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High Cotton
FINALIST -- 2021 Georgia Author of the Year Award for Memoir
Kristie Robin Johnson has lived nearly her whole life in small town Georgia, as did five generations of African American women before her beginning with a slave, her oldest known ancestor. In HIGH COTTON, Johnson explores the social and economic consequences of her lineage, drawing on pivotal moments from her own experience to illuminate the lived reality of a daughter of the Deep South. Johnson unapologetically describes a life that falls below the standards of black respectability, that of an unmarried young mother, an addict’s daughter, a college dropout, welfare recipient, and willful sinner. The voice in HIGH COTTON is a cry from within the masses. Johnson stretches out long brown fingers as far as they will reach to barely skim the first, crucial rung of the ladder to success, that so-called American dream. She exposes the soft underbelly of black girl magic, celebrating black life in all its glorious vulnerability. The essays in HIGH COTTON contain all the complication of a post–civil rights era, post–women’s liberation, pre-millennial black woman living in the modern South, conjuring universal truths every reader will recognize.
Kristie Robin Johnson has lived nearly her whole life in small town Georgia, as did five generations of African American women before her beginning with a slave, her oldest known ancestor. In HIGH COTTON, Johnson explores the social and economic consequences of her lineage, drawing on pivotal moments from her own experience to illuminate the lived reality of a daughter of the Deep South. Johnson unapologetically describes a life that falls below the standards of black respectability, that of an unmarried young mother, an addict’s daughter, a college dropout, welfare recipient, and willful sinner. The voice in HIGH COTTON is a cry from within the masses. Johnson stretches out long brown fingers as far as they will reach to barely skim the first, crucial rung of the ladder to success, that so-called American dream. She exposes the soft underbelly of black girl magic, celebrating black life in all its glorious vulnerability. The essays in HIGH COTTON contain all the complication of a post–civil rights era, post–women’s liberation, pre-millennial black woman living in the modern South, conjuring universal truths every reader will recognize.
- GenresMemoirEssaysNonfiction
180 pages, ebook
First published August 4, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 24, 2020
This selection of 21 essays by Kristie Robin Johnson is brilliant and evocative in its writing while being disturbing in the topics about which she writes. These essays are a memoir of growing up African-American in the deep South in recent years. Johnson still lives in Groveton, Georgia, a suburb of Augusta.
Johnson received a highly competitive offer to participate in the Creative Writing program at Georgia College and State University, where she received her MFA. She knew she wanted to write, and this program allowed her to hone those skills. However, she gave up a good job in order to follow this dream. She encountered racism in the program but finished it.
Several of the essays discuss her family–her mother, a drug addict who went through rehab programs several times but relapsed every time; her grandmother, who supported her in so many ways; her third great-grandmother Vinie, who had been a slave and who Kristie took as her guardian angel; her husband, who was many years older and from whom she is now divorced. In several other essays she writes about her sons. Her older son is on the autism spectrum and her worries for him are immense. as he has grown older and is on better medications and therapy, she indicates that he is much better. Her younger son is a reader, something she encouraged by reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass with him and seeing the vistas which it opened.
The essay in which she recounts her experience of enrolling for food stamps and then her first time to use her EBT card are particularly poignant. While working on her degree, she realized the importance of working with and being in community with other African-American women; another essay discusses the importance of that community.
I am a better person for having read this selection of essays and for gaining understanding of a life so very different from my own–someone I will likely never meet but who has a lot to teach me. Kudos to Raised Voice Press for publishing this collection.
This review was provided for Story Circle Book Reviews by Mary Jarvis.
Johnson received a highly competitive offer to participate in the Creative Writing program at Georgia College and State University, where she received her MFA. She knew she wanted to write, and this program allowed her to hone those skills. However, she gave up a good job in order to follow this dream. She encountered racism in the program but finished it.
