Currently reading
interesting topic, unfocused memoir
I'm sadly disappointed. It seemed as if the author couldn't decide if this was a memoir or a historical account of upper class African American society in 20th century America. The view into Ms. Jefferson's upbringing was unsurprisingly normal to the non POC reader, save for the underlying pressure to be better than the rest, to never slip up, to uphold unrealistic expectations imposed in an Faustian bargain for fair and equal treatment. I found her firsthand personal accounts the strongest part of the book. Unfortunately these were interspersed and often overshadowed with accounts of other historical figures and events leading to a confusing jumble. The subject matter was good, compelling even, but the presentation left me flat.
2016 reading challenge checks the box for 16. A memoir
4