Customer Reviews

Coffee Will Make You Black: A Novel

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I read this book so many years ago, and mainly because it was causing such a controversy at a school I just had to know what was "so bad" about this book.

It's a coming of age story where you meet young Stevie, a L7 (square) whose learning all about life and what it has to offer as far as what is a friend? a period? and the big deal about sex?

I think April Sinclair did an excellent job, we need books because sometimes mama can't talk to you because she's too afraid! I was tempted to call the school up and ask why the big fuss?

I'm tempted to call this a black coming of age story, but why identify it as such when it's a great book no matter what your ethnicity?

Stevie grows up among a lot of political and social change, and the generation gap between how she sees things and how her mother views the white and black line is telling. As she goes through grade school through high school she starts questioning her parents mores, and figuring out how to deal with early encounters with interracial dating....

This book is also peppered with great bits of humor, including "Growing up reminded me a little bit of Hide and Go Seek. When it was your time to grow up, Nature said "Here I come, ready or not." And nature could always find you." This book will tell (remind?) you what it's like being a tomboy..., or first learning what a virgin is. Highly recommended.

In the book Coffee Will Make You Black, by April Sinclair, the lead character Jean Stevenson, Stevie to her friends, tells in a narrative perspective of her adolescent years, growing up in Chicago in the 1960's. The book is like Stevie's diary. She tells you her experiences with boys, girls, love, sex, popularity, school and racism in a comical and to-the-point fashion. The book is a quick, easy, fun read that hooks you from the start. It deals with very realistic issues that are fun and interesting to read about. The book makes you feel like you are part of Stevie's chaotic life. She gives you the opportunity to share her deepest, darkest, secrets. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate the book an 8. I enjoyed reading it greatly, and finished it in one day. I liked reading it because it dealt with issues that I deal with. It tells of Stevie's hard times with boys, other girls, sex, love, popularity, which are all important to me now as a freshman in high school. It didn't take very long to get into the book because the first page is a humorous anecdote about a boy asking if 12 year old Stevie is a virgin. Stevie, confused with the meaning of virgin, goes home and asks her mamma. The whole book is little anecdotes like the one above so I liked it from the start. The book isn't very short yet the words and vocabulary are very easy and simply written so stumbling over big words is not a problem. Nothing very big happens in the book, it stays rather monotone throughout. Something I found a little hard to understand was the slang. Since Stevie is growing up in the sixties in Chicago, there are bound to be differences in slang but overall the read is easy. It may be hard for younger people to read this book because they might not get what some of the terms mean. This book reminded me of many movies about teenage-hood. Like American Pie or Election. I have never read another book by April Sinclair but I enjoyed this book and will read other works by this author. In class we have reading groups where there are four groups of five kids and each group reads a different book. To decide which book to read the teacher read the first pages of every book. I enjoyed the first page so I signed up to read this book. Since the book is written from a females perspective, I think that girls would relate and enjoy reading it more because it deals with female issues. I can imagine a guy not understanding the complete intent of the author. The book is very funny so I think that the reader should have a good sense of humor, and maybe someone that grew up in the sixties could relate to an even greater extent. " What does 'coffee will make you black mean mama?' 'The old folks in the South used to tell that to children so they wouldn't want to drink coffee. The last thing anybody wanted to be was black."' This quote is from page 111 in the book. I chose this quote not only because it is obviously the line in which the title of the book comes from, but because it also represents the feelings about different races at the time. I don't get why people ever thought that darker skin made a difference. Personally I think all racism is ridiculous and that this quote is very interesting. To think that back then the children were told that in order to stay lighter they shouldn't drink coffee is ridiculous. It shows that back then they weren't proud of their skin color and would do anything, like not drink coffee, to stay lighter. I wonder if maybe this saying was also to keep kids from just drinking coffee. Maybe they didn't want the children to drink too much caffeine. In any case being darker was the worst thing imaginable. I hope that this quote shows a little bit of how the book is written. This is a more serious moment in the book but I thought it was important. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

