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4.28 AVERAGE
4.28 AVERAGE
No one can review this book. You don't review the truth. You should read it, know it, and remember it.
Du Bois was a giant among men. His writings, his teachings, his realizations, his exhortations - are legendary. His words ring true - sadly even today, after more than a century from when they were originally written and meant for.
That his truths remain true even today is both a tribute and an insult to him.
What we do with these truths will determine what our future generations think of us, and remember us as.
Or don't remember us at all.
Du Bois was a giant among men. His writings, his teachings, his realizations, his exhortations - are legendary. His words ring true - sadly even today, after more than a century from when they were originally written and meant for.
That his truths remain true even today is both a tribute and an insult to him.
What we do with these truths will determine what our future generations think of us, and remember us as.
Or don't remember us at all.
4.5
certain parts of the book were hard to understand.Not entirely unnecessary but just hard to digest.A very powerful book.
certain parts of the book were hard to understand.Not entirely unnecessary but just hard to digest.A very powerful book.
From the afterthought:
"Hear my cry, O God the Reader; vouchsafe that this my book fall not still-born into the world-wilderness. Let there spring, Gentle One, from out of its leaves vigor of thought and thoughtful deed to reap the harvest wonderful. (Let the ears of a guilty people tingle with truth, and seventy millions sigh for the righteousness which exalteth nations, in this drear day when human brotherhood is mockery and a snare.) Thus in Thy good time may infinite reason turn the tangle straight, and these crooked marks on a fragile leaf be not indeed.
"Hear my cry, O God the Reader; vouchsafe that this my book fall not still-born into the world-wilderness. Let there spring, Gentle One, from out of its leaves vigor of thought and thoughtful deed to reap the harvest wonderful. (Let the ears of a guilty people tingle with truth, and seventy millions sigh for the righteousness which exalteth nations, in this drear day when human brotherhood is mockery and a snare.) Thus in Thy good time may infinite reason turn the tangle straight, and these crooked marks on a fragile leaf be not indeed.
This is an essential piece of African American literature - for its presentation of the conditions and movements of the time, its sociological passages, and its rhetorical power.
This is an essential piece of African American literature - for its presentation of the conditions and movements of the time, its sociological passages, and its rhetorical power.
April 16, 2010 update: This time through I listened to it on audiobook, and I have to say, it was an incredible experience. I highly recommend the (free!) audiobook from librivox.org, read by someone only identified as toriasuncle. The librivox audiobooks can be hit or miss since they're read by volunteers, but this is by far the best I've heard. He reads with passion, feeling, and intelligence, and capably deals with the foreign languages, poetry, and music. Yes, music! He plays all the music lines that head each chapter, and it's great to actually hear them since I've read the book so many times and wondered what they sounded like. This reader brings DuBois' powerful and elegant language to life. It was a terrific way to experience this text.
April 16, 2010 update: This time through I listened to it on audiobook, and I have to say, it was an incredible experience. I highly recommend the (free!) audiobook from librivox.org, read by someone only identified as toriasuncle. The librivox audiobooks can be hit or miss since they're read by volunteers, but this is by far the best I've heard. He reads with passion, feeling, and intelligence, and capably deals with the foreign languages, poetry, and music. Yes, music! He plays all the music lines that head each chapter, and it's great to actually hear them since I've read the book so many times and wondered what they sounded like. This reader brings DuBois' powerful and elegant language to life. It was a terrific way to experience this text.
Part essay, part travelogue, part life story, this was at times infuriating, at times confusing, and at times entertaining and informative. I'm glad I read it, but I'm glad to be done with it.
challenging
informative
sad
medium-paced
Personal preference: I found the narrator difficult to listen to.
A book everyone needs to read if they want to understand both the history of race relations in America and how the 'problem of the color line' is still prevalent today.