Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith

55 reviews

bookedbymadeline's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

This is Smith’s first non-fiction, as he usually write poetry which comes through in the writing style of this work. He manages to place you in each of the locations as he describes the weather, the sounds, and the people around him. I learned and unlearned a lot of things from Smith’s book, continuing my education in the real history of the US (and in some cases Europe).

I know I say “this book is important” or “everyone should read this” quite often but if there’s only one book out of all my “should reads” that you grab, pick this one. It’s easily accessible in terms of language and content, not bogged down with information overload. Although it’s a heavy emotional read, it’s a fast read that had me staying awake late into the night.

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bgirl1214's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective fast-paced

4.75

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belle2008's review against another edition

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challenging informative slow-paced

5.0

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teleportsbehindyou's review against another edition

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emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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madradstarchild's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective sad medium-paced

3.75

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questingnotcoasting's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

This is a beautifully written, thoughtful exploration of the history of slavery. You can tell that Smith is both a poet and a journalist. Being British, everything I know about US history I've learnt from books and this one was particularly insightful. It's a great mix of travelogue and history as he tells the narrative of the places he visits and weaves in the wider historical context. It highlights how the foundation of the US is built on slavery and looks at the way the past is reckoned with, or in some cases not reckoned with, but glossed over and rewritten. I found it a really interesting way of learning about history, similar to Afropean by Johnny Pitts. 
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caseythereader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

 - I'm not sure if there's anything I can add to the discussion of HOW THE WORD IS PASSED, other than to concur with everyone that yes, this book is as vital and as good as everyone says it is.
- I learned a lot from this book: even if you're read a lot of history and antiracist literature, there's still more to excavate, and Smith brings it all up.
- Smith's inclusion of his personal experiences while visiting the sites in this book keep it from becoming a dry historical text. It does exactly what the sites are trying to do: bring the past into the present because it has never left us, as much as many of us try to pretend it has. 
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raevengirl's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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paigeno's review against another edition

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challenging dark informative sad slow-paced

4.25

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gendavis's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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