In the novel, Coffee Will Make You Black by April Sinclair, Jean Stevenson, or "Stevie" experiences the difficulties of growing up as an African-American teenager in the 1960's. Stevie is attempting to find her niche. Ever since her best friend moved away, she has been a very studious, smart girl. Now, the longing for acceptance and popularity is unbearable. At last, Stevie's attempts pay off and she befriends a popular girl named Carla. Stevie's mom dislikes Carla because she is lower class. Stevie's mom is an ambitious for Stevie, which leads to many disputes about her future and her friendship with Carla. Overtime, however, Stevie becomes very close with Carla and is unwilling to give her up. The only problem is that their friendship still isn't entirely mutual because Stevie does everything at Carla's commands. Carla's support is what keeps her sane, feeling she belongs. Later an issue comes up that tests their friendship. However, at this point Stevie has grown to know herself and have the confidence she has always needed to know that if Carla can'' stick by her no matter what the outcome, the she is not worth it.

On a scale of 1to10 I would rate this book a 9. I enjoyed reading it because I am interested in the struggle that African Americans have gone through. Although, as a white, it makes me feel guilty, this book demonstrates the profound hurt inflicted by racism. On one level this book is about the affects of racism, but on another it is about the issues of teenagers. From the first line the reader is drawn into the story. "Mama, are you a virgin?" The conversations are written in dialect, which can be difficult to read and understand, but this is necessary to give flavor to the people and setting.

Background knowledge of American race relations and the civil rights movement make the themes in this book more understandable. The book and movie that this novel reminds me of is The Color Purple. Their plots are very different, but they both have themes about independence, and self worth. Both males and females would enjoy this book, however especially females can relate. Books can open your horizons and make you realize the universal feelings of growing up and of living the affects of history.

" 'I handed Kathy Jo the kite and asked her where she wanted me to sit. She took my present and told me to sit in the kitchen and they would call me if they needed anything.' 'No, she didn't, Grandma.' 'Yes, she did chile. I looked into Kathy Jo's eyes and they were cold as blue ice.' " I chose this quote because it shows the legacy of racism and the pain it inflicts. Sinclair writes in a very upfront and personal manner. Each word seems to come from the heart, and from experience. This novel is written with a crafty tinge that warps you into the story, not as an onlooker, but as a participant with Stevie.

I don't want to disagree with the young ladies from Wheat Ridge H.S. but I feel I must. I recently read CWMYB as part of a Readers workshop at our Public Library. I found it both funny and fascinating, not at all disorganized nor sensationalist. On the contrary, I found the novel to be very well written and very structured, all the while without feeling "hemmed-in" by its structure.

Sinclair has a gift for dialogue, and I found her illustrations of growing up in late-60s Southside Chicago entertaining and informative. While there is some strong language and sexual situations, I doubt there are any teenage narratives that don't include these attributes (and if they don't, I doubt their veracity). Indeed, the language is well balanced by Stevie's mother, who stresses language correctness and priopriety. As well, the handling of sex and sexuality is done with sensitivity and, above all, utter discretion (but also with a healthy dose of broad humor).

I don't give the novel 5 stars because I didn't feel the issue of Stevie's incipient lesbianism was treated with quite enough "truth," which is a little surprising given the stark truths that Stevie learns throughout her formative years.

Overall, though, this is a great novel and highly recommended both for teenagers and adults alike.

This was an excellent book, one of my all time favorites. You know you're on my favorites list when I read it twice. This took me back to my own childhood, with so many things I could relate to, except the freaky ending when she fell in love with the white nurse. I don't go that route, but up until the end everything was alright. I loved the language used, because once again it reminded me of how we talked at school when I grew up (in the 80's and early-mid 90's) I am in college now. Sinclair hit it big with this book, I loved it.

I think that Coffee Will Make You Black is an excellent book. The interesting part is that April Sinclair ties in her life with the character she creates. She uses Jean "Stevie" Stevenson in both of her best selling books. Both of her books take place in Chicago as well. Coffee Will Make You Black has a lot of African-American humor in it. I laughed at least ten times out loud while reading this book. Also, it's more of a book that most people (male, female, black, white) can relate to. "Stevie" grows up in the south side of Chicago as an ordinary kid. As she grows up, she goes through stages of her life where she is confused and lost. Most kids go through this stage in life because that's just how life is. "Stevie" ends up questioning her sexuality and feels abnormal. She feels like she's alone and no one else can relate to her. Coffee Will Make You Black is a story on the life of "Stevie" and what she has to go through to grow up. I recommend Coffee Will Make You Black to people age 15 and up. I think teenagers would enjoy reading her books more because kids would enjoy the humor. It has some slang in it and has some sexual details so it might be too explicit for younger kids. However, I really did enjoy reading Sinclair's book, and I would like to read her other books in the near future.

