The Color of Water Part 1

     The Color of Water by James McBride is a great book. I've really enjoyed reading it so far. Though it's about life in the 1950s and the struggle involved with being a black son of a white Jewish woman it's very interesting. I can only relate to the author and his mother through the spiritual aspect of the book. McBride's mother's passion for Christ is one I crave. I can't relate to his struggles or his mother's struggles, but reading a book should not be about relating to the people in it. Reading a book should be about stepping outside of your world and into the author's world. Reading a book allows us to relate to people in a way that would never be possible otherwise. That's why i'm loving this book, because it is like nothing I've ever read. I'm learning so much about life in McBride's setting in the years in which he grew up. I'm also learning about what early life was like for a Jewish immigrant to American. How else would I be learning this in so intimate a way? I won't be surprised if a few people are not as open to the book as I am just because I know there are so many people with differing opinions in the English class.
        If nothing else, I'm learning about the struggles blacks went through in the early 1900s, and the struggles of an American immigrant in a interesting, enjoyable way. Both McBride, and his mother suffered greatly in ways I could never imagine.