The Color of Water by James McBride

[SheilaT]

1. I have read that book

and it is wonderful. It really helped me (a boring Caucasian) to think about race and race identity in a new way.

I read another book around the same time. Can't recall the title or author, but was by a man who was raised white until his father died (I think Mom had already left a few years earlier) when he was about ten or so, and then discovered that his dad was Black. He went to live with his dad's family, and was suddenly considered and treated as Black. This was, I think, in the 1950's. The author was, if we simply go by appearance, as white as I am, but the racism of that era made him as Black as anyone with much darker skin. It's a fascinating look into how we deal with race and the definitions of race in this country.

The entire issue of race and skin color in this country fascinates me. I am the granddaughter of people who immigrated from Ireland, so I have green eyes and pale skin. I originally lived in northern New York State, and rarely saw an African American. As an adult I've lived in several parts of the country, and have more than one African American I can honestly count as a friend. As a child I can recall thinking, What if I'd been born Black? I have always understood, to an extent, my white privilege. So books like the one you've named absolutely enthrall me, because they bring me into a world I cannot otherwise know.