Native Son

A Must Read!

Richard Wright¿s depiction on race relations in the 1940's was parallel to the thinking of most Black and White Americans today. We saw that with the newly elected president. I found this book a much needed read, not to conjure up racial tension but as a reminder of how we, Black and White Americans need to continue to strive for racial equality. He talked about how the price of food is higher in one section than another, how redlining occured than, which is another parallel of today¿s housing market. I, as a teacher, will use this book as a teaching tool to inspire my children to release pinned up anger by talking to an adult or someone they trust; use Bigger's lack of education to inspire them to stay in school. There are so many teaching tools that you can be pulled from this book and used as inspiration. The relevance of this book is still very useful today. It is a great read, I couldn't put it down.

4 out of 5 people found this review helpful.

Raw Read

Native Son was the hardest book to read that I've ever read. It was so detailed about negative emotions and vile acts that I had to stop reading and found it at times hard to go on. I read it of my own free will and don't feel I wasted time but would have enjoyed another book better. It's to negative for me even if the point is very original and dramatic,it's a great debate to a side I do not agree with but see it's points.

3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Potent Read

Along with Invisible Man, Native Son is another powerful story that has schooled me on what W.E.B. Du Bois might have meant by "double consciouness": African Americans' tendency to see themselves through the eyes of others. Bigger, the main character, judges himself by society's stereotypes, and a profound fear of whites drives his every action (including a heinous crime so vividly described I had to put the book down for awhile). It's mind-boggling and tragic to think how much a person can truly become what society expects and assumes he'll be. Difficult story to swallow; an emotional, memorable read.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Incredible

I am one to shy away from books about race. A lot of times I find it hard to relate or I find them to be boring or too graphic. I read this book because it was on a list of the 100 best books ever written and it is my goal to read them all to check out the hype. I really did not want to read Native Son.
From the first sentence of the first page I knew this was going to be something special. Wright's writing is captivating and the characters he builds are so real. Even if you cannot relate to this book personally, you will be able to relate to the emotions the main character Bigger Thomas is feeling. It is an amazing thing to be engrossed so deeply into a book as I was with this one. The plot is unique, especially as far as books about race go. Surprisingly this is also a very fast read. For a couple reasons: you cannot put it down and it is written very matter-of-fact.
I can see why kids in high school might not want to read this. It's long and seems out of date. To be honest it might even go over a lot of the heads in a regular English class. I feel like this novel is for anyone though. It's important. This book is on my list of best books ever...which only had 11 books prior. That is a big deal! Read it :)

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

An important work

Replacing a copy misplaced, some time ago. I re-read native son and was again struck by the deft way in which I was driven to care for a character completely lacking in redeeming qualities. The trick, well executed, was in the way Mr. Wright provided an understated context for Bigger Thomas that explained, not excused, his wrongs.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Angry and Disturbing, if you're into that sort of thing

I read this book for a class I'm taking online. I was so excited to read it, as a fan of other novels on race relations 'To Kill a Mockingbird, etc', but the book was so disturbing and angry it was a difficult read. My professor said that Wright wrote this novel with a grudge on his mind--hatred towards the whites who hated blacks, anger at the Communist party with it's high ideals and little participation in de-segregation, anger at blacks who fell into racist traps and ended up ruining their lives, etc. Basically, while I saw the purpose of this novel, it didn't come far in terms of enjoyment and entertainment.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Favorite author

One of my favorite books in the world besides black boy and autobbiography of malcolm x

A must-read classic!

This book belongs in everyone's personal library. Although lengthy and at times long-winded, the author's writing was both lyrical and expressive. I found myself fascinated by the main character, as well as those around him. This book would be an ideal choice for a book club selection. I've read other books by Richard Wright and have been pleased with all of them. Highly recommended!

The Definition of Beautiful Novel Is This Book!

