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A review by stellarsphyr
No Ashes in the Fire: Coming of Age Black and Free in America by Darnell L. Moore
3.0
I was very excited about this book and had been following Moore for a while. It was a refreshing representation of a voice too often ignored. However, I was expecting more development and an overarching narrative. Perhaps that shaded my perception of a memoir more keen on snippets and developing a human-ness to a voice than in wallowing in details.
The book is more vignette than anything and seems to flash by good and hard truths too quickly. It seems like Moore perhaps is willing to engage in some subjects (a difficult task for any memoirist) but still keeps some experiences at arm’s length. It’s a fair thing to do, of course, considering the subject matter. As a reader though I wanted to say “we’ve come this far, can we go a little farther? I don’t just want to know but I need to feel.”
The book is more vignette than anything and seems to flash by good and hard truths too quickly. It seems like Moore perhaps is willing to engage in some subjects (a difficult task for any memoirist) but still keeps some experiences at arm’s length. It’s a fair thing to do, of course, considering the subject matter. As a reader though I wanted to say “we’ve come this far, can we go a little farther? I don’t just want to know but I need to feel.”