Play Book Tag discussion

The Warmth Of Other Suns – Isabel Wilkerson
Book on CD read by Robin Miles
4****

Subtitle: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration

I had heard of Wilkerson’s masterful social history, but had just never gotten around to reading it. Thanks to my F2F book club, however, the time is now.

One thing I really appreciate about this work is how Wilkerson focuses on three individuals: Ida Mae Gladney who moved north to Chicago in 1937; George Starling who went from Florida to Harlem in 1945; and Robert Foster who settled in Los Angeles in 1953 to pursue the kind of medical practice unavailable to him in Louisiana.

Using these three personal stories made the book much more interesting and accessible, even though she did include much of the academic, sociological reports that these stories illustrated. I was interested and engaged from beginning to end. And I look forward to our book club discussion. The whole concept of the Great Migration was not new to me, but I still learned some things and have much more to consider.

Robin Miles does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. She had a large book with much detail to relate and she kept it interesting and informative. This kind of nonfiction is a little easier to listen to than a strictly academic report, and I thank the author for that style of writing.

I do wish that the text had included some photos, but the 1st edition hardcover I took out of the library did not.


LINK to my review