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A review by bobbieshiann
Daddy Was a Number Runner by Louise Meriwether
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
“We were all mixed up in something together, us colored up here in the north, something I couldn’t quite figure out. But it was better up here than down south. That’s what I’d always heard people say, that folks down in Bip were just dying for a chance to come north to the promise land. This was the promise land, wasn’t it?
Daddy Was a Number Runner depicts what it is like being Black in Harlem during the 1930s. The story is told from the eyes of a 12-year-old girl named Francie who does not only tell her coming of age story but also tells what it is like to be entrapped by race and class during the great depression. Meriwether does not miss a beat as she makes sure to put forward the Harlem riot, the Scottsboro case of 1931, and the political viewpoint on Black lives. Through the harsh time of Harlem streets, Francie starts to grow up fast since life around her begins to get blurry with adults and real-life events.
Who defines beauty? Francie describes herself as skinny, Black, bad looking with short hair, a long neck, and all that space in between. But she is a child who is seen as a piece of meat to some of the boys in her neighborhood and adult men who feel up on her for extra food or a dime as a payment of secrecy.
There is something so aching watching a young child’s imagination and dream get tainted by the wickedness of the world and their hopes get smeared by a reality they did not ask for but Daddy Was a Number Runner transitions. As you watch families survive through the sharing of food, shelter, gossip, and customs. Yes, we may judge each other in the Black community, but the white man has no right. We watch as Francine’s dad’s definition of a man is crumbled as life-altering events keep happening that lead the family towards the stereotypes he wants to be avoided. The system finds a way to destroy not only Franice’s father but her neighbors too as they suffer through death, assault, murder, dropping out of school for the youth, loss of jobs, and government assistance. But everyone wants to play the numbers. The numbers symbolize Black hope to me. How even in our lowest times, we may find a glimpse of the prize to hold onto within each other catch a win no matter how small the amount may be.
One of the most critical points for me was how Francine letting a pedophile feel upon her for a dime struck fear into her. Not fear of what he did but fear of the feeling. The not knowing why her body responded and even though knowing it was wrong but more freaked out of the guilt she felt for her mother potentially finding out. Sex is often unspoken to the youth and yet while their bodies are developing and puberty hits, there is rarely anyone to answer the questions that scramble in their head. Little girls are often told to never let anyone touch their private parts, but no adults answer the why? No adult explains the body, its response, and what a pedophile is and let’s not even get into family secrets.
Daddy Was a Number Runner being Black love, Black trauma, Black tragedy, Black unity, and the heroism of ordinary folks.
Daddy Was a Number Runner depicts what it is like being Black in Harlem during the 1930s. The story is told from the eyes of a 12-year-old girl named Francie who does not only tell her coming of age story but also tells what it is like to be entrapped by race and class during the great depression. Meriwether does not miss a beat as she makes sure to put forward the Harlem riot, the Scottsboro case of 1931, and the political viewpoint on Black lives. Through the harsh time of Harlem streets, Francie starts to grow up fast since life around her begins to get blurry with adults and real-life events.
Who defines beauty? Francie describes herself as skinny, Black, bad looking with short hair, a long neck, and all that space in between. But she is a child who is seen as a piece of meat to some of the boys in her neighborhood and adult men who feel up on her for extra food or a dime as a payment of secrecy.
There is something so aching watching a young child’s imagination and dream get tainted by the wickedness of the world and their hopes get smeared by a reality they did not ask for but Daddy Was a Number Runner transitions. As you watch families survive through the sharing of food, shelter, gossip, and customs. Yes, we may judge each other in the Black community, but the white man has no right. We watch as Francine’s dad’s definition of a man is crumbled as life-altering events keep happening that lead the family towards the stereotypes he wants to be avoided. The system finds a way to destroy not only Franice’s father but her neighbors too as they suffer through death, assault, murder, dropping out of school for the youth, loss of jobs, and government assistance. But everyone wants to play the numbers. The numbers symbolize Black hope to me. How even in our lowest times, we may find a glimpse of the prize to hold onto within each other catch a win no matter how small the amount may be.
One of the most critical points for me was how Francine letting a pedophile feel upon her for a dime struck fear into her. Not fear of what he did but fear of the feeling. The not knowing why her body responded and even though knowing it was wrong but more freaked out of the guilt she felt for her mother potentially finding out. Sex is often unspoken to the youth and yet while their bodies are developing and puberty hits, there is rarely anyone to answer the questions that scramble in their head. Little girls are often told to never let anyone touch their private parts, but no adults answer the why? No adult explains the body, its response, and what a pedophile is and let’s not even get into family secrets.
Daddy Was a Number Runner being Black love, Black trauma, Black tragedy, Black unity, and the heroism of ordinary folks.