Several of the essays discuss her family–her mother, a drug addict who went through rehab programs several times but relapsed every time; her grandmother, who supported her in so many ways; her third great-grandmother Vinie, who had been a slave and who Kristie took as her guardian angel; her husband, who was many years older and from whom she is now divorced. In several other essays she writes about her sons. Her older son is on the autism spectrum and her worries for him are immense. as he has grown older and is on better medications and therapy, she indicates that he is much better. Her younger son is a reader, something she encouraged by reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass with him and seeing the vistas which it opened.
The essay in which she recounts her experience of enrolling for food stamps and then her first time to use her EBT card are particularly poignant. While working on her degree, she realized the importance of working with and being in community with other African-American women; another essay discusses the importance of that community.
I am a better person for having read this selection of essays and for gaining understanding of a life so very different from my own–someone I will likely never meet but who has a lot to teach me. Kudos to Raised Voice Press for publishing this collection.
This review was provided for Story Circle Book Reviews by Mary Jarvis.
July 25, 2020
I was struck by the author’s almost casual response to her mistakes in life, and to those of other people of color. Although she does accept a modicum of responsibility, she points fingers elsewhere and blames the world outside, like Romney and Reagan, etc. for putting the people of color in a position to make their mistakes, as if they did not make those choices freely, but were coerced to do so by an evil system of systemic racism. I find that attitude speaks a bit of arrogance and expectation, entitlement and anger, rather than remorse and responsibility. I do not think there is systemic racism; I think there is systemic rationalization. I think her blatant dislike of the current President in the last essay, although he has done much for her community of color, shows a political bias for a party that has been proven to consistently hold people of color down with their policies.
Still, Kristie Johnson was able to get grants to go to school for her MFA while also getting government assistance so that she could raise her two sons properly. A single mom, with a failed marriage and irresponsible relationships behind her, she was hoping to change her life for the better. Yet, any gratitude expressed for the advantages she was provided in her life, by her country, are couched in a narrative that seems to justify the errors made, blaming the responsibility for those errors elsewhere. She justifies stealing because of poverty, cheating because of loneliness, poor judgment because of hopelessness. If someone points that out, she points fingers at them implying that their racism is responsible.
I consider the author lucky in many ways. She had a loving family and loyal friends. She had compassionate mentors. She wanted to be a writer, and after screwing up her life, having a child as a teen, dropping out of school, failing in relationships and marriages, America smiled on her and gave her another opportunity. She succeeded, but still made some very unethical choices as late as 2017. I think it is time to say thank you, and not carry an attitude of well that was yesterday, what will you do for me tomorrow? Kristie Robin Johnson is successful because this country is not systemically racist, but because this country provided her with opportunities that others were never given, and she was smart enough to take advantage of them to improve her life.
I enjoyed reading her essays because they were really enlightening about how she and others feel about America, their lifestyles, their hopes and dreams and their choices and their mistakes. An easy read, it is a very human tale of suffering and joy, success and failure, love and hate, but not all in equal measure. More emphasis is placed on the negative areas of her life that she had to overcome than on the successes that she was able to achieve and to whom she owes some appreciation for those successes. Her life was not easy. Her mom, suffering greatly from the sudden death of her husband, turned to drugs to relieve her emotional pain. Kristie, therefore, grew up with a drug addict for a parent, albeit a parent who loved her very much. Eventually, Kristie also turned to substance abuse to ease her own pain after her life took a downward turn.
Kristie tends to generalize behavior. Because she was raped, men are evil. She knew her decision to enter the man’s room was foolish, but she did it anyway. Sadly, it turned out to be a traumatic experience she kept hidden for years. There seems to still be a lot of resentment in her, but the United States gave her a lot of opportunity in the face of her many failures, and to me, that does not speak of systemic racism. Rewriting history cannot erase it. Kristie’s modus operandi seems to be that if she wants something, she justifies taking it, whether or not it is the sensible choice; then she blames society if something goes wrong. Her essays show some growth in maturity and decision making but not in accepting total responsibility or in appreciating what she has been given. I found that disappointing and indicative of the problems we are facing in America today. We all suffer to some degree, some more than others; it is how we choose to overcome the suffering that defines us. It is what we learn from our trials that makes us a failure or a success. It is how we work for change by adjusting our own behavior and not by expecting those around us to adjust theirs.
