A review by vtlism
Brothers and Keepers: A Memoir by John Edgar Wideman

3.0

while knowing that i could not write as well, i am nonetheless not thrilled with Wideman's writing style, all his wee repetitive sentences. the book was first worse than i expected then better than the worsening led me to expect, like an uneven U shape. i wanted more. it did a good job of making prison real and physical beyond the stereotypes, making me neither pity nor respect the brother, though in some parts the lamentations seemed excessive-- he did kill someone, so is he proposing no punishment? also, the blanket proposition that poked out every now and then that "black men have no way out" is painfully illustrated to be incorrect by the very act of Wideman's writing and success.