Angry Black White Boy

I'm a teacher working in a predominantly urban environment, and in Macon I see so many of the kids in my school. I've recommended this book to every colleague who will stop long enough to hear me rave about it. Mansbach's words and characters (none of whom are given short shrift) got so deeply into my head that as the conclusion hit me, I was overcome and wept. I was truly disturbed by this book, because it is just beyond the realm of possibility, but dwells far enough within the boundaries of our imaginations that we should be wondering if such a thing could happen. Some people think the ending ruins the book, but with a book like this your eyes are held straight through, and if you can buy the rest of the story, the ending is a strangely logical conclusion. People will call it explosive, controversial, and whatever else they call books they don't quite understand. The fact is that Mansbach is right on so many levels. Who owns a culture? Who can ingratiate themselves into a race? If someone tries, are they deserving of punishment for trying? The levels of hatred, misunderstanding, and bemused tragic observation are so prevalent here. I'm in awe of this book, and I don't say that lightly. Please read it.

Mansbach's writing style here repeatedly took my breath away. He writes like firecrackers. Well, okay, bad comparison, since I can't write like him. His central character also writes and thinks in an eye-popping hip hop style, and he works great as a protagonist for me. This book gets compared to Native Son a lot, but I think the satire of Invisible Man is the better comparison. Anyone who thinks anything in this book isn't "realistic" is either unhip to how satire works or intent on ignoring the book's message. And what a great message--that whites need to wake up, especially white liberals. The novel's staging of a national Day of Apology by whites seems at first like something this very white-aware author would approve of, but then he goes on to show why such a day wouldn't actually work: because most whites are so clueless about what their race has to apologize for. There still has to be a whole ton of education going on before such an apology is even worth voicing, let alone accepting. The Times ran a condescending review when this novel came out, accusing the author of using lazy, cliched slang. What a bad reader! I think The Times just didn't want to receive and repeat the author's message, or else just couldn't hear it. Overall, great novel! Though I have to agree with reviewers below that the author seemed a little bewildered about how to end it.

Reading "Angry Black White Boy" really gave me hope that people in our society may be able to start, on a broader level, an ongoing dialog about what "whiteness" is and how the issues surrounding whiteness make them feel. Even though the novel is flawed(I felt the ending was rushed...or was it just the flurry of my own mixed feelings about what happens?), I thought most of the characters were either dead-on portrayals that I recognized bits and pieces of from people I have known, or the ridiculous charicatures the auther obviously intended them to be. Just for having the balls to write this book, I give Mansbach a five star review.

Decades after the Sugar Hill gang burst onto the scene with "Rapper's Delight," the proliferation of hip-hop moves forward at a steady pace. ANGRY BLACK WHITE BOY is a chronicle of the effects hip-hop has had on America, racial politics, suburban youth, and Macon Detornay as he enters his freshman year at Columbia University. Macon is a man on a mission to be known as "the downest white boy." For years, he has paid his dues to Black culture and Black folks, earning respect in most circles with his lay-it-on-the-line speeches, innovative poetry, and his hatred for "the man." Nevertheless, Macon isn't content to just be down. He smells a revolution brewing, and he is at its forefront - accidentally on purpose. Mansbach's story enraptured me with its humor, lilt, and permutation of racial biases, issues, and scope. By creating a character who was totally different from, and almost antithetic to, any other I had ever read about, Mansbach won me over and held me captive in a story I had yet to hear. The writing was unpredictable and almost improvisational, and it fit the plot of this story without overshadowing the central themes and characters. ANGRY BLACK WHITE BOY gleams with brilliance, and I will never forget it. (RAW Rating: 4.5) Reviewed by CandaceK of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

Rare is the novel that tackles the serious business of black-white relationships and yet is a damn good read. "Angry Black White Boy'' by Adam Mansbach is such a book. The prose is lyrical, the topic is timely, the humor is abundant, and the plot is riveting. Macon Detornay is a young white man with a love of hip-hop, and something a lot stronger than sympathy for the black cause. He quickly goes from robbing smug and bigoted white men to becoming a media superstar who calls upon whites to begin righting wrongs during a National Day of Apology. What happens on that day? Probably not what you're expecting ... not entirely anyway. This is a highly cinematic story -- I can see a movie in its future -- that thankfully lacks preachiness or one-sidedness: Mansbach is an equal-opportunity mocker. You may not like everything this book has to say, but you won't regret reading it.