Hoping you’re all gearing up to celebrate Black History Month 2017 through literature. This year I’m hosting a read along on Goodreads of Bedrock Faith by Eric Charles May published by Akashic Books. You can sign up here to become part of the group and take part in the discussion. All discussions will be happening over there and will be followed by a live discussion on my YouTube channel Brown Girl Reading, at the end of the month. On Instagram I’ll be co-hosting a photo challenge with Danielle from dani! dany! danie!. I’ll be doing some updates of what I post over there here in case any of you aren’t on either Goodreads or Instagram. I look forward to exchanging with you and I’m sure this is going to be great. Oh and if you’re interested in seeing how #ReadSoulLit started click here to watch the playlist of #ReadSoulLit videos that were made the first year by some of our black Booktubers. Happy reading!
The inauguration of the newly elected president of America is upon us. Racism has shown to be very alive and well in the United States, contrary to popular belief. People are all questioning how we could go from President Barak Obama to what was elected on November 7, 2016. Deep down I think we all know why and aren’t really surprised, but in essence most of us don’t want to admit what the problem really is. Tears We Cannot Stop : A Sermon to White America by Michael Eric Dyson delves profoundly and with precision into the murky racist history America keeps holding on to, as it seems, for dear life. Do YOU really want to know what the problem is? Or, do you prefer to keep pretending you don’t see color and that racism doesn’t exist?
Dyson opens Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White Americashowing the reader that we are all different, living and seeing the world from our own points of view. However similar that is, black people’s experiences are being minimized and ignored. The realization that black people are still viewed today as inferior and the struggle for white people to acknowledge their white privilege are only two of the many problems Dyson analyzes in Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America. Dyson chose to structure this novel to resemble a church service, henceforth giving the book a very heart-felt, sincere tone. Instead of being separated into simple numbered chapters, they are each labeled with a part of a full church service, Chapter I. Call to Worship, Chapter II. Hymns of Praise, Chapter III. Invocation, Chapter IV. Scripture Reading, Chapter V. Sermon, VI. Benediction, VII. Offering Plate, and finally VIII. Closing Prayer.
Written in only 188 pages, Dyson incisively takes “beloved” (white people) through the 360° lesson on race and understanding it from a black person’s point of view. He leaves no stone unturned. He demystifies whiteness in exactitude and with unflinching truth. Yes it’s uncomfortable, which he states right from the beginning, but it’s necessary. Dyson utilizes pop culture, expressions, lyrics, tv shows, famous people, and most of all real examples from his own life. He uses all of this to demonstrate white America’s inability to accept their part in racism still exiting so strongly today. Despite sounding negative, Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America is not all gloom and doom.
I don’t want to give anything more away, but EVERYONE white, black, hispanic, asian, or other NEEDS to read this book, as well as those of you who aren’t American but want to understand America’s race struggle better. Dyson’s writing is truthful and informative, while being equally interesting. It will be hard to avoid understanding some of the problems of racism in America today, after reading this book. Those who read it won’t have any excuses. This book isn’t a cry for help or a plea for pity, it’s a demand for REAL respect, understanding, and action.
You may not know who Michael Eric Dyson is but every black American does and you should too. He is an author, radio host, and professor of Sociology. He teaches Sociology at Georgetown University. He became an ordained Baptist minister at 19. He’s obtained various degrees from Knoxville College, Carson-Newman College, and Princeton University. Dyson definitely has his finger on the pulse of America’s race problem because he’s written many books discussing race and related topics, such as Why I Love Black Women, Know What I Mean? Reflections On Hip Hop, Debating Race: with Michael Eric Dyson, Holler If You Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, among many others and Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America is his nineteenth.
*I was sent this book for an honest review from St. Martin’s Press.
Tears We Cannot Stop A Sermon to White America, 188 pages – St. Martin’s Press
My rating: 5 stars
Recommended to: Readers interested in reading about race relations in the United States
I’m an affiliate for The Book Depository. It would be much appreciated to click the link below if you’re interested in picking up any of my recommendations. It will help fund my incessant book buying. http://www.bookdepository.com/?a_aid=browngirlreading
The immigrant story has been the central theme to quite a lot of contemporary novels these past few years. The release of Imbolo Mbue’s Behold the Dreamers may have first been perceived as another typical immigrant story to join all the others, but actually it’s much more.
I was sent a Net Galley uncorrected proof in exchange for an honest review, so I opted to listen to the audiobook while reading simultaneously. The experience was very interesting because I got to see what was edited and how the change of a few words can give a passage a totally different feel. The general story of Behold the Dreamers is a family from Cameroon united after some time. We the reader follow their ups and downs to remain in the United States and to hopefully obtain the proper paper work.
The story begins with Jende who is going through an interview with Clark Edwards to become his chauffeur. Happily, Jende gets the job and Behold the Dreamers evolves and explores the dynamic relationship between the Edwards, the rich American family and the Jongas, the Cameroonian immigrant family. Honestly, this juxtaposition between the two families is brilliant. Mbue tells this story while favoring none of the characters. What works the best in this novel is that the characters feel as if they could be real people. They aren’t all good or all bad. They are characters that have all the possibilities of making wrong and right decisions. Despite the wrong things these characters do, the reader will automatically find at least one of them sympathetic. You’ll even be able to understand why they do and why they do things, even when you won’t necessarily agree with them. That made this immigrant story an extremely refreshing and fair retelling.
From the beginning, the growing relationship between these two families seems promising. They add to each other’s lives while still remaining at a comfortable distance. Following their connections with each other is as fragile as the American economy. There is a constant nagging feeling of dread that haunts the reader. What will happen next?
The Edwards family have everything and from outward appearances things are perfect, and the Jongas are a struggling family trying to maneuver the difficulties from everyday day life, education, family issues, immigration bureaucracy, and money problems. The funny thing is that both families have similar problems and are both affected by the financial market crash. The question is which family will fall perfectly on their feet? Or will both? Or neither? Mbue uses the market crash of 2008 to show that it was an equalizer of sorts when it came to the damage that Americans and immigrants felt – losing their jobs, their homes, and even family.
Mbue’s writing is direct yet, you will be surprised by where it leads you. It’s amazing to read this debut novel from a young writer who has come into her gift without loads of practice. True passion and well written. I’ll link the video below where she talks about how Behold the Dreamers came about. It goes to show you that the simplest idea came become an interesting book. They just need to be developed. So, if you haven’t read this book I strongly encourage you to pick it up or even listen to the audiobook, which was brilliantly read. The accents were perfect and really added another dimension to the story as opposed to just reading the book, especially if you’re not familiar with Cameroonian accents.
Behold the Dreamer, 380 pages – Random House, March 2016
My Rating: 4 stars
Recommended to: Readers who enjoy immigrant stories.
Audiobook: Excellent
I’m an affiliate for The Book Depository. It would be much appreciated to click the link below if you’re interested in picking up any of my recommendations. It will help fund my incessant book buying. http://www.bookdepository.com/?a_aid=browngirlreading
I’m an affiliate for The Book Depository. It would be much appreciated to click the link below if you’re interested in picking up any of my recommendations. It will help fund my incessant book buying. http://www.bookdepository.com/?a_aid=browngirlreading
to be very alive and well in the United States, contrary to popular belief. People are all questioning how we could go from President Barak Obama to what was elected on November 7, 2016. Deep down I think we all know why and aren’t really surprised, but in essence most of us don’t want to admit what the problem really is. 
The immigrant story has been the central theme to quite a lot of contemporary novels these past few years. The release of Imbolo Mbue’s 
