Brother Blue: A Narrative Portrait of Brother Blue A.K.A. Hugh Morgan Hill

I know Brother Blue well, and must say, this book captures him. The layout of the language (wandering over the page, exuberant, lyrical) echoes his words, rhythms, and movement far more eloquently than I ever thought a written genre could. I am very impressed with this work, and recommend it to anyone interested in modern poetry, storytelling, and sheer passion for an artform. Be prepared to be challenged. Parents should review some of the content before sharing it with younger kids.

I read this book for an oral history class and loved it. I read the entire portrait series but this book and Claude were my favorites. i never got through the other two. I liked this book above Claude because of Brother Blue. His personality is all over this book and I would love someday to meet him. After reading this, I feel like I know him. This is one of those books that really draws you in with it's straightforward honesty and realness. I love the reality of this man who just feels like a real person to me. Definately a great book.

Anyone and everyone will come away from this story-telling masterpiece with a bit of wisdom to keep and share... "The second chance," for instance, is a mordant narrative of a downtrodden black family and its caring but hopeless father-figure who is willing to do the ultimate sacrifice to see his family pull through the Great Depression. More importantly it is the crucial point in a young boy's life: Brother Blue's life as an eight year old boy forced to become his "father's father" in a life-and-death situation... Equally beautiful is the artistry that Warren Lehrer has put to work in crafting a book that is itself an aesthetic and typographical work of art...In conjunction with a powerful and moving 80+minutes cassette reading of the book by Brother Blue himself, this book is a gem. Wonderful , packed with hope and wisdom!