Description
Published to wide controversy, it became the source (acknowledged or unacknowledged) of much of our thinking about race relations and was for many a catalyst for the civil rights movement. It remains the most courageous, insightful, and eloquent critique of the pre-1960s South. "I began to see racism and its rituals of segregation as a symptom of a grave illness," Smith wrote. "When people think more of their skin color than of their souls, something has happened to them." Today, readers are rediscovering in Smith's writings a forceful analysis of the dynamics of racism, as well as her prophetic understanding of the connections between racial and sexual oppression.
Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
New York, N.Y. : Norton, 1994.
User reviews
LibraryThing member BethMC90
The book is about Lillian Smiths life growing up in the American South. In the memoir she speaks about major events that have influenced her ideals. She focuses in on civil rights and the mind set of the south. She tightens her grip on a southerners psychological fight. This fight was between their
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conscious and southern ideals, and why most sided with ideals. The memoir, although redundant, makes some valid points. Certain parts were added into the memoir after its first publication, most referencing towards WWII and Germany. I did not find this book well written. It was hard to get through and it could not keep my attention at all. She probably could have cut the book down if she needed to. However, if you are interested in learning about southern civil rights history from a white progressive southerners point of view, I would surely consider this novel. Show Less
Awards
National Book Award (Finalist — Nonfiction — 1950)
Notable Books List (1949)
Oxford American Best Southern Books of All Time (Nonfiction — 7)
Language
Original publication date
1949
ISBN
0393311600 / 9780393311600