Michael Eric Dyson – Cannonball Read 17

Michael Eric Dyson (1-2)

Long Time Coming by Michael Eric Dyson

Unequal by Michael Eric Dyson; Marc Favreau

February 2, 2023 by vel veeter Leave a Comment

Long Time Coming A lot of Michael Eric Dyson books are generally the same, with updated topics and examples. That’s not exactly true, as sometimes he focuses on figures like Tupac, Martin Luther King, or Jay-Z in order to talk about broader issues or to focus on a very specific issue. In this book, it’s more like his other common type of writing like in Race Rules or Tears We Cannot Stop, which are almost jeremiads about contemporary topics. What’s interesting about reading the older […]

Race Rules – Michael Eric Dyson (1996)

Race Rules by Michael Eric Dyson

February 16, 2021 by vel veeter Leave a Comment

I guess I just like Michael Eric Dyson books, and generally always have. I recall him pretty prominently from the days where I’d stay up and watch politically correct and he’d hash it out. In this book, which is from 1996, I’m seeing his most topical book (compared to books about James Baldwin or MLK), in that he’s directly addressing two very prominent events from around this time: the Million Man March and the OJ Verdict. In discussing both, there’s a kind of insider baseball/wonkiness […]

What Truth Sounds Like – Michael Eric Dyson (2018)

What Truth Sounds Like by Michael Eric Dyson

February 16, 2021 by vel veeter Leave a Comment

Taking the last three books by Michael Eric Dyson, there’s a kind of trend that I think is pretty successful for him as a writer, that I appreciate, more so than other anti-racism books (especially those generally written by white people). For one, there’s more direct confrontation of issues with the kind of hesitating “you might not realize this but…” hesitancy of many of those white-written books. Another part that I appreciate is that his books tend to be an act of both witness and […]

Your Master Class in allyship and recognizing privilege: attempt once you’ve read Ta-Nehisi Coates

March 5, 2017 by bonnie Leave a Comment

A few weeks back, I was engaged in a discussion on Pajiba about a certain American administrator’s relationship to black people and racist assumptions. One of the comments recommended a book: Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America by Michael Eric Dyson. I was immediately intrigued. I’m trying to read more diverse work in order to be better informed and a more effective ally. This is a highly recommended book, though I will say this: if you haven’t read Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Between the […]

I laughed exactly one time.

Tears we cannot stop by Michael Eric Dyson

February 18, 2017 by vel veeter Leave a Comment

Jeremiads have a long tradition in American lit. From the Puritan sermons railing against the turning back to Europe for guidance in the wilderness to Jonathan Edwards worrying about the materialist worldview to Martin Luther King derided fellow clergy for imploring him to have patience. The heart of a Jeremiad is a desire to take those in your fold and remind them of what’s right. Maybe that’s what has been needed among the many many discussions of how the 2016 election happened. This book seeks […]

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Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
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Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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