Yesterday Will Make You Cry

This is a well-written book that engages one in a cold world, a different perspective, in a non-judgmental, yet critical & analytical way, with a sympathetic overlay.

Himes, Chester B. "Yesterday Will Make You Cry", W.W. Norton and Company, 1999. Self Discovery Amos Lassen "Yesterday Will Make You Cry" was first published in 1952 as "Cast the First Stone". It had been severely edited and whole sections were deleted. Finally in 1999, the original was published and we go into a male prison and learn of the dark and twisted realities there. The book also takes a look at our hero, Jimmy Monroe and his life of crime before prison. Jimmy was restless. His mother was something of a snob and his father was a preacher. He moved throughout the South and the Midwest constantly getting into trouble, being kicked out of schools and accidentally blinding his younger brother. He managed to get to college for a short while but didn't study and was put out. It seemed that the streets were calling to him to join them ad he winds up in Chicago and arrested for larceny. Receiving a 20 year sentence of hard labor, he goes to prison and here is the "meat' of the novel. Himes tells us about the corruption of the prison system---racism, violence, courting rituals, corrupt guards and he describes the sex between men. A prison fire sends him into a deep depression and we read about the anarchy of the prison that ends with the brutality of a crackdown. Jimmy is allowed to organize a softball team and one guard allows gambling. The true focus of the book, however, is on the sexual culture of the prison. Jimmy finds Rico and they embark upon a romance which continues until he is transferred to farm duty which is his last stop before parole. Himes's writing is realistic as he draws colorful characters and shows the grittiness of prison life. His style is eloquent even as he deals with areas not know for elegance in writing. He also gives a very strong commentary on blacks living in a hostile society. The book is powerful as Himes show us the degradation of the human spirit. His writing ignores the usual clichés of prison life and even though it is about life in prison, racism and homosexuality, what it really does is show us what makes us human even in an environment that is dehumanizing. It teaches us about desiring love, about being better than we are, about self-discovery and about the meaning of what it is to be a man.

This book was awesome, I cry not only for yesterday, but today!! You have to read it from the beginning and keep reminding yourself what the title says, it goes beyond the hip hop,urban street,hard core books it tells a beautiful story,it's life education in itself.U have to understand, this book goes beyond racism,and prison life,it tells a story which goes deep in everyone heart and soul,because everyone have or will have some thoughts & feelings of this story. I cried almost all the way thru the book, this character went thru alot. Sometimes, u never know what u will do thru life struggles, so were no better than the next person, but thru it all soone or later we go thru struggles and we all cry for yesterday and today.

A book that goes beyond the usual cliches. It is not about racism, not about homosexuality, not about violence and only incidently about prison life. It is about what makes us human even in the most dehumanizing environment; it is about human relationships in a huis clos; it is about yearning for love, for a better life, for being a better person, but somehow always falling short. (don't we all?). And it is of course about self discovery and the ever eluding meaning of manhood. It is hard to believe thjat such a powerful book could be ignored for so long. However, this book continues to fly in the face of today's and yesterday's conventions: A black person writing about a white person; could this possibly mean that our humanity is not only defined by the color of our skin?

Far more than a prison story, Yesterday Will Make You Cry is a story of self awakening, discovery of manhood and what it takes to keep it and solidify it. Simply remarkable.