Title: Between the World and Me

Author: Ta-Nehisi Coates

Genre: NonFiction

Publisher: Spiegel and Grau  

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 152

Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis (Goodreads):

In a series of essays, written as a letter to his son, Coates confronts the notion of race in America and how it has shaped American history, many times at the cost of black bodies and lives. Thoughtfully exploring personal and historical events, from his time at Howard University to the Civil War, the author poignantly asks and attempts to answer difficult questions that plague modern society. In this short memoir, the “Atlantic” writer explains that the tragic examples of Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, and those killed in South Carolina are the results of a systematically constructed and maintained assault to black people–a structure that includes slavery, mass incarceration, and police brutality as part of its foundation. From his passionate and deliberate breakdown of the concept of race itself to the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement, Coates powerfully sums up the terrible history of the subjugation of black people in the United States. A timely work, this title will resonate with all teens–those who have experienced racism as well as those who have followed the recent news coverage on violence against people of color.

Review:

Between the World and Me is a beautiful work of nonfiction written as a letter by Coates to his son. In this book, Coates talks about his anger and rage at growing up and feeling that he didn’t have control over his body, all because he is black. He tells his son that while he hopes he does not ever feel this way, he also doesn’t want to hide his son from the harsh realities of the world. He says “I would not have you descend into your own dreams. I would have you be a conscious citizen of this terrible and beautiful world.”

This shows that while Coates recognizes the negativity in the world, he still loves it, and he wants his son to be aware of the good and the bad.

The author recounts different scenarios in his life when he didn’t feel like he had control over his own body, and times of police brutality against Africans Americans that made him feel so angry. The one story that stood out to me was one of his acquaintances from college was shot by a policeman and the policeman got away with it. Because it was his word against his dead friends. The book highlights the issue of race inequality in America, and it makes the reader think hard on the effects this equality has on citizens. A well written book that I would highly recommend!

Happy reading!