So, while the book draws you right in, with the inviting writing style of Johnson, it also is a painful read. Learning about the monumental difficulties Kristie had to overcome, regardless of their cause, is a testament to her courage, strength and ability to finally be introspective enough to recognize what she needed to do to climb out of the hole, rather than to keep digging, making it deeper. She stopped the pattern of making poor choices because they were easier or seemed the only way, but she did still justify many, even as she started to make more thoughtful decisions that put her and her family on the right track. She writes so tenderly about her friends and family that the reader may wish that, he/she too, had such deep and loyal relationships. The death of her father, her mother, her divorce, her disabled child, her alcohol use, her rape, all of these events were difficult to deal with, but while many of her problems were outside her ability to control, many were of her own making.
Johnson cites the number of people shot by police, more than 900, but does not compare the number of blacks to the number of others, making one think that over 900 people of color were outright murdered by the police. She offers no explanations as to the causes of the deaths. Also, it happens that more white people are shot by the police, but that is not mentioned. I suppose it would not justify the point she wants to make that people of color are, indeed, harassed more often. However, it is a failure of responsibility when facts are left out. While not as prevalent, white people are also harassed by the police. White people are also warned by their parents not to harass the police. I know I was. Was it because I am Jewish? Once, after I was stopped by a local officer, I went to the community mayor who told me “you are lucky you don’t live in Germany.” There are good and bad people everywhere.
So, in conclusion, I liked the writing style. It was like taking a real peek into her life, through journal type entries that read like personal conversations or letters to a friend, but I found it hard to sympathize with some of the reasons for her poor decisions. Rather than judge them, I would rather question the reasons behind them. It seems to me that, at times, while she accepted responsibility for them, she didn’t give nearly enough credit to the system and country that allowed her to recover from her many mistakes and to succeed as the author of a best selling book being actively marketed. She insists racism is the cause of her problems, her son’s problems, her family’s problems, and for most of the problems of people of color. The behavior of her community is free from responsibility for their choices. She believes they are forced to behave the way they do.
This woman’s life was hard, and it is laudable that she was able to pick herself up and straighten it out so remarkably. Others, not as strong, might have failed miserably. Others have.
Still, Kristie Johnson was able to get grants to go to school for her MFA while also getting government assistance so that she could raise her two sons properly. A single mom, with a failed marriage and irresponsible relationships behind her, she was hoping to change her life for the better. Yet, any gratitude expressed for the advantages she was provided in her life, by her country, are couched in a narrative that seems to justify the errors made, blaming the responsibility for those errors elsewhere. She justifies stealing because of poverty, cheating because of loneliness, poor judgment because of hopelessness. If someone points that out, she points fingers at them implying that their racism is responsible.
I consider the author lucky in many ways. She had a loving family and loyal friends. She had compassionate mentors. She wanted to be a writer, and after screwing up her life, having a child as a teen, dropping out of school, failing in relationships and marriages, America smiled on her and gave her another opportunity. She succeeded, but still made some very unethical choices as late as 2017. I think it is time to say thank you, and not carry an attitude of well that was yesterday, what will you do for me tomorrow? Kristie Robin Johnson is successful because this country is not systemically racist, but because this country provided her with opportunities that others were never given, and she was smart enough to take advantage of them to improve her life.
I enjoyed reading her essays because they were really enlightening about how she and others feel about America, their lifestyles, their hopes and dreams and their choices and their mistakes. An easy read, it is a very human tale of suffering and joy, success and failure, love and hate, but not all in equal measure. More emphasis is placed on the negative areas of her life that she had to overcome than on the successes that she was able to achieve and to whom she owes some appreciation for those successes. Her life was not easy. Her mom, suffering greatly from the sudden death of her husband, turned to drugs to relieve her emotional pain. Kristie, therefore, grew up with a drug addict for a parent, albeit a parent who loved her very much. Eventually, Kristie also turned to substance abuse to ease her own pain after her life took a downward turn.
