Mixing biography and autobiography, casual talk with soul-bearing revelations, the author of Balm in Gilead uses a kind of "human archaeology" to reveal the complex, nuanced lives of six middle-class African-American achievers. Strikingly candid portraits explore the experiences and events that have shaped their identities and influenced the course of their lives.
Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is the Emily Hargroves Fisher Professor of Education at Harvard and the chair of the board of the MacArthur Foundation. As a sociologist, she examines the culture of schools, the patterns and structures of classroom life, socialization within families and communities, and the relationships between culture and learning styles.
