We Cast a Shadow: A Novel | 
so-soIn a near future world, a man is concerned about his biracial son‘s dark spot, starting an exploration of internalized racism. I just loved the premise of this book, but it didn‘t quite come together for me. Despite some great moments, I found myself frequently tuning out.
"And his fingernails were as large and clear as if each were a window into his body."
"I tried to clear my throat, but there seemed to be a gigantic ball of wet, warm cat hair lodged in my esophagus."
"About thirty shareholders were gathered, dressed in khaki shorts, maxi dresses, and flip-flops. There was enough wrinkly flesh to challenge a pugs-only dog show."
"I scanned the area for something to batter the door open with. The chairs and easels were too lightweight. Mr. Gonzales‘s desk was too heavyweight. Mr. Gonzales himself? Right weight. Battering ram. Could I, in my adrenalized state, toss a 180-pound Latino man through the door? Yes! Wait. No."
"It‘s a strange thing to feel so alive even as a part of your soul turns to cold green goo and oozes out of your heel."
December 5: Fast Hands, Fast Feet by Maurice Carlos Ruffin. Story published in The Pinch
The story is about a guy who is living on the street and we follow him for what feels like a few hours in his life trying to survive a cold winter night.
pick“Set in the post-post-racial South, We Cast a Shadow tells the story of a man—one of the few black men at his law firm—desperate to pay for his biracial son to undergo demelanization, desperate to ‘fix‘ what he sees as his son‘s fatal flaw...” — Roxane Gay, author of Bad Feminist
#Two4TuesdayGiveaway 1) I usually tend to keep them, but it depends on the book and 2) tagged. I‘ve been very interested in reading this one ever since I saw it on someone‘s wish list for a swap I did at the beginning of the year. Want to play @vivastory @MegaWhoppingCosmicBookwyrm ?
pickThis book was outside of the usual genres I tend to read, but it was interesting and I think I liked it. A disturbing satire about the future of race with a number of twists and turns I didn‘t see coming.
bailedThere are some really meaningful things going on in this book, some that even struck a chord with me as a parent of biracial children, and I really appreciate the depth behind the narrator‘s decision not to give us his name. I can see some profound statements at play but the narrative‘s pulse is all over the place and does not follow a coherent thought pattern. It‘s so hard to
Continued ⬇️
I wanted a picture of We Cast a Shadow by Maurice Carlos Ruffin. Josie decided I wanted a picture of her. Actually, I do want a picture of her. She was right! But she covered the book title, which is rude!!
I started this one today. The author‘s recent Instagram posts reminded me that this book was still sitting in one of my TBR stacks (plural, because there are lots of stacks!) and that I really needed to read it right now! Have you read this?
#TOB2020
I still haven‘t read the tagged one but I heard good things about it. I didn‘t enjoy the Attenberg much so my vote goes to Ruiz. Maybe I‘ll have another opportunity to read it!
https://themorningnews.org/tob/2020/golden-state-v-oval-v-we-cast-a-shadow.php
And, we‘re off! I agree with this judgment 💯
pickOh my God.. what to say about this book? It's a profound look at what racism both is currently and what it will look like in the future if we don't end it. Dion Graham is an amazing narrator and does an excllent job giving each character a unique voice and depth as the story unfolds. This book is a mirror that is being held up to say look what the US has the potential to become if it does not change it's ways. Such a great read for the TOB2020
#WeeklyForecast 11/20
Next Friday the #ToB2020 kicks off, so I try to fit in the last two nominated books that I haven‘t read.
First though I have to finish The Enchanted April, which I started today and am really enjoying so far.
Oh and on audio I am listening to The War of the Worlds which is as horrible as I presumed 😂 but #1001books 🤷🏻♀️
This is a very strange and yet dystopian and yet not dystopian story... Sometimes it feels hard to follow but only because it feels like the author intentionally makes every chapter a cliff hanger. Wild. The beliefs about racism in this book are profound... A black birthmark that is threatening to turn his son completely black.. and a father so bent on trying to give his son an operation to keep him white. So much to unpack here.
pickI read this book basically in one sitting, and stayed up far too late to do it. In a near future which has become more overtly racist, a black father has to decide whether his mixed-race son should stay black, or undergo treatments and surgery that will make him white. Incisive commentary on being black, raising a black child and worrying about his future, and the choices one makes to survive in a racist world. The main character‘s choices...👇🏻
Satire? Cringe-worthy uncomfortable topics discussed in a comic manner? So far, this is a “fun” read. Yikes. #tob2020 #audiobook #DogsofLitsy
Ok, I am about to make things either very easy or very difficult for my #blitsyhistorymonthswap match... 🙈
🖤 I love coffee, tea, and hot chocolate (in that order); 🖤candles; 🖤 sweet and savory, but spicy most of all; 🖤 socks- bonus points if they‘re toe socks or super fuzzy 😍; 🖤 bookmarks and magnets. #bhmswap @Chelleo
Oh, and the tagged book is one from the tippy top of my TBR that I do not yet own.
