"Throughout this period, it was acceptable for whites to call any Black person 'nigger'. ... By calling our Poppa boy and Nigger, they were using the worst possible slurs.""
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Blessings in the Storm by Roberta Wright Trafford Publishing
book review by Wendy Strain
One of the tragedies of history is that so many of the nuances of the experience are lost in its simple repetition. Human emotions, long-term effects on human psyches, how these shaped and changed the social, political, and even physical environments, are difficult to comprehend once the era has become dry facts in history books. The beauty of memoir is the way in which it can capture these human effects of the time to give a greater sense of the lived experience. It is only when we step into another's shoes that we can begin to understand. It is this kind of stepping into someone else's footsteps that Wright offers her readers in this book.
At just 80 or so pages, this book offers a quick glimpse into what it was like growing up as a Black child of the Jim Crow South; one of 14 children born to an ambitious father and a loving mother during a time of violence and change. Although the primary focus is on the many accomplishments of her father despite fierce opposition and oppression, Wright shares a great deal of insight about how the children were affected by watching and learning what behavior was necessary to survive even as Civil Rights protests were changing the landscape.
The story could have used more careful editing and proofreading, but these are possible to overlook. What shines through clearly in this story is the love the family had for each other and the strength that love gave them to create a life for themselves in a world that tried desperately to prevent it.