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lisabwright's review
3.0
Interesting history of a place nearby. Reminder the impacts of history live on generationally. Made me wonder about my own inherited scars.
taypotter24's review
4.0
An extremely interesting book as I am now more involved with this subject matter. The author’s research into Massive Resistance is surprising and brings up a history that is literally close to home.
This book is told through the eyes of a family member, and therefore sometimes has an over apologizing tone that takes away from the journalism of the book.
Regardless, would recommend!!
This book is told through the eyes of a family member, and therefore sometimes has an over apologizing tone that takes away from the journalism of the book.
Regardless, would recommend!!
books_plan_create's review
4.0
So, Prince Edward County, VA feared mixing with an entire skin color so much they just shut down the whole school system. It is hard to understand how this could happen, but also not surprising. The author, who lived there, interviewed black and white residents and students, and even those who came in to help to get their stories. The book shows that things are still not where they should be, but improvements and reconciliations are being made.
This book tugged at me and at first I did not like the author interspersing her history into the story, but then I realized it was necessary because it was very much a part of the county. At that point, I could not stop reading.
This book tugged at me and at first I did not like the author interspersing her history into the story, but then I realized it was necessary because it was very much a part of the county. At that point, I could not stop reading.
k_b00kish's review
4.0
Fascinating biography about a county who refused to integrate schools in the 1960s, written by the granddaughter of one of the participating families.
scorpstar77's review
4.0
The author, Kristen Green, grew up in a small rural town in Virginia (not far from the small rural town where I grew up, actually). As a child, she never really examined why she seemed to know almost exclusively white people, why she went to a private school, why her private school seemed to be almost all white people...and then she grew up, moved away, and was exposed to many friends from many different backgrounds with many different skin colors. She learned about her town's history of extreme action to avoid integrating the public schools in the 1950s, and that her beloved grandparents were part of that movement. It bothered her. So she started re-examining her hometown through that lens, researching what happened during the 5 years that Prince Edward County closed down its public schools and how it affected the black (and poor white) residents of that area. Her book tells those stories as well as her own personal feelings and connections being a person from that town whose favorite family members participated in such a disturbing, racially motivated act.
I identified with a lot of the author's perspective in this book. I did not go to a private school and was not from a wealthy (or anywhere near to well-off) family, but her experiences with even modern-day racism in her home town and her attempts to reconcile hearing racist things out of the mouths of people she loves and has known her whole life? I live that, too. The ways the town remains segregated and black residents are still largely poor and suffering effects from hundreds of years of oppression? That's something that I, too, didn't see as a child but understand (and feel sorrow for) as a worldlier, wiser adult. Her desire for her children to be exposed to many different types of people and to have a rainbow of friends? I have that desire, too. There were moments when I felt the language of the book got a little too sentimental. And there is my underlying feeling that I am STILL tired of all the books about racism that get press coverage being written by white ladies - no offense to Green; she tells a good story that needs to be told, and I obviously identify with it, but it would just be so much more powerful and important from someone whose life was actually affected, directly or indirectly, by the school closures. I enjoyed the book - I found it compelling and interesting and absolutely heartbreaking. But if a black voice could tell this story, I think it would be all the more relevant.
I identified with a lot of the author's perspective in this book. I did not go to a private school and was not from a wealthy (or anywhere near to well-off) family, but her experiences with even modern-day racism in her home town and her attempts to reconcile hearing racist things out of the mouths of people she loves and has known her whole life? I live that, too. The ways the town remains segregated and black residents are still largely poor and suffering effects from hundreds of years of oppression? That's something that I, too, didn't see as a child but understand (and feel sorrow for) as a worldlier, wiser adult. Her desire for her children to be exposed to many different types of people and to have a rainbow of friends? I have that desire, too. There were moments when I felt the language of the book got a little too sentimental. And there is my underlying feeling that I am STILL tired of all the books about racism that get press coverage being written by white ladies - no offense to Green; she tells a good story that needs to be told, and I obviously identify with it, but it would just be so much more powerful and important from someone whose life was actually affected, directly or indirectly, by the school closures. I enjoyed the book - I found it compelling and interesting and absolutely heartbreaking. But if a black voice could tell this story, I think it would be all the more relevant.
inkyyy's review against another edition
4.0
I'd like to give this book five stars, but there was a glaring issue that made me not love this book.
This book talks about the terrible atrocity done in Prince Edward County where, after the historic Brown v. Board of Education ruled separate but equal unconstitutional, the school decided rather than integrate that they would shut down the private schools. White people--who could afford it--opened their own private school to educate their children and black people and poor white people were out of luck. Children were forced to be separated from their families through their education or remain in Prince Edward County and not receive any schooling.
The book is very powerful and well written. It actually made me legitimately angry and I was baffled at such a terrible thing. It's hard to imagine something like this happened less than two generations ago. The accounts Green gets from those who experienced this terrible thing are very dark, and I was physically and emotionally moved by this.
What keeps me from loving this book is the author herself. She considers the book part historical narrative and part memoir...but...you weren't involved? You were literally not a part of this. She spends a few pages in the chapters to tell the reader that she's not a racist. She likes to talk about her multiracial husband and children. She likes to talk about how she just loves black and brown people and God dammit if those people had just interacted with a black or brown person they would've loved them too. Her narrative, her inclusion in this story is absolutely unnecessary. She should've put it in an epilogue or a forward because she is including herself in something that didn't affect her. She likes to constantly remind us that her family is not racist, and how they've changed. I'm sure she considers her book as an atonement, an apology to make sure the stories are known. She writes this book as an apology from her family to all those affected by this event--however she ruins it by making it about herself.
This book talks about the terrible atrocity done in Prince Edward County where, after the historic Brown v. Board of Education ruled separate but equal unconstitutional, the school decided rather than integrate that they would shut down the private schools. White people--who could afford it--opened their own private school to educate their children and black people and poor white people were out of luck. Children were forced to be separated from their families through their education or remain in Prince Edward County and not receive any schooling.
The book is very powerful and well written. It actually made me legitimately angry and I was baffled at such a terrible thing. It's hard to imagine something like this happened less than two generations ago. The accounts Green gets from those who experienced this terrible thing are very dark, and I was physically and emotionally moved by this.
What keeps me from loving this book is the author herself. She considers the book part historical narrative and part memoir...but...you weren't involved? You were literally not a part of this. She spends a few pages in the chapters to tell the reader that she's not a racist. She likes to talk about her multiracial husband and children. She likes to talk about how she just loves black and brown people and God dammit if those people had just interacted with a black or brown person they would've loved them too. Her narrative, her inclusion in this story is absolutely unnecessary. She should've put it in an epilogue or a forward because she is including herself in something that didn't affect her. She likes to constantly remind us that her family is not racist, and how they've changed. I'm sure she considers her book as an atonement, an apology to make sure the stories are known. She writes this book as an apology from her family to all those affected by this event--however she ruins it by making it about herself.