Kristie tends to generalize behavior. Because she was raped, men are evil. She knew her decision to enter the man’s room was foolish, but she did it anyway. Sadly, it turned out to be a traumatic experience she kept hidden for years. There seems to still be a lot of resentment in her, but the United States gave her a lot of opportunity in the face of her many failures, and to me, that does not speak of systemic racism. Rewriting history cannot erase it. Kristie’s modus operandi seems to be that if she wants something, she justifies taking it, whether or not it is the sensible choice; then she blames society if something goes wrong. Her essays show some growth in maturity and decision making but not in accepting total responsibility or in appreciating what she has been given. I found that disappointing and indicative of the problems we are facing in America today. We all suffer to some degree, some more than others; it is how we choose to overcome the suffering that defines us. It is what we learn from our trials that makes us a failure or a success. It is how we work for change by adjusting our own behavior and not by expecting those around us to adjust theirs.
So, while the book draws you right in, with the inviting writing style of Johnson, it also is a painful read. Learning about the monumental difficulties Kristie had to overcome, regardless of their cause, is a testament to her courage, strength and ability to finally be introspective enough to recognize what she needed to do to climb out of the hole, rather than to keep digging, making it deeper. She stopped the pattern of making poor choices because they were easier or seemed the only way, but she did still justify many, even as she started to make more thoughtful decisions that put her and her family on the right track. She writes so tenderly about her friends and family that the reader may wish that, he/she too, had such deep and loyal relationships. The death of her father, her mother, her divorce, her disabled child, her alcohol use, her rape, all of these events were difficult to deal with, but while many of her problems were outside her ability to control, many were of her own making.
Johnson cites the number of people shot by police, more than 900, but does not compare the number of blacks to the number of others, making one think that over 900 people of color were outright murdered by the police. She offers no explanations as to the causes of the deaths. Also, it happens that more white people are shot by the police, but that is not mentioned. I suppose it would not justify the point she wants to make that people of color are, indeed, harassed more often. However, it is a failure of responsibility when facts are left out. While not as prevalent, white people are also harassed by the police. White people are also warned by their parents not to harass the police. I know I was. Was it because I am Jewish? Once, after I was stopped by a local officer, I went to the community mayor who told me “you are lucky you don’t live in Germany.” There are good and bad people everywhere.
So, in conclusion, I liked the writing style. It was like taking a real peek into her life, through journal type entries that read like personal conversations or letters to a friend, but I found it hard to sympathize with some of the reasons for her poor decisions. Rather than judge them, I would rather question the reasons behind them. It seems to me that, at times, while she accepted responsibility for them, she didn’t give nearly enough credit to the system and country that allowed her to recover from her many mistakes and to succeed as the author of a best selling book being actively marketed. She insists racism is the cause of her problems, her son’s problems, her family’s problems, and for most of the problems of people of color. The behavior of her community is free from responsibility for their choices. She believes they are forced to behave the way they do.
This woman’s life was hard, and it is laudable that she was able to pick herself up and straighten it out so remarkably. Others, not as strong, might have failed miserably. Others have.
July 30, 2020
The author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finiThe author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finiThe author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a fini The author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finished copy of this book from teh publisher as a win from LibraryThing.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finiThe author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finiThe author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a fini The author, Kristie Robin Johnson is a good writer, she captures your attention and won't let go. Before reading this book, I would have had no idea of what it would be like to have a mother deep into drug addiction.Her mother was a functional addict, able to make house payments, own a car and work for a long time until she lost it. Too deep into drugs to do anything that she did before. Her mother was numb and unemotional when her habit got worse and I think that may explain why the author does not take responsibility for her own actions.
