Linked Data Explorer

""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 listeners 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" --"@en
"Who was Ruth McBride Jordan? Not even her son knew the answer to that question until he embarked on a twelve-year journey that changed himself and his family forever. Born Rachel Deborah Shilsky, she began life as the daughter of an angry, failed orthodox Jewish rabbi in the South. To escape her unhappy childhood, Ruth ran away to Harlem, married a black man, became a Baptist and started an all-black church. Her son James tells of growing up with inner confusions, chaos, and financial hardships; of his own flirtation with drugs and violence; of the love and faith his mother gave her twelve children; and of his belated coming-to-coming with her Jewish heritage., The result is a powerful portrait of growing up, a meditation on race and identity, and a poignant, beautifully crafted hymn form a son to his mother."@en
"Who was Ruth McBride Jordan? Not even her son knew the answer to that question until he embarked on a twelve-year journey that changed himself and his family forever. Born Rachel Deborah Shilsky, she began life as the daughter of an angry, failed orthodox Jewish rabbi in the South. To escape her unhappy childhood, Ruth ran away to Harlem, married a black man, became Baptist and started an all-black church. Her son James tells of growing up with inner confusions, chaos, and financial hardships; of his own flirtation with drugs and violence; of the love and faith his mother gave her twelve children; and of his belated coming to terms with her Jewish heritage. The result is a powerful portrait of growing up, a meditation on race and identity, and apoignant, beautifully crafted hymn from a son to his mother."@en
"James McBride chronicles his twelve-year journey to learn about his mother's past, describing her unhappy childhood, marriage, refusal to admit she was white, and creation of an all-black church in Harlem, and shares details of his own life and the challenges he faced coping with his family's secrets."@en
"Having grown up in a household with a Polish, Jewish mother and an African-American father, James McBride is well-acquainted with the tension that exists for bi-racial individuals. He discusses this tension, along with the pervasive racism that exists between all sides of the race issue. Juxtaposed with his story is the story of his mother, which adds a brilliant depth to this moving piece."
"Tells of his mother's life as a daughter of an angry, failed Orthodox Jewish rabbi who runs away and marries a black man, also discussing his struggle with drugs and racial identity."@en
"A powerful portrait of growing up, a meditation on race and identity, and a poignant, beautifully crafted hymn from a son to his mother."@en
"The author persuaded his mother to tell her story. Her story is of a rabbi's daughter, born in Poland and raised in the South, who fled to Harlem, married a black man, founded a Baptist church, and put twelve children through college. It is a tribute to his remarkable, eccentric, determined mother, and an eloquent exploration of what family really means."@en
"Who was Ruth McBride Jordan? Not even her son knew the answer to that question until he embarked on a twelve-year journey that changed himself and his family forever. Born Rachel Deborah Shilsky, she began life as the daughter of an angry, failed orthodox Jewish rabbi in the South. To escape her unhappy childhood, Ruth ran awat to Harlem, married a black man, became Babtist and started an all-black church. Her son James tells of growing up with inner confusions, chaos, and financial hardships; of his own flirtation with drugs and violence; of the love and faith his mother gave her twelve children; and of his belated coming to terms with her Jewish heritage. The result is a powerful portrait of growing up, a meditation on race and identity, and apoignant, beautifully crafted hymn from a son to his mother."@en
"An African American man describes life as the son of a white mother and Black father, reflecting on his mother's contributions to his life and his confusion over his own identity."@en
"A young African American man describes growing up as one of twelve children of a white mother and black father, and discusses his mother's contributions to his life and his confusion over his own identity."@en
"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."
"James McBride grew up one of twelve siblings in an all-black housing project in Brooklyn, the son of a black minister and a woman who would not admit she was white. A powerful portrait of growing up and a beautifully crafted hymn from son to his mother."@en

genre

http://schema.org/genre

"Downloadable audio books"@en
"Audiobooks"@en
"Audiobooks"
"Biography"@en
"Biography"

name

http://schema.org/name

"Color of water: a black man's tribute to his white mother"
"The color of water : a black man's tribute to his white mother"
"The color of water : a Black man's tribute to his white mother"@en
"The Color of Water"@en
"The color of water"@en
"The color of water"
"The Color of Water a Black Man's Tribute to hisWhite Mother"@en
"The color of water a Black man's tribute to his white mother"
"The color of water a Black man's tribute to his white mother"@en
"The color of water a black man's tribute to his white mother"
"The color of water a black man's tribute to his white mother"@en

workExample

http://schema.org/workExample