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Excellent book/triple biography documenting the black migration from the South to Northern and Western cities in the early to mid 20th centuries. The author follows three of these migrants in detail - an educated train porter who moves from Florida to NYC; a field worker who moves from Mississippi to Chicago; and a doctor who moves from Louisiana to California. Interspersed between their stories is information that puts their stories in historical context. Given the title of the book, I thought
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Isabel Wilkerson is a beautiful writer. Let's get that out of the way right away. Her sentences, especially her transitions and intros, have a beautiful roll to them that to me sounds like the South. There's a charmingly slow (though no less sharp) drawl to this book, as though the vast, braided story of The Warmth of Other Suns is being told from a rocking chair on a front porch in evening. This book has patience. It does not rush itself, and you do not want it to. That's something to say about
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Terrific book. Wonderful blend of the personal stories and the history of black migration in the US. The personal stories really brought the history to life. Heart breaking.
A great undertaking by the author, on a subject I was ignorant to previously. The number and length of interviews and research that went into this book is impressive, and it deserves a place in school curriculums. The great migration is told through three subjects. While I enjoyed reading these stories as a way to understand the history, I did find it a bit long and laborious. When judged as a history text, it is excellent. As a story, it can be dry at times. I am glad I read it, as long as it t
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I would highly recommend listening to the audio if not looking to study and absorb every detail. Also found the narrator helped capture the oral history feel of the individuals stories.
Beautifully written, compelling and important historical record, this is still an academic history text—not historical biography or something similar—so by its nature, it is very comprehensive and somewhat repetitive at times. Would have loved to read something this engaging and accessible in college.
Beautifully written, compelling and important historical record, this is still an academic history text—not historical biography or something similar—so by its nature, it is very comprehensive and somewhat repetitive at times. Would have loved to read something this engaging and accessible in college.
Jan 23, 2017
Katy
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Jun 16, 2021
Beth
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Karen C
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Paul Roche
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Oct 24, 2022
Joanna
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Nov 06, 2023
Kate
marked it as tbr-non-fiction
Jul 12, 2024
Leah
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