An educational memoir that illuminates the racism still rampant in the U.S.
A mixed-race TV host shares her life experiences.
Born in 1968 to a Puerto Rican mother and African American father, Hostin was raised in “the mythical heart of the Boogie Down Bronx.” Though her early years were filled with loving family members, they were also marked by trauma brought on by poverty, alcoholism, and violence. While these experiences were difficult and chaotic, they forced her to hone the highly useful ability to slow down in stressful situations. She learned Spanish and was well educated by her parents, with outings to museums, botanical gardens, and other culturally rich places and events, but this only increased the perceived differences between Hostin and her schoolmates. Throughout her life, the author has faced prejudice, which becomes one of the primary themes of the narrative. After graduating from Notre Dame Law School and embarking on a career in law, she moved into journalism, working as a legal consultant on several TV programs—including the O’Reilly Factor, where she debated legal issues with the host and with Megyn Kelly. When Trayvon Martin was killed in 2012, Hostin, who worked at CNN at the time, pushed to make sure he was portrayed fairly. Eventually, through numerous moves among networks, Hostin moved into her role as a co-host on The View, a position she currently holds. In addition to chronicling her own inspiring story, the author also digs into the intertwined undercurrents of racism and sexism that continue to plague the country. Hostin’s willingness to return to these themes and investigate them honestly and openly distinguishes her memoir from the average rise-from-poverty tale. Through her eyes, readers will gain a better understanding of what it means to be a mixed-race woman in a society that too often defines people based on background or ethnicity rather than work ethic or merit.
An educational memoir that illuminates the racism still rampant in the U.S.Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-295082-6
Page Count: 288
Publisher: HarperOne
Review Posted Online: June 16, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.
A former New York City dancer reflects on her zesty heyday in the 1970s.
Discovered on a Manhattan street in 2020 and introduced on Stanton’s Humans of New York Instagram page, Johnson, then 76, shares her dynamic history as a “fiercely independent” Black burlesque dancer who used the stage name Tanqueray and became a celebrated fixture in midtown adult theaters. “I was the only black girl making white girl money,” she boasts, telling a vibrant story about sex and struggle in a bygone era. Frank and unapologetic, Johnson vividly captures aspects of her former life as a stage seductress shimmying to blues tracks during 18-minute sets or sewing lingerie for plus-sized dancers. Though her work was far from the Broadway shows she dreamed about, it eventually became all about the nightly hustle to simply survive. Her anecdotes are humorous, heartfelt, and supremely captivating, recounted with the passion of a true survivor and the acerbic wit of a weathered, street-wise New Yorker. She shares stories of growing up in an abusive household in Albany in the 1940s, a teenage pregnancy, and prison time for robbery as nonchalantly as she recalls selling rhinestone G-strings to prostitutes to make them sparkle in the headlights of passing cars. Complemented by an array of revealing personal photographs, the narrative alternates between heartfelt nostalgia about the seedier side of Manhattan’s go-go scene and funny quips about her unconventional stage performances. Encounters with a variety of hardworking dancers, drag queens, and pimps, plus an account of the complexities of a first love with a drug-addled hustler, fill out the memoir with personality and candor. With a narrative assist from Stanton, the result is a consistently titillating and often moving story of human struggle as well as an insider glimpse into the days when Times Square was considered the Big Apple’s gloriously unpolished underbelly. The book also includes Yee’s lush watercolor illustrations.
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-27827-2
Page Count: 192
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.
Documenting perilous times.
In his most recent behind-the-scenes account of political power and how it is wielded, Woodward synthesizes several narrative strands, from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel to the 2024 presidential campaign. Woodward’s clear, gripping storytelling benefits from his legendary access to prominent figures and a structure of propulsive chapters. The run-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tense (if occasionally repetitive), as a cast of geopolitical insiders try to divine Vladimir Putin’s intent: “Doubt among allies, the public and among Ukrainians meant valuable time and space for Putin to maneuver.” Against this backdrop, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham implores Donald Trump to run again, notwithstanding the former president’s denial of his 2020 defeat. This provides unwelcome distraction for President Biden, portrayed as a thoughtful, compassionate lifetime politico who could not outrace time, as demonstrated in the June 2024 debate. Throughout, Trump’s prevarications and his supporters’ cynicism provide an unsettling counterpoint to warnings provided by everyone from former Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley to Vice President Kamala Harris, who calls a second Trump term a likely “death knell for American democracy.” The author’s ambitious scope shows him at the top of his capabilities. He concludes with these unsettling words: “Based on my reporting, Trump’s language and conduct has at times presented risks to national security—both during his presidency and afterward.”
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668052273
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
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