Races Books

This is a very personal book in which a renowned scholar and thoughtful Christian confronts with honesty and integrity the three biggest challenges to his faith. The text is very well-written and devoid, thankfully, of trite stories or simplistic allegories. As another "doubting Thomas" myself, I found this book helpful for my own struggles "groping" for God.

I benefit in writing this review from having read the review of F. Kurt Messick. Messick's reviews are among the best I know. They are usually careful and often profound readings of the texts in question.
He points out that Hubert G. Locke's title is somewhat misleading as the focus is not on Racism, nor the Holocaust but rather on issues of religious faith and doubt occasioned by Locke's loss of his parents.
I found this work to be a sincere and moving one. Locke writes beautifully about his mother and her religious faith and what this meant to him. The doubts raised in him by her loss are I am sure familiar to everyone who has lost a loved one. In the Jewish tradition a person who has lost a close relative is freed of religious duties before the time of the burial. It is understood somehow that this is a time of tremendous questioning and turmoil.
Locke sets out the story of his own intellectual journey. He seems to an especially sensitive and understanding person. When he speaks about the way he conducted so many funerals without understanding really what the people must be going through(Something he could only understand when suffering his own loss) he shows his modesty and awareness of human failing.
No one I believe can answer the questions raised by the seemingly disproportionate suffering of good people, the questions of the reality of the Afterlife in a clear and decisive way. The great teacher Maimonedes taught us that it does not make much sense to speculate on such questions.
In the end as Locke understands we are left with our need for God and the faith which may not abolish doubt but contends with it and at vital moments overcomes it.
This is a profound book by a very noble and admirable human being.

Hubert G. Locke's text, with the somewhat daunting title of 'Searching for God in Godforsaken Times and Places: Reflections on the Holocaust, Racism, and Death,' is an interesting and spiritually engaging text. It is not what I expected from the title. Locke does address the Holocaust, and does address Racism, and certain covers Death, but in fact, I found the primary theme that runs through the entire piece to be the interplay of Doubt and Faith, grounded in a very Christian context.

This context is, like many things in life, a double-edged sword. It is good in the sense that it explains for Christians who may be unfamiliar or uncomfortable with issues like Racism and the Holocaust a way of looking at these historical realities in a way that begins to make some sense, not necessarily from these things themselves, but rather a sensible way of dealing with the way they make us feel about the reality of doubt and faith in God. The down-side of this being so completely a Christian text is that certain audiences (such as Jewish readers) may be unable to engage the material fully.

Locke begins the text by being thoroughly personal in his presentation, talking about his own periods of crisis with the death of his parents, recasting these as periods in which the persistence of doubt and the threat of losing faith were very present for him.

Ironically (given the title), the chapters dealing with the Holocaust and with Racism proper are rather brief additions; though they form interesting examples, I was never quite sure they served as more than primary examples, rather than issues worthy of top-billing in the title, for the important direction of Locke's text. The Holocaust is dealt with again from a very Christian perspective for the most part; Locke speaks of the Hamburg preacher Helmut Thielicke, who was eventually forbidden to preach by the German authorities; his silence enforced from the outside echoed the silence of God he preached upon from the pulpit. Locke's experience with Racism, apart from his personal experience as an African-American, extends to visits to South Africa and research he has done on the wider problems of Racism world-wide.

Locke comes back to the primary focus of his text, the interplay of doubt, certainty, and faith, addressing it from the standpoint of several particular scriptural examples, such as Job, Thomas and Peter. He then comes round to dealing with various Pauline passages, talking about some inconsistencies in interpretation and statement (how can one have the assurance of things for which there can be no knowledge?) and later developments in Christianity.

Overall, this text was not what I thought it would be, given the title, but I was pleasantly surprised by what I did find. Beyond the specific topics highlighted, the broader aspects of doubt and faith are brought together in a manner that does not definitively resolve the difficulties (for such is unlikely if not impossible), but gives the reader a deeper understanding of the relationships of God and humanity, God and individuals, and our relationship to each other. A good text.

have not read it,would like to know more about it. fighting my son's school for being racist

i think its really important for everyone to understand what williams puts forth in this book- its difficult for white people to understand the extent of modern racism. social stigmas make discussion of this topic taboo, making william's writing even more important. she makes a valid point- ignoring the problem is not going to make it go away. nor should we just assume that racism is a thing of the past- it is still a very real problem. also, williams asserts that it is counter-productive to ignore our racial differences- going out of our way to NOT be racist only perpetuates the fact that we are focusing on our differences rather than just accepting them and moving on. in effect perpetuates racism itself. important message.

