Color of Water : A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother [Paperback]

James McBride (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1997

Used Softcover Edition published by Riverhead Books, N.Y., 1997, 291 pages in Acceptable Condition. Cover and text show considerable wear, Front Cover has a crease on the bottom corner along with some wear along the edges, text has a yellowish tint, some creased corners, nowhere near a VG copy but still a servicable reading copy with no rips, tears, marks or loose pages. Spine is firm but has a light crease. An inspiring memoir that will touch your heart and make you proud to be a member of the human race, and I might add a must read! James McBride evokes his childhood trek across the great racial divide of America with the kind of power and grace that touches and uplifts your heart. Growing up in the Brooklyn projects, McBride knew his mother was "different", but when he asked her about it she responsed that she was "light-skinned". Later he asked her if he was black or white where she snapped "You're a human being and if you don't educate yourself you'll be a nobody". And when James asked her what color God was she answered that "God is the color of water". Later in life, James finally persuaded his mother to tell her story, a story of a rabbi's daughter, born in Poland and then raised in the South, how she fell in love and married a black man, founded a Baptist Church, and put twelve children through college but never thought there was anything special about her life. James McBride's mother is gone now but thank god he has shared a little of her with us, we all could learn greatly from her. "A triumph." - The New York Times Book Review. "Vibrant." - The Boston Globe. "Inspiring." - Glamour Magazine. "this moving and unforgettable memoir needs to be read by people of all colors and faith." - Publishers Weekly. We ship within 24 hours of your purchase with a Delivery Confirmation.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Hachette Livre Australia/Hodder; Reprint edition (1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 064157634X
• ISBN-13: 978-0641576348
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (618 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,287,898 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

118 of 122 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A TRIBUTE TO MOM..., July 13, 2003

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother (Paperback)

This book is, indeed, a tribute to the author's mother. In it, the author, a man whose mother was white and his father black, tells two stories: that of his mother and his own. Tautly written in spare, clear prose, it is a wonderful story of a bi-racial family who succeeded and achieved the American dream, despite the societal obstacles placed in its way.

The author's mother was a Polish Orthodox Jew who migrated to America at the age of two with her family during the early nineteen twenties. They ultimately settled down in Virginia, where she led an isolated and lonely life; shunned by whites because she was Jewish and shunned by blacks because she was white. She was raised in a predominantly black neighborhood, where her father, a despicable and harsh man who brutalized his handicapped wife, ran a local grocery store, where he priced gouged his black clientele.

She left home and moved to New York when she was nineteen and never looked back. She met and married the author's father, a black man, when mixed race marriages were still frowned upon by both whites and blacks. Still, she always felt more comfortable around blacks than around whites. When he died sixteen years later, she married another black man who nurtured her eight children by the author's father and proceeded to give her four more children.

The author tells of his childhood, of his family, and of the issue of race that ultimately colored his life while growing up in predominantly black neighborhoods, where his mother stood out like a sore thumb because of the color of her skin. It was always an issue his mother avoided discussing with him, as for her it was not an issue. It was not until the author wrote this book that his mother discussed the issue of race within the context of her own life. From this dialogue emerges a fascinating look at the issues of race, as well as religion, and how it impacts on an individual's identity within our race conscious society.

It is also a very personal story. While the author's family was economically disadvantaged, his eccentric and independent mother always stressed education. She was a strict disciplinarian who brooked no nonsense from her twelve children. A convert to Christianity through her first husband, with whom she founded a Baptist church, she provided her children with the will to succeed. Consequently, all twelve eventually went to college and did her proud.

The story of this unique family is told from two distinct, parallel perspectives: that of the author and that of his mother. While both are interesting, it is his mother's story that dominates this beautifully written book, which is, indeed, a tribute to her. It is truly a story told from the heart, as the love that the author has for his mother is evident with every written word.

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational Reading, August 5, 2000

By 

Chad Spivak (North Miami Beach, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother (Paperback)

I just finished reading it for the second time (first time was when it was a new release), and I still can't get over how much this book touched me. This book is one incredibly moving memoir.

The Color of Water is a black man's tribute to his white Jewish mother. I really enjoyed hearing Ruth McBride Jordan's amazing story. Through the telling of her life, we learn a great deal about the the author, James McBride, as well.

We read through Ruth's story, feeling her anguish in hard times. We fight with her to put twelve children through college, and we lend our hearts out to her in hopes of easing her job of instilling proper values in her children. McBride did an excellent job of bringing the reader directly into this unforgettable story, allowing us to feel the emotion.

The book's format was quite interesting as well, alternating chapters from the mother's point of view to that of his. The Color of Water was just an all-around well written book, and a joy to read. Please read this powerful, uplifting memoir. You'll enjoy it.

43 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A moving portrayal of a memorable family, April 28, 2002

By 

Tanja L. Walker "Tanja L. Walker" (Norman, OK USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother (Paperback)

James McBride gives us a wonderful memoir of himself and his mother, a Polish immigrant and Orthodox Jew, a daughter of a tyrannical rabbi father and timid, crippled mother, who dared to ask for something more of this life. Yet in doing so, Ruth McBride Jordan, nee Rachel Shilsky crossed what was once, and for some still is, an uncrossable barrier: she married not one, but two, black men, converting to Christianity along the way. She lost her Jewish family and isolated herself from both whites and, to a lesser extent, blacks, but raised 12 children who all became college-educated professionals.

This is not a portrait of a saint, either mother or son. But both can forgive the other, something that Ruth's Jewish family cannot do. (That, by the way, should not be seen as representative of all Jews; indeed, the epilogue shows a moving scene in which James McBride gets in touch with his Jewish side in a very positive way. Many Jewish people are caring and understanding and not at all prejudice against blacks. Ruth's family wasn't among them.) Anyway, that these are not saints make the people more human, more believeable, more loveable. And by reading it, maybe we would become more accepting of families that don't look like our own. (Though I have to confess, I might be a little worried if a family with 12 kids moved in next door, regardless of the racial makeup! :-) )