A review by cheryl6of8
Life Beyond Measure: Letters to My Great-Granddaughter by Sidney Poitier

4.0

I picked up an audio version of this book at a yard sale because I am a huge fan of Sidney Poitier's grace and grit. Bonus -- the book is read by the author, so I also got his melodic voice which still has traces of his Caribbean childhood. This book was a lovely ear-read, soothing in traffic, but containing a variety of flavors: the dangers of close calls, the philosophy of Life The Universe and Everything including history and God, the stories of his childhood, the discussion of race relations and courage, the importance of education, and other things a man would want his great-granddaughter to know. Some of these stories were retellings from his autobiography, but with a discussion of lessons learned. Some were great reminders of what is possible if we let ourselves explore possibilities, such as the story of how Sidney learned to read and comprehend beyond a first-grade level while working as a dishwasher in NYC, and the stories of his culture shock when he saw his reflection for the first time at 10 or first encountered cars or electricity after a childhood on a primitive island. A few of the discussions were a bit over my head or intense, but I enjoyed the entire experience as an exploration of not only the life of this remarkable man but also of how people process information and the internal conversations we have as we go about our lives.

A couple friends of mine who enjoy audio books expressed an interest in this book, so I will pass it along to one of them.