The Color of Water

March 2008 Book Discussion

Thursday, March 20 @ 7 p.m.

The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride is the book discussion selection for March. This interesting and well-written memoir alternates between present and past, exploring the life of McBride's mother along with his own upbringing and heritage.

The son of a black minister and a woman who would not admit she was white, James McBride grew up with eleven siblings in the poor, all-black projects of Brooklyn. His mother was a fiercely protective woman who believed life's blessings and values could overcome racism and adversity. "God is the color of water," Ruth McBride told her children. She herded them to free cultural events, sent them to the best schools, insisted on good grades, and commanded respect.

To young James, she was a source of embarrassment, worry and confusion, and he was 30 years old before he discovered the truth about her early life. The daughter of an itinerant Orthodox rabbi, her family emigrated to America from Poland and settled in small-town Virginia, where anti-Semitism and racial tensions ran high. At seventeen, she fled family

Interspersed throughout his mother's narrative, McBride shares memories of his own experiences as a mixed-race child of poverty, creating a powerful portrait of growing up and a meditation on race and identity.

The publisher's discussion guide will give you something to think about while you're reading. Anyone who has read the book is welcome to attend the meeting.