This is a very good book. It is easy to read, and not confusing, and does not use hard language and words. As a white person, I hope that someday racism will become a thing of the past. Because I am a girl, I want to make sexism go away, as well as racism, and so it is important for black women to write these books.

Since few people in respectable circles today would admit to having supported segregation, it is rare to read honest accounts from White southerners who admittely accepted the system and went along with it, as most did at the time.

This book is an interesting read for that reason. He speaks matter of factly about his own acceptance of the prejudices of his era and area, as he punches a black boy who uses his mouth on the same needle that he does to blow up a basketball without realizing why at the moment, although he is usually pleasant in hiis relations with the black customers who frequent his grandfather's general store in Wade, NC in the 1950s.

However, he comes across people who challenge everything he is led to believe about Blacks. There is the African-American schoolteacher who forces him to refer to her as "Miss" and most of all, his unlikely friend Street. Street is a self-educated free spirited intellectual who is amazingly accurate on biblical, astronomical, and constitutional facts who lives in a cave by himself. The local Whites dismiss him as crazy and eccentric, but Melton comes to see that Street is not only accurate in his facts, but represents the tragedy of racism through the inability of Street to make a living from his knowledge. One of the most interesting characters in all of Southern biography, one could easily picture Louis Gosset Jr. or James Earl Jones portraying Street in a film version of this book.

I would strongly recommend this for exposing young people in particular to a seldom-heard side in writings about the segregation era.

McLaurin has written a valuable and beautiful book. It deserves a place on the shelf with "Coming of Age in Mississippi" as a document of life in the segregated South and of the moral challenges that segregation presented to those who lived in the system.

McLaurin's book is a touching recollection of growing up in the South during the 1950s. His rich narative describes not only the difficulties all teenagers face, but explores how these difficulties are made even more difficult in a changing environment. While so many imagine the white teenagers of the Little Rock school integration as pictures of young whites during the 1950s, McLaurin paints a picture of a young man sensitive to the plight of blacks in the Jim Crow South. A very good book, highly recommended to those who wish to get a detailed portrait of the 1950s South

The notion that 'racial' purity is a good thing has been and continues to be taught and encouraged in society. Although many (particularly whites) may consider it rediculous and even paranoid to think this, it is nevertheless true. After reading J.A. Rogers Sex and Race books, I've become acutely aware of how racially conscious people are particularly when it comes to sex. The gist of this book is that although many people (particularly whites) have aversions toward interracial marriages, they continue and will continue to have interracial offspring of every kind imaginable. When there were laws against interracial marriages and great turbulance between whites and blacks, interracial unions were going on regardless. Today, there are less overt suggestions that blacks and whites should not marry one another. For example TV ads, movies, and TV programs very rarely show blacks and whites together in loving relationships and if they do they make a point that there is something odd or unusual about it. Another thing which is done is to only use actors and actresses who appear to be very 'pure racially'. The people we see in the movies do not acurately reflect what people look like in society.

The book really points out how rediculous notions of racial purity are. It is biased towards blacks however, so anyone who reads this needs to keep an open mind and think about what is being said. If one is offended at the suggestion that such and such a great person commonly accepted as white may have black blood then you must examine your racial sensitivities.

J.A. Rogers is perhaps the greatest scholar in American history. I intend to read all of his books. Nothing I've read of his was boring, and this is no exception. If you want a history lesson on an interpersonal level definitely read the 3 volumes of Sex and Race

Of the trilogy this one was especially difficult to put down, because the content was quite riveting. It is amazing how this reporter, researcher, historian and anthropologist can go around the world and find out information in the most minute detail, for presentation and presently you have modern academicians who cannot decipher many of the historical texts with any type of accuracy and not without bias. The author will answer most of your questions on the social sexual issues between Africans and Europeans. If you have a question Mr. Rogers just may be the man to answer it. In addition there is the WOW factor, or the history you just may not get anywhere else except with exceptional authors like this one….. And just like the previous two volumes to make his case he has great black and white photos and all of the references that may be possible.

Especially of interest…The myth of how Ham became black because of a curse, the universal decay of empires, the views of Arthur Schopenhauer, mental illness among the wealthy, the African Polynesians, Hitler, the Nazis and homosexuality, who really colonized the US, Mexico, and Europe, Lincoln, the incompetency of man’s knowledge, and finally be sure to read the notes section which is every bit as interesting as the major content.

