Review Detail

The Color of Water is the authors tribute to his mom. James McBride, being black while his mother was white always wondered if he was either white or black. The book tells of his childhood struggles to figure out who he really is and at the same time reveals a little about his mothers past which was hidden from him all his life.

Jamess mother, Ruth and her family immigrated to America from Poland when she was little. They settled in Virginia. She was born an Orthodox Jew and her dad used to preach for money at synagogues. Ruth, formally known as Rachel, had two other siblings: her sister Dee-Dee and brother Sam. Her mom was a cripple because of Polio and her dad used to abuse them all especially her. She was harassed by her father and that made her feel low. She felt as though she wasnt loved by anyone. So at the age of 19 she ran away to New York and met an African American man named Dennis McBride. They started going out, which was rare for a white and black to do back then. Soon they got married and she was disowned by her family who didnt approve of her decisions and had eight kids. He died when before James was born. And that killed her emotionally.

Later she married another black man names Hunter Jordan and had four more kids. When Ruth ran away, she converted from Jew to Christian and she was very religious. Raising twelve kids in poverty was a big struggle in her life. James as a kid always asked his mother why she didnt look like all of them and she just used to answer that she was their mother and told him to stop asking questions. She cut off all her past from everyone and even herself. She struggled a lot to raise twelve kids by herself after her second husband died. They all grew up to be successful people: doctors, scientists, teachers, etcetera.

This book also tells the story of James and how he struggled with racism and poverty. He grew up to be a professional writer and musician. He then dedicated his life to find out who he is by trying to figure out who his mother was. He set out to where she grew up and met with old friends and neighbors of his moms, eventually reuniting her with Frances, her best friend in high school. All this researching and hard work paid off and turned into this wonderful book. I would recommend this book to everyone. Its a really good and touching book James McBride and how he had to struggle in a world of racism back then.