Black Boy (American Hunger)

Since I live in one of the college sections of my city (within walking distance of both Drexel University and University of Pennsylvania) I'm acutely aware of summer's demise because of the influx of students.  As much as I may internally groan about the increase in foot traffic and longer wait times at local eateries, I've always loved "Back to School" season even when I was a little kid.  New school supplies, new books, new things to learn, new people, and did I mention new books?  So I decided this year that I would take a free online literature course offered by Yale.  I selected the course entitled The American Novel since 1945. Now I can secretly be the English student I've always wanted to be without paying actual tuition. I'm still paying for my Nursing degrees and I refuse to go further into debt for higher education, but this is not a blog about debt. I'll link the site for the classes below. They have a pretty diverse class offering so even if literature is not your thing, you may find something else you like.

The first book on the syllabus was Black Boy by Richard Wright.  I have never read anything by Richard Wright.  I vaguely remember attempting to read Native Son once or twice back when I lived in New Jersey in my early 20s. I don't have a concrete reason why I didn't get into it or finish it. After viewing the Intro class online and hearing about the original publication fight regarding Black Boy, my interest was piqued. Apparently it was chosen as a Book of the Month Club selection, however the president of the club did not want both parts of the book published. She only wanted the first half and there was a significant amount of back-and-forth correspondence between her and Wright.  Eventually, only the first half was published and it was a huge success.

Fast-forward to today when I have a chance to read the book in its entirety as the author intended.  Well, I have to admit; I could see why the BOTMC leadership said ditch the second half.  The first half was very engaging to me.  I vacillated between being incredulous and sympathetic.  The book is about the author's childhood and touches on the themes of racial segregation, child abuse, violence, religion, education, intellectual escape, and self-actualization. Many have conceded that although the book is called an autobiography it's really semi-autobiographical.  There are instances that are somewhat fictionalized or not the memories of the author, but rather those of his friends or acquaintances.  At the end of the first section I was pleased and there was hope.  I would have been completely satisfied with that ending.

The second section has to do with his participation in the Communist Party.  While this was interesting, it did not hold my interest at all.  There is a great deal of infighting (of course) and Wright shuffles around trying to understand his world and his place in it as a young adult.  I can appreciate coming into one's own in a politically volatile atmosphere, but the way he told that portion of the story was dry and unengaging.

So I would definitely recommend the first part and leave the reading of the second part of the book to your discretion. If you are interested in stimulating your mind, click the text to check out the Yale Open Courses.

Enjoy!