Up Home: One Girl's Journey by Ruth J. Simmons

Rating: 5 of 5 stars 

Duration: 06:51:00
Published: September 2023

I first learned about Up Home: One Girl's Journey, an autobiography by Ruth J. Simmons through one of Audible's many monthly sales. Convincing myself I didn't need to purchase another book (ha!), I borrowed the audiobook from my local library. Ruth J. Simmons did such a beautiful job telling her story, in her words, in her way, I had to purchase a physical copy. 

I will start this review by providing a bit of background about Dr. Simmons. She the first African American to serve as president for an Ivy League institution, Brown University. She holds an undergraduate degree from an HBCU, Dillard University, and received her graduate degrees, including her doctorate, from Harvard University. Her research is in romance languages and literature. And as she tells the story of her humble beginnings in east Texas, she explains how her local school teacher made an impact on her, sparking her love of words. It was at this point in the audiobook I empathized with Simmons. On page 71 of the hard copy she said: 

Fascinated with the precision afforded by mysterious multisyllabic words, I began memorizing some that Miss Ida Mae used. I collected words as some children my age collected dolls, stamps, or baseball cards; the pursuit was not merely empowering, it was as if I was inheriting a fortune. 

It was her love of words and the way she shared them that made me fall in love with this book. I was also engrossed and moved by the story of this woman who grew up the youngest child of 12 and sharecroppers who would go on to become an effective leader in academia and be held in high regard. I'm sure no one in her family could have imagined that she would attain such status coming from a home where they often lacked the basic necessities. I related to so many parts of her story. My parents grew up similarly in their respective homes and have also overcome the odds of racism, societal expectations, prejudice, redlining and so much more to be successful pillars of society. When Simmons spoke of her childhood and her mom straightening her hair with a hot comb, again I related and I smiled. 

The majority of the book, Simmons talks about her childhood, the challenges with her father, her mother's untimely death, and her quest to get an education. As a reader, I felt as though she was walking me down her life's path. I only wish the journey would have been longer and she would have shared more about her career and what challenges she faced in being the "first" in a lot of spaces. Perhaps Simmons is saving that for a future book. I sure hope so. I'm not going to fool myself. I'll be buying a copy of that one too if it comes to fruition! 

Recommendation: This is definitely one of those books where representation is important and needed. Simmons testimony is not only a beautiful one but is greatly needed, and I am thankful she published her story of triumph over everything. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. said, of her book, "Destined to take its place in the canon of great African American autobiographies." I certainly agree, but I might revise his quote to say this book will take its place in the great canon of autobiographies, period. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars 

Duration: 12:04:00
Published: February 2022

The Violin Conspiracy is Brendan Slocumb’s debut novel categorized as a mystery thriller. It opens as the main character, Ray, realizes his family heirloom and primary method of making money has been stolen with a demand for ransom to secure its return. The item in question — an 18th century Stradivarius violin, given to his enslaved great-great-grandfather by his former white owner after he was freed, literally worth millions of dollars. Shortly after this explosive beginning, the reader is taken back to Ray’s high school years as an untrained violinist and gradually brought up to present day as Ray prepares, now a classically-trained musician, for the renowned Tchaikovsky Competition in Russia. But without his violin, that has become something of a security blanket, can he play and win? Can he raise the funds to pay the ransom for his stolen heirloom? And can he fend off the descendants of the white family that enslaved his ancestors for ownership of the violin? 

As it might seem from my summary (or the one provided for the publisher), there’s a lot going on in this book. On top of the myriad of plot elements, Ray is also dealing with an unsupportive family. I selected this book on recommendation of my online book club — The ModernMrsDarcy.com Book Club — and specifically in audiobook format. And I will say from a musical perpsective, it was a delight to listen to the musical excerpts played by the author himself. However, the narrator was a huge turnoff for me. The voice acting of many of the characters was overdone and portrayed in a stereotypical way. Additionally, I found most of the characters were written with an overabundance of characters flaws while Ray was written as mostly the perfect victim. I had hoped the characters would have been a little more nuanced, but it was like the author took the worst of every character and amplified it. The angry Black woman trope given to Ray’s mother. The overt racist uncle during a wedding scene as well as the white man at the instrument repair store were written in such a way that their behavior was almost unbelievable for the time period, which I suspect is 2020-something as bitcoin is mentioned early on in the book. Having said this, the author did participate in a Zoom session with the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club and he mentioned that the book is somewhat autobiographical. So, perhaps the situations in this book reflect his life (albeit at a different time since he appears to be at least in his late 40s). We write what we know and I don’t deny this is his experience. However, I do think writers have a responsibility to the message disseminated, especially when writing using such polarizing prose. In addition to the stereotypes, I wasn’t a fan of the profanity, finding most of it unnecessary, and I thought this book was a little too long. The best part of the book was the author’s note and playing at the end. 

There are a lot of books out there. As a former musician, I might have picked up this book on my own. However, I was more motivated to read and complete this selection as a result of book club. Having finished it, I might have invested my time in a different selection. 

Recommendation: Not every book is for every person, and this book was not for me. This could have been a beautiful and distinct story, but I just found it to be a character playing the victim instead of truly overcoming. I doubt I will read another book by Slocumb, but I could certainly listen to him play for hours and I wish him the best of luck in his writing career! 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

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All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle

Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars 

Pages: 320 pages
Published: July 2020

All the Lonely People by Mike Gayle is about Hubert Bird, a Jamaican expat living in England. During the latter portion of his life, he finds himself a widow miles apart from his daughter who lives in Australia and just as far apart emotionally from his estranged son. However, Hubert has been lying by putting on false pretenses about his life - painting a picture of an active, senior lifestyle. However, when, by happenstance, he meets his neighbor, a young single mom named Ashleigh, Hubert’s lonely life is turned upside down and he gets a much more exciting life than he ever could have imagined. 

The thing I liked the most about this book is that it so relatable. I can’t think of a single person who hasn’t experienced a sense on loneliness at one point or another in his or her life, so the imagery that Gayle is able to develop through his prose is easily imagined. 

“It was a kiss that didn’t say goodby so much as hello.” 

“Extraordinary things can happen to ordinary people like you and me, but only if we open ourselves up enough to let them.” 

My only critiques about this book are the dialect in which Hubert spoke. I understand the need for the colloquial nature of Hubert’s conversation to make his Jamaican ethnicity seem more authentic. However, it seemed overdone and far-fetched that he would continually speak using “me” rather than “I” after having lived a successful life in England. Additionally, the author shows us that he knows the proper English way to speak, he just doesn’t, which seems lazy and contradictory to someone who worked so hard not only in his professional life but his romantic one with Joyce. Additionally, the reveal about Rose seems to come out of nowhere. I suppose this is a very real possibility, but it really didn’t flow in the book. It seemed like a last-minute Hail Mary to assist the book in closing. And finally, if I had my druthers, I’d rather the story had ended at chapter 49. I don’t really think the “Eighteen Months Later” epilogue was needed to complete the story.

Recommendation: I don’t think this book is about the story so much as it’s about the message it represents. It was published in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time where I suspect many people were experiencing some type of loneliness. However, the message is evergreen and can be appreciated at any time. 

Until next time ... Read on!

Regardless of whether I purchase a book, borrow a book, or receive a book in exchange for review, my ultimate goal is to be honest, fair, and constructive. I hope you've found this review helpful.

Read More