Reviews
Darkest America: Black Minstrelsy from Slavery to Hip-Hop, by Mel Watkins, Yuval Taylor, Jake Austen
emmatodd's review against another edition
I saw this at the library and thought it looked interesting, and I was right! I got a hundred pages in and realized it was written by two white guys. I’m so beyond disgusted! Shame on them.
richardsbl's review against another edition
3.0
Okay--a bit disjointed in its arguments/examples which left me constantly wondering what exactly the thesis was. Love and Theft will still be the go to book on minstrelsy for me.
revslick's review
3.0
interesting read on the past and present application of black minstrel characterization as well as which ones were inherently racist and what was not. To me it is very intriguing the dynamics surrounding comedy turning from discomfortable performance to blatant racist, which is both subtle and shocking. I'd be interesting to dialogue book club fashion around this book with those that are nonwhite.
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