On a rolling sea of sales self help books Mr. Kasper sails a true course for success.

Every other quick-fix, programmatic, book-based, step-by-step approach to selling is weak and at best enjoy a limited shelf life. If find that customers today are sophisticaed enough to know when they are receiving a canned approach and are better prepared than ever to resist the most common methods.

Mr. Kasper offers a grown-up approach. Inside this book you will not find a quick fix. You will find the universal and timeless keys to unlocking sales - sooner. This book works for any professional sales person selling any product or service.

Easy to read without talking down to the audience - and perfect for novices to career sales professionals. This is one to keep handy - for reinforcing Mr. Kaspers clearly defined and detailed message or for just in time reminders about how customers buy and how effective sales people get more business sooner.

As a business owner I HIGHLY recommend this book. If you are currently selling products and services in a market where the sales cycle tends to drag on, then Short Cycle Selling is a great resource in reducing this potential lenghty process. I found myself stopping to take notes as I read the book. I have already started to implement some of the ideas shared by Jim Kasper. He does a great job of taking you from the early stages (prospect) all the way through to getting a referral from your client.

While there are hundreds of sales books only a handful deal with large accounts or the process of longer, more involved sales. Reducing the time it takes to get business and controlling the process instead of launching a proposal over the wall and then praying for a phone call is what this book is all about. May be the most important book on sales in a long time. A must read for anyone who sells to corporations, hospitals, or other sales that can't be closed in one meeting. This isn't a book about someone else's success or entertaining stories. The book explains a way of thinking and a process to control the sale in order to make more of them in a shorter period of time.

This book is the product of what happens when we can tell the truth. It was a real eye-opener and consoling in one. It let you know that you are not alone in the battle of dealing with race everyday. In some way or another every story will speak to you. Every author's attempt to define their truth will help you to better understand your own reality. Great book even if you may not agree with every point of view contained within it's pages, you'll appreciate the effort to convey the story, to say the least!

As we begin to approach the next century, race is still an important issue that should not be ignored or denied. As we live in a multiracial society, it is important to take time out and listen to ourselves and others. This is a provocative book that should be read by all women who take the time to intellectually consider themselves and their role as women and mothers, sisters, neigbors, and lovers. How will we teach our children and eachother to consider race? These essays bring forth some harsh realizations of the boundaries that truly separate black and white women and what must be overcome if we truly want to unite. It is a good dose of reality that many of us would benefit from not only reading, but thinking about and discussing. The truth is awfully hard to swallow.

In the very public work that I do, I too often hear, as I just heard yesterday, well-meaning white people say, "The way to take care of diversity is to never mention it again."

And it is this kind of message that reminds me that we have a ways to go in race relations.

This book is a collection of stories from famous women, both white and black, about their experiences with race.

While every chapter had me deeply moved, I must say that the chapter titled, "Contents Under Pressure: White Woman/Black History," by Catherine Clinton, was the most moving.

This is a story about a white woman who teaches African-American History.

This is, a reverse discrimination story that has value for everyone to read. By her name, and her profession, she is assumed to be African-American. But she is Caucasian.

Her published work has led to many invitations to speak on race relations.

But, when they meet her, in person, and see that she is not African-American, things change.

And she had to put in a tremendous amount of time, to show that she is here to stay, despite the resistence of others.

In the end, this professor taught her students that the thickness of your skin, and not its color is a useful measure for success.

This is a professor whose mission lives on through her students.

I invite everyone male or female, of all races to read this book, as you think of yourself as a fly on the wall.

You will grow, beyond your wildest dreams.

".....Skin Deep addresses such issues as the relationship between skin tone and self-esteem, marital patterns, interracial relationships, socioeconomic attainment, and family racial identity and composition.

The essays in THIS ACCESSIBLE BOOK ALSO GRAPPLE WITH EMERGING ISSUES SUCH AS BIRACIALISM, color-blind racism, and 21st century notions of race in the U.S. and in other countries."
[from the book of the back cover]

I am not afraid to look the reality of colorism in the eye and acknowledge that it does exist within the black community. It is my greatest hope and dream that someday the dark skinned black and the light skinned black will be seen as the one family in the future. I want so much to love the lightskinned sister and brother as my own reflection and not be divided from them or made to feel that one is treated better than the other, but sadly, that day is not here and this book bravely and powerfully illustrates that point to the fullest.

