Laughing in the Dark: From Colored Girl to Woman of Color--A Journey From Prison to Power [Paperback]

Patrice Gaines (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1995

An award-winning Washington Post reporter explores the twisted path she traveled to find her place as a confident black female in a world that values whiteness and maleness. Here is a rich and insightful story of a life lived on the edge by a woman formerly preoccupied with pleasing everyone but herself.


From the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Gaines's memoir of empowerment, telling the story of how she went from a young mother jailed on drug charges to a successful reporter for the Washington Post.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA?Gaines's autobiography reveals a life filled with despair, peril, and finally hope. She was the oldest of six siblings in a financially stable African American family in the 1950s. Her father was a career Marine and her mother was the mainstay of the home. Gaines was not happy and blamed institutionalized racism and the emotional coldness of her father for much that went wrong in her life. She was raped twice, became a shoplifter and drug addict, had a baby out of wedlock, got pregnant again and had an abortion, was married and divorced twice, and went to prison. Today, after a long and painful look into herself and the people with whom she associated, Gaines is now a successful writer of poetry and fiction as well as a celebrated journalist for The Washington Post. This is an insightful story full of pain, anger, and emotional and mental growth. The author pulls no punches in her straightforward and frank writing style, detailing her sex life and drug addiction. Yet her stated purpose in telling her story is to give hope to other women who feel the utter despondency she once did. She succeeds admirably.?Pat Royal, Crossland High School, Camp Springs, MD
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Anchor; Reprint edition (October 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038548027X
• ISBN-13: 978-0385480277
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.6 x 7.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #314,461 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patrice Gaines was a newspaper reporter for 23 years, working as a reporter for The Washington Post for more than 16 years. While at the Post she wrote two books and won several prestigious awards for her journalism, including the National Black Journalists First Place Award For Commentary. She was part of a reporting team that was a finalist for the Pulitzer and was a Journalism Fellow at the University of Michigan. Her work has appeared in numerous publications including Essence and the New York Times Magazine. In addition to writing for publication, her commentaries have been broadcast on National Public Radio's "All Things Considered" and NPR's now defunct "Blues & Notes."

As a motivational speaker, Ms. Gaines travels the country, talking at conferences, colleges, prisons and drug rehab programs, inspiring audiences with the incredible story of her own life. More recently, she has focused on prison reform and assisting formerly incarcerated people. She has co-founded a nonprofit, the Brown Angel Center, which gives a monthly workshop for women at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Jail.

She has received numerous awards for her humanitarian work. In 2009, she received a Soros Justice Media Fellowship to support the writing of a series of articles about the impact of incarceration in the Black community.

She holds writing workshops, entitled "Writing by the Water," in which she teaches women writers on Tighlman Island, Md. and new writers--both male and female--from her home in Lake Wylie, S.C.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read Book, April 26, 2000

By 

tami (wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laughing in the Dark: From Colored Girl to Woman of Color--A Journey From Prison to Power (Paperback)

"Laughing in the Dark" was an excellent book. I really enjoyed reading it. Patrice had a tough life. She has been through a lot, but in the end she has accomplished so much. In my eyes Patrice Gaines is a remarkable women. I find books about the author's life are the most interesting types of books. They are so honest and tell you so much about life. Everybody faces different problems and situations that the next person. I myself learn more from the mistakes and lifestyles others have than what anyone could teach me. Biographies and autobiographies tell you the truth, how they felt, the details on what happened, their mistakes, and how they dealt with it all. The more you know about the author the more interesting the reading is. Patrice in particular is a very strong and smart women. She has been through a lifetime of mistakes, promises, deaths, and accomplishments than a lot of others ever will be, and she is still going. Her earlier life had helped her get ready for anything, for the rest of her life. I believe she should be everybody's role model to success. She has done a lot and is still helping others. I am very pleased with the book and I recommend it for others to read. Her life has made me think about my own. She has helped me know what to expect, what to watch out for, and what a wonderful life you can have if you want it enough and try to get it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glad she wrote it, October 12, 2001

By 

Bakari Chavanu - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laughing in the Dark: From Colored Girl to Woman of Color--A Journey From Prison to Power (Paperback)

"Laughing in the Dark" is the Black female side of Nathan McCall's "Makes Me Wanna Holler." Both works share the stories of young African people growing up with harsh realities and obstalces. Both books are about "how I overcame," and what it takes to endure the hardships of life.

Ms. Gaines's book though is rare, for we don't have nearly enough coming-of-age books by African women. The focus is mainly on the plight of African men.

Though "Laughing in the Dark" is somewhat depressing, it serves to remind us of those Black women who are not "waiting to exhale" and can't get their groove on because they don't have the privileges to do so. They must find strength in themselves where there might not be very much strength.

I hope more books like Gaines will be written. I'm sure there are many more sistahs out there with similiar stories to tell.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Patrice helps women see inside themselves, January 11, 2001

By 

Shawna (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Laughing in the Dark: From Colored Girl to Woman of Color--A Journey From Prison to Power (Paperback)

Patrice Gaines's book Laughing in the Dark opens the eyes of women, both young and old, across the country. Patrice takes you on a journey through her life filled with pain and tears, toward self survival and determination to better her life. Patrice helps women see inside themselves through her powerful words and wisdom. She encourages women to better themselves and to always believe in themselves. With her gripping stories and tear-filled memories of childhood to her successes in womanhood, she helps you find your true self and pushes you to be the best you can be. I enjoyed this book immensely, and it has pushed me to look deeper inside my own soul for the person I want to be.