What It Is

September 15, 2019
A black writer tussles with race in the Trump era, taking his questions directly to the president's supporters. At the opening of this graceful and searching clutch of essays, Thompson (Twin of Blackness, 2015, etc.) explains that, at age 54, he's at a crossroads. He's long tried to think of race through the lens of idols like James Baldwin and Albert Murray, alert to racism but slow to anger over it, comfortable with white people while feeling that, often, "being American means being white." But Trump's election, and the racism it has exposed and often supported, has left Thompson unsettled. Taking his cue from another idol, Joan Didion, the author levelheadedly assesses the state of his racial temperament through memoir and reportage. He recalls his experience with race as a student and writer; his interactions with the children he's raised and mentored; and the comfort he's taken in jazz as a proxy for working through those struggles (these sections contain the author's most lyrical writing). The heart of the book is Thompson's reporting on interviews he conducted with three Trump supporters after the election to understand "what was going on in this country about which I had developed such uncertain feelings." They're not fire-breathing racists, but their masks as freedom-loving Americans often slip, revealing casually bigoted attitudes about blacks and Hispanics. Triangulating those conversations with chats with a Bronx-based nonprofit leader and the head of the National African American Gun Association, Thompson concludes that the most pernicious problem America faces regarding race, "the cold heart of the trouble," isn't ignorance or outright bigotry but indifference. The author isn't despairing, but the book concludes with a sense that there's plenty more work to do. A coolly delivered yet impassioned study of how much Trump's election has shifted and revealed Americans' thinking about race.

COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 7, 2019
In this thoughtful memoir, Thompson (Love for Sale and Other Essays), a professor at New York University and Sarah Lawrence College, considers his life in a racially and culturally divided America. He recalls his Christian childhood in a nurturing 1970s Washington, D.C., community—one that was imperfect but was committed to treating others with openness and respect. Throughout life, he turned to such authors as James Baldwin, Stanley Crouch, and especially Albert Murray, whose work emphasized “the integral place of blacks in America, a legacy of grit, resourcefulness, accomplishment, and improvisation... and jazz.” Once in college, he “felt like the only black person I knew who was not reluctant... to be in the predominantly white settings.” He married the blond daughter of a Manhattan book editor, fathered biracial children, and encountered racism (he admits, however, to being “luckier than many black people”). Throughout, he opines on President Trump’s inept leadership (the election was “an unqualified disaster”) and the loyalty of Trump’s supporters (a retiree he interviewed called Trump “a man who had the backbone to stand up for what he thought, and would say so”). Ever the optimist, the author concludes: “Just remember they’re not all the same, just like we’re not all the same.” In prose that is subtle and graceful, Thompson’s narrative casts a refreshing light on race in America.

December 13, 2019

In his latest work, Thompson (Twin of Blackness: A Memoir) juxtaposes his experiences with and knowledge of race and racism in the United States with passages from authors ranging from James Baldwin to Joan Didion who have deeply influenced his thinking. As Thompson reflects on the moral convictions he built his life upon in the wake of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, he becomes embroiled in conflicting emotions. In an attempt at learning the reasons behind a variety of voters' decisions, Thompson travels to different areas of the country to learn one's motivations for favoring one candidate over another. Speaking with a variety of individuals, Thompson also takes a hard look at his own actions and behaviors, including his failures. Once home, he turns to his local community for guidance on how to continue the journey and hard work of understanding. Includes illustrations by the author. VERDICT This frank and personal examination of race and racism in America will be an important addition to many collections.--Venessa Hughes, Denver

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.