In the book Coffee Will Make You Black, by April Sinclair, the lead character Jean Stevenson, Stevie to her friends, tells in a narrative perspective of her adolescent years, growing up in Chicago in the 1960's. The book is like Stevie's diary. She tells you her experiences with boys, girls, love, sex, popularity, school and racism in a comical and to-the-point fashion. The book is a quick, easy, fun read that hooks you from the start. It deals with very realistic issues that are fun and interesting to read about. The book makes you feel like you are part of Stevie's chaotic life. She gives you the opportunity to share her deepest, darkest, secrets. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate the book an 8. I enjoyed reading it greatly, and finished it in one day. I liked reading it because it dealt with issues that I deal with. It tells of Stevie's hard times with boys, other girls, sex, love, popularity, which are all important to me now as a freshman in high school. It didn't take very long to get into the book because the first page is a humorous anecdote about a boy asking if 12 year old Stevie is a virgin. Stevie, confused with the meaning of virgin, goes home and asks her mamma. The whole book is little anecdotes like the one above so I liked it from the start. The book isn't very short yet the words and vocabulary are very easy and simply written so stumbling over big words is not a problem. Nothing very big happens in the book, it stays rather monotone throughout. Something I found a little hard to understand was the slang. Since Stevie is growing up in the sixties in Chicago, there are bound to be differences in slang but overall the read is easy. It may be hard for younger people to read this book because they might not get what some of the terms mean. This book reminded me of many movies about teenage-hood. Like American Pie or Election. I have never read another book by April Sinclair but I enjoyed this book and will read other works by this author. In class we have reading groups where there are four groups of five kids and each group reads a different book. To decide which book to read the teacher read the first pages of every book. I enjoyed the first page so I signed up to read this book. Since the book is written from a females perspective, I think that girls would relate and enjoy reading it more because it deals with female issues. I can imagine a guy not understanding the complete intent of the author. The book is very funny so I think that the reader should have a good sense of humor, and maybe someone that grew up in the sixties could relate to an even greater extent. " What does `coffee will make you black mean mama?' `The old folks in the South used to tell that to children so they wouldn't want to drink coffee. The last thing anybody wanted to be was black."' This quote is from page 111 in the book. I chose this quote not only because it is obviously the line in which the title of the book comes from, but because it also represents the feelings about different races at the time. I don't get why people ever thought that darker skin made a difference. Personally I think all racism is ridiculous and that this quote is very interesting. To think that back then the children were told that in order to stay lighter they shouldn't drink coffee is ridiculous. It shows that back then they weren't proud of their skin color and would do anything, like not drink coffee, to stay lighter. I wonder if maybe this saying was also to keep kids from just drinking coffee. Maybe they didn't want the children to drink too much caffeine. In any case being darker was the worst thing imaginable. I hope that this quote shows a little bit of how the book is written. This is a more serious moment in the book but I thought it was important. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

I was so excited to find a book with a female author whose not complaining about how she has no man, a bad/good sex life, and kids. People want to read about people in their age range or about different topics and so far only Omar Tyree and April Sinclair have done that (although Eric Jerome Dickey is great too!) Anyway, this book was about a young girl growing up with streetwise intelligence, classbook intelligence, and a very curious mind. This book touched upon every question that girls usually have growing up--What's the first time like? What teachers do I like? Whose a cool friend? What's a period like? Etc. I don't understand why the slang would've been confusing, as another reviewer stated, because I followed it clearly. I plan to read all of her books now!

April Sinclair is a fine story teller. She takes us through a volitile time and adult themes with a wide-eyed naivete that feels safe. Her clean, straight-forward prose is refreshing. I enjoyed this book very much.