Richard Wright A Biography

Children's Literature - Leila Toledo

Over the years, I have reviewed several books about Richard Wright. The first was Richard Wright and the Library Card, published in 1997. That book covered his early childhood , focusing on his experience using the library. As an African American, he was not allowed to have a library card. Only through the kindness of a white friend was he able to get library books. I always remembered that book because reading is my passion and I could certainly identify with his anger. Another book that I reviewed was Native Son: The Story of Richard Wright," published in 2002. That book gives additional details about Wright's childhood and his determination to become a writer. In this latest biography, Levy tells us about the man. The hunger that he endured, the anger that he felt and the racism that he bore. In spite of it all, his dream of being a writer never left him but the anger that he felt was reflected in his writings. His fame did not protect him from racism in the United States. His opposition to this led him to join the Communist Party. Wright eventually became disenchanted with the party because its members stressed loyalty to the party rather than individuality and freedom. His longing for freedom eventually drove him to take his family to live in Paris. The book includes numerous pictures of Richard Wright, his family, school mates, and a fellow artist, giving a pictorial portrayal of him and his life. Part of the "Literary Great" series. Reviewer: Leila Toledo

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up
Wright was, for a time, the most celebrated African-American writer of his generation, and he is said to have used his writings like a "sledgehammer" to speak truth to power. Native Son , his most acclaimed novel, and Black Boy , his autobiography, are harsh and bitter indictments of America's oppressive treatment of her black citizens. His body of literature shows him to have been an angry man, outraged at white America and impatient with the slow pace of progress in race relations during the 1940s and '50s. Harassed by the FBI, hated by many whites, and criticized by some of the most influential of his fellow black writers, Wright maintained an often lonely battle against the inequities he saw. Levy attempts to demonstrate how the grinding poverty of his childhood, his family relations, and racism shaped Wright's worldview, haunted his entire life, and gave birth to his rage. This biography joins Joyce Hart's Native Son: The Story of Richard Wright (Morgan Reynolds, 2003) in introducing young adults to the man's extraordinary life. The writing is clear, objective, and well organized, and the author liberally uses period black-and-white photographs throughout to extend readers' awareness of the author's time and place. This work will enhance any biography section.
—Carol Jones CollinsCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.