JulieAloha

November 8, 2018

This was a tough one at times, emotionally wrenching and excruciatingly vivid in the first story about the burning of a black man as witnessed by a child, and light and entertaining in a series of stories about two boys with great imaginations and too much time on their hands. Ellison’s words paint a picture of life in America from the perspective of a people who, having been forcibly brought to this country into slavery and later emancipated without having been given any real help in recovering from it, their society has slowly, painstakingly emerged within hostile territory, a culture submerged within another, subjugated and suppressed by the dominant society. That dominance is clear and present in each story, a part of their every day lives. Eye-opening, humbling, horrifying and heartbreaking for the reader at times, but frank and realistic and educational as well.

Points: 8; Current Point Balance: 39.5