I am a medium brown colored woman, my mother was very dark skinned and I have witnessed the evils of skin color prejudice all my life. In most situations, it was Black Men who were prejudiced against myself and the women around me beccause of our coloring. These men felt no shame or limit in their racist intra-family prejudice and measured their entire lives by how many light skinned or white women they could attain and how light brite their children could come out. It's everywhere and anyone who denies it is both a fool and a liar.

That is why I highly recommend THE BLACKER THE BERRY by Wallace Thurman. There is no truer portrait of the self-hatred among our people than the one extolled in this book, and what makes it even sadder is that this book was written in the 1920's. So that only shows how deep this kind of evil runs.

Lately, I have become very interested in this subject and I have searched for other books that explore this subject with intelligence, honest, beauty and wisdom and I have found several that I consider to be classics on the subject of Colorism.

(1) MARITA GOLDEN'S book "Don't Play In the Sun" is definitely the most modern up to date book of the bunch. It expertly weaves the story of her life experiences in the 1960's Black Power movement with the current struggles of women like Serena Williams and India Arie to find their way in the world, even in the midst of being shunned and ignored by the black community itself. The book's analysis of the Hollywood casting system and the "Mulatto Follies" of BET and MTV is priceless.

(2) "The Bluest Eye" by TONI MORRISON is by far the most riveting and painful book that I have read on this subject of colorism. I believe that her book, more than any mother, gets to the psychological and historical root cause of the problem and exposes the mode in which we pass the problem on generation to generation. The destruction of an innocent black girl named Pecola Breedlove will leave you heartbroken and shocked as you see the bold naked truth unfold right before your eyes. You can't ignore this book, because the story being told is the one that you are all too familiar with no matter what color you are.

(3) "Flesh and the Devil" by African novelist KOLA BOOF is another deeply powerful book that examines colorism, but not out in the open. This book is unique in that it focuses on a very enchanting love story between a Black Prince and Princess and follows their reincarnations through history as they struggle to find their way back to each other. Through detailed moments in black history, both in Africa and the United States, the provocative author highlights the way that black people originally viewed their beauty and humanity and then juxtuposes it against the way they see themselves now in the modern world. The result is nothing less than devastating. I love this book so much, because the storytelling is so rich and the depth is so sweeping and grand. Anyone who loves good writing and is proud to be descended from the Black race will find themselves literally changed forever by the powerful images depicted in this very poetically moving story.

(4) "The Color Complex"--VARIOUS AUTHORS, is a very simple, straight forward analysis from a sociological point of view. Much research and statistical facts are used to illustrate that our communities are infested with these issues.

(5) "The Darkest Child" by Dolores Philips is another great novel that shows us the poor blacks who live under the poverty line ingesting these complex social hierarchies based on color and how they not only expose their children to them, but force the entire community to live by the "color code". Everybody is used to it from slavery and the system goes on and on unchallenged. In this book, Tangy Mae, the darkest of 10 children by the white-looking mother Rozelle, struggles to find her dignity and confidence in the midst of her evil light skinned mother inflicting one horrid abuse on top of the other. One thing I will say for the evil white-looking mother, Rozelle, is that she treated all of her children hiddeously and with contempt, from the whitest to the blackest. But she killed the child who was born looking like Tangy Mae and that spoke volumnes. This book is a very real metaphor for what goes on. Very real.

Collaboratively compiled and edited by Cedric Herring (Professor of Sociology and Public Policy, University of Illinois - Chicago), Verna M. Keith (Chair of the Department of Sociology, Arizona State University), and Hayward Derrick Horton (Associate Professor of Sociology, Albany University-SUNY), Skin/Deep: How Race And Complexion Matter In The "Color-Blind" Era is a collection of informative and informative essays concerning the very real and entangled issues of race, judgement, and the question of why skin color remains a determining factor of economic success and quality of life in America today. Exploring the stratification process, cause and effect chains, emerging issues such as biracialism and color-blind racism and a great deal more, Skin/Deep is a highly recommended contribution to Contemporary Social Issues reading lists and offers a wealth of persuasively argued and deftly presented viewpoints.

It's the 1947, in a small town in Alabama and Sonny's dad has just walked out on them. "You don't know my daddy," the book begins, and Sonny tells the reader of the day his life changed. He knows there has to be something more to the split up than he has been told, and it puzzles him. A few years go by, and the reader sees small town Southern life through Sonny's eyes as he tries to handle his own life without a father, as well as every day living with his sometimes funny, sometimes difficult family. Sonny deals with heartbreak, pain, and love, familial and otherwise, and at last finds peace within himself regarding his father.

