Following the story of Hattie and her 11 kids from different POVs, this book provides a good example of 'what it means to be black in America' without victimism. Here, African Americans are not goody two shoes, perfect examples of human beings who turn to be just tokens/objects/plot devices to showc...
This struck me as a collection of well written essays on life in Philadelphia (and to a lesser extent, Georgia), post 1925, when 17 year-old Hattie moves north with her mother and sisters. Immediately the difference between living as a Black in The North, against staying in The South, is apparent to...
"Of course Im angry!" She looked at Bell as though she'd have liked to shake her by the shoulders. "I probably always will be. But I've been mad all my life, and I finally figured out that I couldn't keep carrying that with me. Its too heavy and Im too tired. Time will take care of it, like it d...
I thought each of Hattie's "tribes" had their own unique viewpoint and manner of speaking, which I think is hard for an author to do well.Really liked some of her prose; even highlighted one..."She had been with her share of schemers and men who were forever building castles in the sky. All of those...
This book is divided into sections representing Hattie's progeny. The first chapter takes place in 1925 and the last in 1980, so a lot of time is covered. The format shares a lot with the "short story" format, though there is enough continuity for it to be called a novel. While I was reading it, I w...
3.5 Stars - Individual narratives of the lives of Hattie Shepherd’s children that span the course of 55 years.It had been a looooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggggg time since I read something just because Oprah told me too, but that’s exactly why I read this book. Suffice it to say that...
The individual stories of Hattie's children and 1 grandchild were well written. Mathis has given us a good glimpse into their lives, but I ultimately wanted more. Especially wanted to know more about Ruthie and Ella since we only met them briefly as infants. This book was good, but I think it coul...
Dr. Taylor below asked me my reasoning for two stars so I shall try my best to state whyI guess I should be forthright: I'm not someone who enjoys an anthology of short stories. I have a hard enough time saying goodbye to my characters after having just finished a 400page book. While I knew that thi...
Hattie’s story really begins in Georgia, when she is 15 and fleeing with her mother and sister. Her father’s blacksmith shop has been taken over by white men who have murdered him. They escape to Philadelphia where Hattie sees, for the first time, whites and blacks intermingling. It is there that sh...
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