Despite having so many writers and covering such a wide timeline, each chapter connected surprisingly well. Just in awe of the scope of this project and how well it came together.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Classism, Racial slurs, Sexism, Gun violence, Slavery, Racism, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Hate crime, and Misogyny
11corvus11's review
5.0
Prior to reading Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019, edited by Keisha N. Blain and Ibram X. Kendi, I can't recall reading a history book written in anthology form. I have definitely read plenty of anthologies that tackled history, but never in a focused sort of form like this. I think this worked extremely well, creating an interesting and engaging historical account while also covering a wide range of voices. There are some things in this book that I already knew about, and many others I did not. The execution of each essay is quite good which if often not the case in the world of mixed bags that make of anthologies.
One of the things that stuck out to me in particular while reading this was how listening to these histories made me feel in reference to the time period depicted. In the USA's abysmal system of grade school education, we basically learn there's this horrible thing called slavery that is now over. If we're lucky, we also learn about Jim Crow. We tend to be told that things are constantly progressing and many people draw from this the conclusion that we live in some mythical post racial society. However, as the writings in this moved forward in time, I often found myself more horrified rather than less. The reader will likely find themselves drawing parallels between these histories and the present day state of affairs. It lends more support for the idea that oppression doesn't disappear, it just changes shape, and the struggle continues.
It's pretty difficult to think of things worse that existing as an enslaved person. So, what I am saying here is not that after slavery people were worse off. However, I think the mixture of the expectation that things should get better with the fact that they only changed shape is what is really disturbing. At every step of the way, people fought, often losing their lives and freedom, for the most basic of rights and needs. But, because those in power generally did not want to give in, the way these successes were executed often placed new hardships and burdens on people. It is not that I did not already know this. I think that the way all of this was executed created a clearer picture and experience of these histories to the point that it is quite disturbing
This is not to say that the book is purely a history of suffering. There are a great many stories of triumph and creativity. Some of the entries give us glimpses into well known peoples lives that I had not heard before. Others highlight movements such as Black anti-fascist organizing that are often forgotten in the current day misrepresentation of anti-fascism being a white-invented and white-dominated fight. There was also inclusion of LGBTQ struggles and disabled figures in history. Disability is often neglected despite the fact that a massive number of enslaved people were given disabilities by those who abused them- including well known figures like Harriet Tubman.
I think the editors did a great job putting this book together. If you are the type of person who wants to learn history, but lacks the attention span for long books about it, this kind of format might better suit you. The introduction of each new voice with each entry creates an excellent and engaging experience using complex voices to speak on complex topics.
This was also posted to my blog.
One of the things that stuck out to me in particular while reading this was how listening to these histories made me feel in reference to the time period depicted. In the USA's abysmal system of grade school education, we basically learn there's this horrible thing called slavery that is now over. If we're lucky, we also learn about Jim Crow. We tend to be told that things are constantly progressing and many people draw from this the conclusion that we live in some mythical post racial society. However, as the writings in this moved forward in time, I often found myself more horrified rather than less. The reader will likely find themselves drawing parallels between these histories and the present day state of affairs. It lends more support for the idea that oppression doesn't disappear, it just changes shape, and the struggle continues.
It's pretty difficult to think of things worse that existing as an enslaved person. So, what I am saying here is not that after slavery people were worse off. However, I think the mixture of the expectation that things should get better with the fact that they only changed shape is what is really disturbing. At every step of the way, people fought, often losing their lives and freedom, for the most basic of rights and needs. But, because those in power generally did not want to give in, the way these successes were executed often placed new hardships and burdens on people. It is not that I did not already know this. I think that the way all of this was executed created a clearer picture and experience of these histories to the point that it is quite disturbing
This is not to say that the book is purely a history of suffering. There are a great many stories of triumph and creativity. Some of the entries give us glimpses into well known peoples lives that I had not heard before. Others highlight movements such as Black anti-fascist organizing that are often forgotten in the current day misrepresentation of anti-fascism being a white-invented and white-dominated fight. There was also inclusion of LGBTQ struggles and disabled figures in history. Disability is often neglected despite the fact that a massive number of enslaved people were given disabilities by those who abused them- including well known figures like Harriet Tubman.
I think the editors did a great job putting this book together. If you are the type of person who wants to learn history, but lacks the attention span for long books about it, this kind of format might better suit you. The introduction of each new voice with each entry creates an excellent and engaging experience using complex voices to speak on complex topics.
This was also posted to my blog.
_erin02's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
this was definitely a slow read for me but I like that each chapter is written by someone else, and sharing their stories and experiences
prof_trouble6's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.5
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erwink54's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Such an important and heart breaking book.
chaosmavin's review
5.0
This book is amazing! I loved the way it was curated…multiple writers who each teach a section of black lives and history, rounding out each section with a poem that sums the vibe of the previous sections.
I found my interacting with the book very vocally…sometimes with outrage sometimes with a call back of solidarity.
If you’re still questioning why Black Lives Matter read this! And if you have the inclination listen as the voices of the writer really add to the experience!
I found my interacting with the book very vocally…sometimes with outrage sometimes with a call back of solidarity.
If you’re still questioning why Black Lives Matter read this! And if you have the inclination listen as the voices of the writer really add to the experience!