She seems very defiant and angry to me. One of her experiences really stood out to me. She had to counsel a girl who had problems but to the author, the girl's problems seemed so minor compared to her own that she admits turning cold on her. Guidance was given to the girl but without any caring or empathy. After the girl left, the author was on fire with anger. I had a similar thing happen to me. But I shared some of my own life with a person breaking apart with confusion and feeling that no one had problems like she did. I shared some of my own life with that distrught person. We are all different, coming from different families, some uncredibly disfunctioal but we need to grow and try to understand the other. Another reviewer said that he does not believe in systemic racism. I do and I have read many books on racism and I am trying to be anitracist. To be that, you need to be open to examine yoir feelings, recognize your mistakes and be willing to change.
I agree with the author's grandmother's thoughts. "You must live. It sounds simple but it is not. Sometimes, it takes courage to live.
I received a finished copy of this book from teh publisher as a win from LibraryThing.
May 11, 2021
Right off the bat, I received a copy of this book through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program, and I'm grateful to the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.
These essays for the most part felt somewhat... unfinished to me? Not that I need every essay to have a tidy conclusion, but each essay felt like it was such a surface take on what are often larger issues; the colorism essay, for example, really failed to identify the way that colorism has serious consequences (including much higher rates of arrest and incarceration for darker-skinned Black people,) and while her essay about her struggles with her older son's autism and (maybe?) schizophrenia acknowledges the violence that disabled Black people especially experience at the hands of police, it also came off as fairly ableist. (I would say actually that most of her writing about her autistic son is fairly ableist, from saying he was "robbed" of his childhood by his autism to some descriptions of forcing him to endure overstimulating situations. I'll leave further commentary on it to Black autistic folks, but it made me pretty uncomfortable.)
I don't need every single essay to be explanatory or like particularly revealing, but so many of these just felt super surface. There were also some writing choices that made me uncomfortable (the aforementioned ableism, her choice to continually use food words to describe the skin of other Black people,) and the essays about her affair, while I think they were meant to show growth, just kind of come across as contradictory.
I had some high hopes about this, but ultimately it just fell flat for me.
These essays for the most part felt somewhat... unfinished to me? Not that I need every essay to have a tidy conclusion, but each essay felt like it was such a surface take on what are often larger issues; the colorism essay, for example, really failed to identify the way that colorism has serious consequences (including much higher rates of arrest and incarceration for darker-skinned Black people,) and while her essay about her struggles with her older son's autism and (maybe?) schizophrenia acknowledges the violence that disabled Black people especially experience at the hands of police, it also came off as fairly ableist. (I would say actually that most of her writing about her autistic son is fairly ableist, from saying he was "robbed" of his childhood by his autism to some descriptions of forcing him to endure overstimulating situations. I'll leave further commentary on it to Black autistic folks, but it made me pretty uncomfortable.)
I don't need every single essay to be explanatory or like particularly revealing, but so many of these just felt super surface. There were also some writing choices that made me uncomfortable (the aforementioned ableism, her choice to continually use food words to describe the skin of other Black people,) and the essays about her affair, while I think they were meant to show growth, just kind of come across as contradictory.
I had some high hopes about this, but ultimately it just fell flat for me.
June 1, 2021
The essays really take you deep into the author's world, sharing her history, her dreams, her flaws and her passion. I wrestled with them, because understanding someone is a great way to have compassion for them, but she also reveals things that I find deeply disturbing. In particular, she is candid about the affairs she has with married men, and the pain that she inflicts on herself and maybe the rest of his family, although that seems to be a lesser concern for her. Yikes.
But overall it's a beautiful read, showing how family and love can build a strong foundation, how Black pride in oneself and one's community can face up to racism and disenfranchisement and hardship. How men and women can try to trust each other, and the ways in which that fails, sometimes horrifically.
I received a copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reader program.
But overall it's a beautiful read, showing how family and love can build a strong foundation, how Black pride in oneself and one's community can face up to racism and disenfranchisement and hardship. How men and women can try to trust each other, and the ways in which that fails, sometimes horrifically.
I received a copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reader program.
October 24, 2021
These essays moved me and opened my eyes. Powerful and stark and honest.
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