Bearing Witness: Not So Crazy in Alabama

After finishing her graduate degree at Loyola Marymount University in production, Carla Thompson decided to launch her career in Los Angeles. She managed to land low-level positions in Los Angeles production houses. She also had a lot of car trouble and maxed out her credit cards attempting to make her own videos but somehow, she wasn't making it big time as she had planned. Her mother, retired from the post office after 32 years, invited her to come stay with her in Montgomery until Carla could get on her feet. Although Carla had been raised in Harlem, her family was originally from Alabama and she had memories of not so pleasant summers spent with her grandparents there when her northern accent and Catholic religion made her an outsider. Carla didn't have high hopes for her new home in Montgomery. After accepting teaching positions in two local universities, she was pleasantly surprised at the "New South." It was not at all what she expected. She noted that blacks and whites have managed to create and maintain a peaceful coexistence and she didn't feel like that out-of-place person as she did when she was younger. Carla Thompson has penned a delightful memoir. She describes her trip from Harlem to Los Angeles to Alabama in a funny, witty way that is sure to win the hearts of those who have made similar journeys and those who wish they had. It is an honest assessment of life as she views it. BEARING WITNESS is a pleasant book for a quick, enjoyable read. Reviewed by alice Holman of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

What's a black, female, academic doing in a place like this? Going crazy? Growing. The book is a poignant perspective of a 21st century town that still embraces much of the post-civil rights thinking. Having lived on both sides of the Mason-Dixon I could identify with many of the experiences. But what's great is if you haven't lived on both sides, it's okay. Carla will take you there. You'll be easily drawn into not only the time and place, but the author. I was left wanting more.