Sunday, August 11, 2013

The Warmth of Other Suns - by Isabel Wilkerson - Well Worth Reading

Isabel Wilkerson's 2010 book:  The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration is well worth reading for white people (as well as Afro-Americans and others) who are concerned about race and racism in the United States.   It is a beautifully written book.  Though it is not short, it is easily readable.  It takes one into the stories of three Black people who migrated in different decades from different locations north and west from the South.

This book tells so much of our history in a warm, loving way that confronts bigotry and racism, telling moving stories as well as adding historical context and much information.   Whether one agrees or disagrees with every premise of the author doesn't matter.  The individual stories teach  important lessons that may affect individual readers differently.   The messages seemed much broader and deeper than the stories alone.  

While this book obviously reached an important spot within my psyche, I suspect that others with interest in its topic will also find it fascinating.