The result is a bracing and often humorous examination by one of America’s most acclaimed essayists of what it is to grow, parent, write, and exist as a black American male. “The essays in this collection are restless, brilliant and short.…The brevity suits not just Walker’s style but his worldview, too.…Keeping things quick gives him the freedom to move he can alight on a truth without pinning it into place.” -Jennifer Szalai, the New York Timesįor the black community, Jerald Walker asserts in How to Make a Slave, “anger is often a prelude to a joke, as there is broad understanding that the triumph over this destructive emotion lay in finding its punchline.” It is on the knife’s edge between fury and farce that the essays in this exquisite collection balance. Whether confronting the medical profession’s racial biases, considering the complicated legacy of Michael Jackson, paying homage to his writing mentor James Alan McPherson, or attempting to break free of personal and societal stereotypes, Walker elegantly blends personal revelation and cultural critique. Instead his quintet stretches the material and lets things get a little warped.ĭenial And Lies Are 'Almost An Intrinsic Part Of An Epidemic,' Doctor Says: Apollo's Arrow author Nicholas Christakis says we're likely to be living with pandemic-related social restrictions into 2022 - even if an effective vaccine is developed.Finalist, National Book Award in NonfictionĪ Book of the Year pick from Kirkus, BuzzFeed, and Literary Hub 'How To Make A Slave' Author On The Advice That Changed His Writing Career: Jerald Walker talks about growing up on Chicago's South Side, raising his two sons in a predominantly white suburb and preventing his essays from turning into clichés about the Black experience.Ĭornet Player Ron Miles Embraces His Pop Influences On 'Rainbow Sign': Much of the music on Miles' new album has a poppy accessibility - but it isn't quite easy listening.

Our weekend show emphasizes interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors and musicians, and often includes excerpts from live in-studio concerts.

Jerald Walker is the author of How To Make A Slave.īrenda Molife/The Ohio State University Pressįresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks, and new program elements specially paced for weekends.

Jerald walker how to make a slave