I've never understood how a novel can be described as "beautiful", but now that I have read this book, I can understand what critics mean when they say that a novel is beautiful. This is just one of the few classics recommended to me by my father, and I was hooked to this one. The story revolves around Bigger Thomas, a dirt-poor, 20-year old black man who lives with his family in the South Side of Chicago in the 1930s, a time when America was divided between blacks and whites. He accidentally commits one murder, but I'm not going to tell you who, because then you won't enjoy it, which leads him to commit another, and mayhem ensues. There are so many different angles to look at it from and you enjoy it in every way possible. What I really like, though, about this book is that you can actually feel the way Bigger feels and you can actually connect with him. This book is definitely for ANYONE ages 13 and up. The best choice for book clubs as well. I think I would read stuff by Richard Wright based on my experiences with this one.

A Masterpiece of Art

This piece is more than great. I think that all aspects of this novel were esquisite: character development, imagery, language and plot. This book is a thriller that keeps you excited throughout the reading. As a bonus, the story stimulates the mind by provoking one's intellect. I absolutely recommend this book!

One of the best novels ever written!

I read this book in my Junior year of high school and I couldn't put it down! Although I love reading, I don't particularly prefer reading novels that are nearly 600 pages long! However, this book had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end! The story started off slow, with the first 50 pages of the book detailing the life of the protagonist, Bigger Thomas. However, this part of the book was essential to the overall theme, which is revealed later on. Once he gets to the Dalton's house, the reader is taken on a 200 page thrill ride they will never forget! For the sake of future readers, I'm not going to mention what happens, but I will say that it is truly an eye opening experience - it shows the audience the negative effects of oppression and racism on human psychological well being. There are a few gruesome depictions recorded in this book, so I don't suggest that kids (or anyone else sensitive to gore) read this. But if you can get over the goriness, I promise you will not be disappointed reading this book!

if you need a book with good themes to write a paper on, this is it

I hated the main charater, but he is not written to be liked, but to show what racisim produces. I felt bad for the mother and what she had to go through dealing with Bigger, and it made me cry. It is a good book that makes you think and the themes really stand out so if you need to write a paper or something, I recommend it. Even if you don't need to write a paper I recommend it. This is a little graphic though and sad, just warning you.

A 'Must Read'

social determinism at its worst- powerful story.

I could not put it down.

I thought the Native Son was a great book. It really helped me understand the way white people treated black people in that day in time. Wright does a great job explaining how white people made black people feel.

Fantastic!!!

This book was hard to put down. I absolutely loved it. It was very well written and complex and simple at the same time. Bigger's speech is very slow and simple, but Wright's thoguhts are anything but. After reading this book I was surprised to flip through and discover that not only was this book written during the 30's and the 40's but the author was a black man himself. Too many books are written years after the fact and often from a viewpoint that is imagined rather than experienced. Wright was certainly ahead of his time in the issues he discussed.

Native Son

Well I enjoyed this book very much. It takes place in the early 1900's which is a big difference in society. Racism was the biggest element portrayed in this book. Bigger Thomas the main character doesn't want to accept the living conditions of his family so he decides to get a job to provide for them. During his life Thomas is treated very unfairly and really is not given a chance in life. This is how life was in this time period. This book is very good and shows how our history has developed over time. I would definitely reccommend reading this book.

Native Son

Of course after I read this book, I could tell it was on and maybe above my grade level. I enjoyed it, and realized how discriptive it is on most parts. Also, I became confused on how the story moved.It changed very quickly and I had to see re-read what had happened before and think a little bit to understand what was going on. I hope to read more book by this author to see the different styles.

Native Son Review

At some points I enjoyed reading this book and at others it was very confusing.The scenes would change dramatically and I wouldn't understand what had gone on before.I don't recall reading any other books by this author but I would like to to see the different styles written.

Great Book

I absolutly loved this book! This is one of those books you start reading and don't want to put it down to tend to your daily life routines.I feel like the author makes you feel like you are a part of the story. You get an idea of of how African Americans felt back in the early 19th century. I felt like the author keeps the story simple, wants the reader to relate with his the characters and I enjoy that. So maybe you would too.

Awesome Book!

Iread this book within four days and I am a slow reader. I could not put this bookdown because I always wanted to know what wasgoing to happen next to Bigger.