THE COLOR OF WATER (Signed Copy)
by McBride, James
- Used
- Very Good
- Paperback
- Signed
- Condition
- Very Good
- ISBN 10
- 0733605753
- ISBN 13
- 9780733605758
- Seller
-
Korumburra, Victoria, Australia
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Rydalmere, NSW, Australia: Sceptre, 1998. xvii, 291pp. Montage of halftone illustrations at front and rear of textblock. Book clean, square. Spine firm. Author's penned signature to title page, else leaves clean and unmarked, tiny corner crease to several pages. Illustrated card wrapper negligibly edgeworn and indented. "James McBride grew up one of twelve siblings in the all-black housing projects of Red Hook, Brooklyn, the son of a black minister and a woman who would not admit she was white . . . Around her narrative James McBride has written a powerful portrait on growing up, a meditation on race and identity, and a poignant, beautifully crafted hymn from a son to his mother." Book weight approx. 352g. (This book will post as a small parcel within Australia only, and postage charge will be reduced accordingly). Signed by Author. Reprint. Softcover. Very Good. 8vo - (approx. 20.25cm x 13cm).
Synopsis
Who is Ruth McBride Jordan? A self-declared "light-skinned" woman evasive about her ethnicity, yet steadfast in her love for her twelve black children. James McBride, journalist, musician and son, explores his mother's past, as well as his own upbringing and heritage, in a poignant and powerful debut, The Color Of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother . The son of a black minister and a woman who would not admit she was white, James McBride grew up in "orchestrated chaos" with his eleven siblings in the poor, all-black projects of Red Hook, Brooklyn. "Mommy," a fiercely protective woman with "dark eyes full of pep and fire," herded her brood to Manhattan's free cultural events, sent them off on buses to the best (and mainly Jewish) schools, demanded good grades and commanded respect. As a young man, McBride saw his mother as a source of embarrassment, worry, and confusion--and reached thirty before he began to discover the truth about her early life and long-buried pain. In The Color of Water , McBride retraces his mother's footsteps and, through her searing and spirited voice, recreates her remarkable story. The daughter of a failed itinerant Orthodox rabbi, she was born Rachel Shilsky (actually Ruchel Dwara Zylska) in Poland on April 1, 1921. Fleeing pogroms, her family emigrated to America and ultimately settled in Suffolk, Virginia, a small town where anti-Semitism and racial tensions ran high. With candor and immediacy, Ruth describes her parents' loveless marriage; her fragile, handicapped mother; her cruel, sexually-abusive father; and the rest of the family and life she abandoned. At seventeen, after fleeing Virginia and settling in New York City, Ruth married a black minister and founded the all-black New Brown Memorial Baptist Church in her Red Hook living room. "God is the color of water," Ruth McBride taught her children, firmly convinced that life's blessings and life's values transcend race. Twice widowed, and continually confronting overwhelming adversity and racism, Ruth's determination, drive and discipline saw her dozen children through college--and most through graduate school. At age 65, she herself received a degree in social work from Temple University. Interspersed throughout his mother's compelling narrative, McBride shares candid recollections of his own experiences as a mixed-race child of poverty, his flirtations with drugs and violence, and his eventual self-realization and professional success. The Color of Water touches readers of all colors as a vivid portrait of growing up, a haunting meditation on race and identity, and a lyrical valentine to a mother from her son.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Diversity Books, IOBA (AU)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 015019
- Title
- THE COLOR OF WATER (Signed Copy)
- Author
- McBride, James
- Format/Binding
- Paperback
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- Reprint
- ISBN 10
- 0733605753
- ISBN 13
- 9780733605758
- Publisher
- Sceptre
- Place of Publication
- Rydalmere, NSW, Australia
- Date Published
- 1998
- Size
- 8vo - (approx. 20.25cm x 13cm)
- Keywords
- Biography, James McBride, Ruth McBride-Jordan, Mullatoes, New York State, Mothers, Whites, Race Identity
- Bookseller catalogs
- Signed Books;
Terms of Sale
Diversity Books, IOBA
Diversity Books - Terms of Sale: All PRICES quoted are in Australian DOLLARS. Books may be returned within seven days of receipt if found to be incorrectly described. Australian buyers: We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and direct deposit to Commonwealth Bank account. International buyers: We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express. International buyers have the choice of FAST AIRMAIL [approx.3-10 business days, depending on destination]or STANDARD AIRMAIL [approx. 10-25 business days, depending on destination] Please EMAIL regarding ARTICLE FOR SALE, AVAILABILITY, PAYMENT and POSTAGE/HANDLING OPTIONS.
About the Seller
Diversity Books, IOBA
About Diversity Books, IOBA
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Title Page
- A page at the front of a book which may contain the title of the book, any subtitles, the authors, contributors, editors, the...
- Reprint
- Any printing of a book which follows the original edition. By definition, a reprint is not a first edition.
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Leaves
- Very generally, "leaves" refers to the pages of a book, as in the common phrase, "loose-leaf pages." A leaf is a single sheet...