Customer Reviews

Taming It Down

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

 

 

I read McLarin's second book ("Meeting of the Waters") first and was so impressed, I couldn't wait to read "Taming it Down." McLarin's Hope is a woman on the verge, forced to be the voice of her people when she is just an individual. The book flowed so smoothly and honestly, I wondered if it was a memoir disguised as a novel.

If I have one criticism, it is that the obit incident where Hope incorrectly attributed the wrong medal to a deceased war veteran and was reamed by the widow was duplicated in both books (?).

It is obvious many of the "reviewers"--and I use that term loosely--are haters! Sign your names, cowards, and stand behind your words! These are the same people McLarin writes about in the voice of her character, Hope. They are the people who "just don't get it" and go through life without any real worries in the world, never thinking about race because THEY are the problem. Of course, Hope is the extreme case, but "Taming it Down" is a fictionalized version of what happens in the workplace--and the rest of society--when a certain people are left out of the equation. Had the U.S. constitution included ALL people when it was first written, we wouldn't have the problems we are having now.

It would be easy to be nitpicky and point out those aspects of Ms. McLarin's work that were still a little rough around the edges, but I choose to focus on the positive and say that Ms. McLarin tackled a very timely issue and illustrated it both sympathetically and without apology. TAMING IT DOWN illustrates the emotionally quagmire that many African Americans face when circumstances afford them the opportunity to move up and move out of their black community. As is the case with Hope, they are many times left feeling torn and displaced. Hope's emotional meltdown along with her quest to find herself and determine where she fits in the overall scheme of things has a kernal of truth that has to strike a cord in the consciousness of many African Americans. All in all, this was a good first novel. I hope to see much more from Miss McLarin.

Ms. McLarin's book "Taming it Down" is one of the most honest books that I have read in awhile, since Danzy Senna's "Caucasia." In it she depicts the small battles that African-Americans, like myself, have to face on a daily basis when submerged in the sea of Corporate America. I like that she was unapologetic in this book. Sometimes on news programs and t.v. shows when talking about issues like Affirmative Action and facing racism on a daily basis as African-Americans, we try to brighten things up. We bury our feelings or disassociate from them, while putting on a smiling face daily assenting with our supervisors as we move in our corporate jobs. I have worked in the newsrooms myself, and they are anything but "objective." There are daily compromises or spins, put on by editors on the types of news stories that are released to the general public. I like also that she depicted the daily struggle that African-Americans have amongst ourselves as well as we are trying to come to terms with our own self-images and those we wish to have shown to the world. It was beautifully written. The only reason why I believe the "Philadelphia Inquirer" disliked her novel was because she worked for them. Did the truth hit too close to home?

I first read Ms McLarin's sophomore novel "Meeting of the Waters" and was so impressed that I ordered this novel. Once again she has shown what an undeniable gift for story-telling she has. I found myself alternately nodding my head in assent then shaking it in disbelief. At times I laughed so hard that tears streamed down my face. Other times I just wanted to reach into the pages of the book and shake some common sense into Hope. Though McLarin does show some growth as a writer in Meeting of the Waters in the sense that it was a little more structured with better defined secondary characters, it seemed to be missing some of the humor and whimsy in this novel. All in all, I love both novel and anxiously await her next.

when i checked this book out at the library i work at...i had it for awhile before i really got into it. when i finally sat down and read this book i realized that Hope Robinson was confused about her identity and when she started finding her true self..she was learning that what you see from the outside isnt always true from the inside. on a closing note on the book...i liked the ending..i had to really think about what all it was leading to...it was showing us that we shouldnt judge a book by its cover...we should read with open eyes about who that person really is not by how they look.

Ms. McLarin weaves an incredibly complex story that really challenges her reader to step in Hope's shoes. She goes to great lengths to develop Hope- plunging into events in Hope's past that make her into who she is. Many books offer the reader a plot in which something happens to the main character, there's some resolution and the reader walks away not even interested in what happens after the last period after the last page. Ms. McLarin inserts her reader into all the complexities of Hope's experience so that readers who may not have ever known the life Hope lives have to try to understand where she's coming from. All in all, the author gives life to a faction of readers (black women) who live and feel Hope's situation. In the topics Kim McLarin explores there is comfort to those who can relate to Hope and clarity to those who have never had to.

such a great novel! and so very real for black women who get caught up and dragged around emotionally by predominatly white, upper-middle class environments. i read it quickly and eagerly, hoping that Hope had the answers that many of us do not. how many stories are written about straddling the fence between racial worlds? this is a book i plan to share with my mother, who often wonders (silently) what my world is like.

This is a terrific first novel! I couldn't put it down and I didn't want it to end. It's well written, quick paced and interesting. The main character is very likeable and I think black and white readers can identify with her work and love life situations.

The main character is a black woman working in corporate America. She only faces what others are facing, but the the majority don't whine and moan about it. They cope, they get over it and that is what I was thinking HOPE, get on with your life! The main character sound like a spoiled child instead of a professional black woman. I kept waiting for something exciting to happen to her and it never did. The best part was when she went to visit her mother and her mother made her go to the job with her. Hopefully the next book will be a little more exciting!

Dear readers (hello? hello! Is this thing on?)

Anyway, just created an ebook version. Trying to link, but in the meantime, it will come up on a search. Thanks and Happy Reading!

KM