Sadly, this brief synopsis does nothing for the book. Telling a skeleton outline of the plot with no spoilers and none of Lyon's amazing writing is so unjust! This is an amazing book, with prose that sometimes verges on poetry. Lyon had me laughing out loud with Sonny's predicaments on one page, near tears on another, and spellbound from the sheer beauty of her language so often. She captures the feel of the South so well and so subtly that there are bound to be references that will pass by those uninitiated to Southern culture.

I couldn't NOT share a few lines that caught me especially:

"It was a sleepy kind of morning, the air like bathwater."

"Like some reversable cloth, Mama's laughter flipped over into sobs."

"We just stood by the shiny gray coffin with its handles like fancy toilet-paper holders and said "Yes" and "No" and "Thank you" and breathed whatever breaths came by: mint, onion, tobacco, whiskey, and bad."

"All the windows had been propped open, but it was one of those afternoons when the air lay on top of you like a big cat, and no waving of cardboard Jesus-at-the-door fans could make it get up and move."



My main regret is that I fear the intended audience will not be interested in the subject and that some of the emotional dimilemas may really be too mature for grades 5-8. It would be more appropriate, I think, for older YA readers. I would suggest that a parent of younger readers read it first (I give it a full recommendation for all adult readers) and then decide when/if it's appropriate for their child at that age.

Another quibble is that the dust jacket blurb is not very appealing; I only chose to read it because it took place in the South. I really can't see a child picking this up and saying, "oh, this sounds just what I've been wanting to read". It will most likely take an adult pushing it on them to get a child to read it. A new, more interesting cover would be advised.

But, as far as the book goes. . . It's a five star read for older YAs and adults. Masterful writing all the way through; I will be looking up her other novels right away.

This book is a good read, exclamation point. No matter who you are, you will stay awake at night to finish it, and then be mad at yourself the next night, for being so greedy. It engages huge issues, but they are located in human hearts, in a neighborhood like the ones we all live in, no matter if they be rural or urban, penthouse or tenement. The characters -- both male and female -- are brave and honest and trying their very best to live in a complicated world. In this book, people hurt people and people help people, but there are no "bad guys" -- there are just human beings, painted in words by a master story-teller and poet, George Ella Lyon.

Red Alert! All middle school librarians take note. My grandson, who thinks reading chapter books is a bit like eating ground glass, could not put this book down. That is after I bribed him to read the first two chapters!

There are people in this book, Loretta, especially, who will make you cry and laugh out loud. Warning, adults and kids both, you will have a hard time putting it down. So you will read it as fast as you can and then, like me, wish you had read it more slowly so you could stretch the enjoyment. It is a winner!

"A hero doesnot have to win. A hero doesnot have to be larger than life. A hero can be an ordinary person who overcomes extraordinary events with dignity and grace".-Soraya. This is the introduction Soraya offers to her book. This is a book worth reading by everybody as it offers much needed advice from how to enjoy life to how to prepare for our own mortality. After Soraya's passing to breast cancer complications I have become proactive in breast cancer prevention and awareness. I hope others can recieve inspiration by reading this book.

I have always admired Soraya for her incredible songwriting ability and her book just inspired me more. Her down to earth writing is an inspiration to all humans fighting breast cancer or just trying to deal with this life that can give us so many good and bad things all at once. I recommend this book to everyone!

I am a huge fan of Sorayas music. This book is very inspirational for all, especially for those batteling cancer.

My daughter read this book as a "classic" in 6th grade. I read it, too, and we both thoroughly enjoyed the book. It is not a story about the inequities of segregation in the South and the difficulty of social change, but it brings those issues to life better than any other book I have read. The characters are very real - both my daughter and I were able to stand in the shoes of the protagonist, even though our lives and times are completely different. I strongly recommend this book for adults and young adults.

I first read this book as a freshman in high school, and I was touched by the characters who seem so like me and the people I know. Unlike many of the books that portray the prejudices in the south, this book enabled me to really sympathize with the characters. I would reccommend this book to anyone - young or old.

"You got to learn to respect white people, boy.... You better talk to that boy, Ed. You better tell him to stay in his place or, by the Lord, other men will show him"--from the book.

In the face of bigotry and racial prejudice, the Williamses try to make it. But the tension is finally broken in violence.

[Realistic fiction suitable for junior high and high school.]