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List Price: $29.95 | | Publisher: Phoenix Audio
Salesrank: 184280
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| Our Price: $17.14 |
| Used Price: $19.80 |
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| Media: Audio CD |
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Editorial Review:
This national bestseller tells the story of James McBride and his mother--a rabbi's daughter, born in Poland and raised in the South, who fled to Harlem, married a black man, founded a church, and put 12 children through college. Unabridged. 6 CDs.
Description of The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother:
Order this book ... and please don't be put off by its pallid subtitle, A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother, which doesn't begin to do justice to the utterly unique and moving story contained within. The Color of Water tells the remarkable story of Ruth McBride Jordan, the two good men she married, and the 12 good children she raised. Jordan, born Rachel Shilsky, a Polish Jew, immigrated to America soon after birth; as an adult she moved to New York City, leaving her family and faith behind in Virginia. Jordan met and married a black man, making her isolation even more profound. The book is a success story, a testament to one woman's true heart, solid values, and indomitable will. Ruth Jordan battled not only racism but also poverty to raise her children and, despite being sorely tested, never wavered. In telling her story--along with her son's--The Color of Water addresses racial identity with compassion, insight, and realism. It is, in a word, inspiring, and you will finish it with unalloyed admiration for a flawed but remarkable individual. And, perhaps, a little more faith in us all.
The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother Reviews:
Good story, weak telling 
2008-07-21 - I wanted to love this book. And I almost did. I was hooked at the beginning, but the further I read, the more discouraged I became. I could not really like any of the people and I was not impressed at all with "Mommy" or at least the portrayal of her. I think the story was good, but the telling of it was weak, unclear and toward the end, rambling. There were several spots where it could have and in my opinion should have, ended. Indeed, I set it aside for over a week with only 50 pages to go and only finished it when I had nothing else to read.
One of the most beautiful books I have ever read 
2008-07-16 - This book was recommended to me by a friend who also happens to be an English professor. I won't go into the story line as others have done so here already. Suffice it to say that it is a beautifully crafted book about love and the human spirit. Don't miss it!
two lives @ a glance 
2008-06-30 - I read this book when I was in the 11th grade, I simply love it. I actually had to reread the first 4 chapters twice, because I was so confused at first. Tha authors style of writing and they way the book was split leaves you a little confused, but then u realize it is his life and then his mothers. I simply enjoyed this book. It not only discusses what life is like for a black boy, but for a white woman engaged in an interracial relationship and the struggles she faced. We so often hear about the Black struggle...its good to see boths sides for once!
An increible surprise
2008-04-21 - Not only is writing a review something I don't usually do...it"s something I have never done,(as an adult,} I was not ready for the emotional strangelhold "the Color of Water," had on me from page one. I had to keep checking to see if this was truly a real story of a life unparalleled, or a wild imagination. James McBride is so cool.I intend to find his recordings and of cours read the rest of his literery offerings.Since reading "Water", I have purchased several books for friends and they too have shown their critique by humbling me with their thanks. I was in the film business for many years and if I were just twenty years younger, I would find the money to purchase the film rights. To wrap it all up, it was one hell of an experience...one I wish I could have shared with mr.McBride. Len Howad,Las Vegas NV
"Wallking the Racial Divide"
2008-03-30 - This book is a wonderful book that tells two different stories of a boy and his mother trying to find themselves. In this story, James McBride struggles to find himself, torn between the racial divide of whites and blacks. The son of a black man and a Jewish Orthodox mother, he finds himself (like his mother) fleeing to the black side of life. His mother's story parallels his own, with her living with her intolerant Rabbi father, crippled mother, and brother and sister living in Suffolk, Virginia. Rachel Shilsky finally has enough of living under her father's cruel gaze, knowing that he does not care for her sick mother. She leaves and meets Andrew McBride who helps her find God and herself. Rachel Shilsky becomes Ruth McBride Jordan. After eight kids with her first husband, Ruth married Hunter Jordan and had four more children, and somehow through the will of God sent them all to college. This book shows how both James and Ruth found God and therefore found themselves. It also shows James McBride finally coming to terms with being bi-racial, and how finally getting to know his mother helps him get to know himself.
