In Lose Your Mother; Saidiya Hartman traces the history of the Atlantic slave trade by recounting a journey she took along a slave route in Ghana. Following the trail of captives from the hinterland to the Atlantic coast; she reckons with the blank slate of her own genealogy and vividly dramatizes the effects of slavery on three centuries of African and African American history.The slave; Hartman observes; is a stranger―torn from family; home; and country. To lose your mother is to be severed from your kin; to forget your past; and to inhabit the world as an outsider. There are no known survivors of Hartman's lineage; no relatives in Ghana whom she came hoping to find. She is a stranger in search of strangers; and this fact leads her into intimate engagements with the people she encounters along the way and with figures from the past whose lives were shattered and transformed by the slave trade. Written in prose that is fresh; insightful; and deeply affecting; Lose Your Mother is a "landmark text" (Robin D. G. Kelley; author of Freedom Dreams).
#409381 in Books Anne Garrels 2016-03-15 2016-03-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.64 x .92 x 5.76l; .80 #File Name: 0374247722240 pagesPutin Country A Journey Into the Real Russia
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. The Land of the DamnedBy Mike StewartThe writing of Anne Garrels is riveting! Her experiences; the exposure to so many over an extended period of time portrays a people choking on what they see around them; yet are unable to correct the corruption at every level of society. Anne's graphic conveyance of the medical profession; the sad consequences of being born less than normal; the unbelievable exposure to radiation. Awareness of the deaths of untold innocents is staggering to understand. Anne coming back home to Norfolk; CT brings into perspective what we take for granted as Anne conveys the real side of America. The conveniences we all take for granted; will they continue for ever?2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Must read!By CustomerShould be read by anyone who thinks they understand Putin and the way Russia is being run or by those who know little about that country and regime. I was particularly struck by the feelings of paranoia and apathy of the Russian citizens. Anne Garrels has long been a valid and insightful reporter concerned with facts. She verifies those qualities in this book. Very reader friendly without being "dumbed down". Excellent personal stories to ilustrate her points made her observations and opinions all the more valid. Excellent for serious high school students as well as intelligent; information-seeking adults. Avid Reader0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Focus on problems; not so much everyday lives of Russians.By CustomerThe book structured so each chapter is a separate story about particular problem of the society. The focus is on the problems; not something positive. Even if there is something positive it is quickly followed up by “but†and describes another problem with positive event.For example in one of the chapter Anne follows one Russian family from 1990s to 2012. She describes hard life for this family; how they have to work several jobs to survive. She mentions positively that Russian government allows 3 years of maternity leave; “but†in reality salaries are much lower for women during their time off; not as high as required by government.She talks about gays in Chelyabinsk; religious people; healthcare problems; how Russian orthodox church together with government wants to get rid of any religion other that Russian orthodox. She writes about people with drug problems.As I was reading this; I thought that it would be good to read a similar book about US problems: hard working families that work several jobs just to survive; lack of maternity leave and good quality daycare for kids; drug addicts problems; expensive healthcare; problems of gays – all of this exists here too; but she did not draw parallels between countries. Maybe it was not the focus of the book. So the book is good if someone wants to learn about problems of Russians; but it does not objectively describe their everyday lives.
