Customer Reviews

The Golden Road: Notes on My Gentrification

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"The Golden Road" was a quick read. Ms. Millner's stories are interesting, but she writes as if she has been a victim in every city and school she has experienced. She included stories of her adolescent alcohol and drug use as if to brag that she is such an incredible person that she can be both a pothead and Harvard graduate. Basically, she did not fit in during high school and college because she was outspoken and brash and "The Golden Road" is her medium to denounce those who disagreed with her.

I haven't read a book this fast in a long time. It took me two days to knock this out, and it's still got me thinking. This memoir is more than I expected. It's a thoughtful, engaging, hilarious and beautifully worded mixture of self-reflection, character portraits and global observations on race, plus a few more things.

The words "voice of a new generation" are often prematurely used, but in this case, they perfectly describe Caille's life and storytelling. You won't believe it's all non-fiction.

Caille Millner's memoir, The Golden Road; Notes on My Gentrification is the sort of book you sit down with, read a few paragraphs, and then decide you need to hole up without interruption until you have devoured every page. It hooked me on several levels. The first element that drew me in was her writing -- it is just plain gorgeous. Many times I sat with the book in my lap after reading a passage, recalling the sheer beauty of her words. The next thing that drew me in was the story itself. She tells of her experiences growing up in suburban California as a black child in first a working class Latino neighborhood and then an upper class primarily white neighborhood. The reader follows her through childhood into adolescence and on to her college years at Harvard and then, as a young woman, out in the world. So, the writing and the story itself were both engaging. But thing that I find most striking about this book is Ms. Millner's deeply observant and reflective nature. She seems to go through life in a heightened state of awareness which allows her to illuminate her experiences and by extension, the reader's experiences. One cannot read this book without better understanding oneself and our modern world. Perhaps this is the true measure of her genius, that she can take us along with her and we see all she sees and feels and understands as she does through her exceptional ability to reveal the inner workings of race and class and self. This book is sometimes painful to read, but always, always a thing of beauty. What a gift Ms. Millner is to the world.

This was my book club's choice and in the beginning I was lured into the book by the beautiful quality of its author's use of words. She certainly writes poetically. Unfortunately, she has nothing to say. The entire piece seems like a creative writing exercise. This book rambles all over the place and not one person in my book club--all black women of a wide range of ages, educational backgrounds, and national origins--could discern anything that we could take away from these ramblings that made any sense to any of us. I frankly don't see how this entire project progressed through all the phases of editorial production without someone recognizing that there was no "there" there. I had to write this to warn all future readers to be cautious about the praise given by other reviewers. Yes; it is beautifully written and if you want to read beautiful prose that takes you on a journey to nowhere, this book is for you. If you want coherence and some semblance of insightful analysis, look elsewhere.

I wish I had paid closer attention to the 1-star reviews. Ms. Millner is a beautiful writer, but there is no point to this self-indulgent examination of her young life. I'm glad the kindle edition was only $.98 or I would be angry with myself for wasting money.

This book is a poorly written mish- mash of disconnected experiences, apparently from the author's personal journal. There are no connecting threads, nor does there appear to be any direction or point to what she writes. The "narrative" she espouses demonstrates no affect, or insight. I was amazed that this was published, and am convinced those who sing her praises on the book's cover could not have actually read this book. There are two pages mid-book that indicate that Ms Millner actually can write, but the remainder of the book is, in my opinion,a waste of time and money. (Whatever happened to editing??)

Golden Road by Caille Millner an exceptionally crafted piece of literature that informed me of the trails and tribulations of our youth-especially those of color. I was enthralled and moved by the events in her life. There were places in the book, I wanted to cry and others where I sadly chuckled. Her writing does more than paint a picture of the times; her vivid descriptions jump out at me and remain with me while I reflect and connect with her words.

My connections are not only with my own life or lives of friends, but with other great literary works. When she described the scene where Santiago made his speech at a Harvard rally it touched me in the same way as similar scenes in The invisible Man. I couldn't help but think of Azar Nafisi and her work Reading Lolita in Tehran. Both are accounts of coming of age with the authors feeling like outsiders.

I recommend this book especially to book clubs. It will lend itself to deep discussions and new enlightenment. My only regret is that after I read this book, I had no one to discuss it with.

Much like Joan Didion did before her, Caille Millner uses autobiography to explore larger social issues with keen insight and startling accessibility.

This is a moving and beautifully written book. A must-read from a great new writer.

I am currently reading Notes on My Gentrification and I am impressed with the writer's style.I am most intriqued with the manner in which she weaves her thoughts.Thank you Ms. Millner for sharing your thoughts with me.