so-soI really wanted to like this book but I struggled with it. A father relentlessly pursues the idea of purchasing treatment for his son so that he will no longer have black skin. Interesting concept and his comments on race are to the point. The first half was slow & the second half worked better for me. It‘s a great book for a book group discussion because there is a lot to chew over, but the structure of the story seemed flawed. #TOB2020
Okay, I swore I was only gong to read my own books on my own shelves. The Tournament of Books is going on though and I needed to pick up one of the selections. How was I to know three other books would jump off the shelf into my arms? On another note, the tagged TOB book doesn‘t have great reviews. 😳🥴
so-soAn African American lawyer navigates a corrupt future world in which skin lightening is the norm, but his growing son doesn‘t share his same values.
Read December 2-14
Book 61
I went to our favorite little bookstore specifically for We Cast a Shadow and I accidentally left with Dear Wife, too. That kind of thing happens to everyone, right?
pickAn awesome and extremely uncomfortable satirical read.
“Yes, the Founders has meant that all men were created equal, but they failed to include an index of defined terms. ...”
“Yes, the Founders has meant that all men were created equal, but they failed to include an index of defined terms. ...”
panSatire is a tough thing to pull off. I had trouble with this one. I listened on audiobook because I think satire translates better that way. But, the further into the story and the more outrageous the story, the less I enjoyed it. #audiobook
pickThis novel compelled me to write a full-length review on my blog. I've very much neglected this blog for the past year while I was finishing my MA degree but I'm back! Check it out if you're so inclined and pick up this book today!!
https://wanderingsofaliterarycolor.blogspot.com/
pickThis satirical journey through an unnamed narrator‘s version of his life is heartbreaking and uncomfortably funny at the same time. In a world where black characters crave a medical process called “demelanization,” our narrator begins to force his desire for his son to undertake the procedure. This novel is timely and exactly what everyone needs to be reading. I‘m sorry, but if you rated this badly, you definitely didn‘t get its levels of nuance.
so-soI liked the themes that were covered, but the writing style itself wasn‘t my thing. The narrator had a lot of self loathing and pride mixed together but seeing the disfunctional dystopian society around him, it was understandable. That said, while the style wasn‘t my thing, I cared enough to see how things ended.
pickThis reading experience is going to stick with me. The narrator just wants what he perceives to be the best for his son - and pursues a new medical process, demelaninization, that will make his son white. It's a chilling satire with razor sharp writing - highly recommend.
pickDelicious prose and setting, biting satire. This book deserves the accolades it's been given!
so-so⭐️⭐️ This book is described as racial satire set in the near-future American south (Perhaps Trump‘s second term? That‘s a joke ... on many levels). The basis of the unnamed narrator‘s radical behavior is the idea of “demelanization,” a process which makes skin appear whiter thereby avoiding racial persecution. It‘s an intriguing idea for a story, but there‘s a lot going on here. Gorgeous cover, undesirable execution.
so-soA world not too different from our own, with slightly different race issues. There is a surgery that changes how people look. One guy deals with work and his wife and son and how they all view themselves and others.
Trying to grab a couple of chapters while my 5 year old has swim class, but these two other moms sat super close to me and won‘t be quiet and I can‘t tune them out. 😬😆 #booknerdproblems
pickThis was a relatively quick, easy read, but it didn‘t quite draw me in like I had hoped it would. (The last 2 books I read were hard acts to follow.) However, it was an interesting take on familial and cultural race relations in a near-future American society. This story will continue to sit with me.
so-soThis was a mixed bag for me. The tale is told in 4 parts and I really did not like the first two parts which were 200 pages of a 320 page book. The pacing and story for me vastly improved in the last 2 parts of the book so at least it ended on a positive and more hopeful note. Satire isn‘t really my jam but I enjoyed Black No More by George Schuyler more.
Slowly making my way through We Cast A Shadow, lighting my #treeoflife candle and taking a moment to enjoy English daffodils from Trader Joe‘s.
pickAn incisive, searing satire set in a future post-post-racial America where a Black man risks his very soul to try to save his son from being Black in this country. Really, really powerful and all too realistic. #readingblackout #onceyougoblackout
