Children's Literature: The Color Of Water By James Mcbride

LaToya Alexander

Professor: Adero-Zaire Green

English 209- Children’s Literature

May 18, 2016

The Color of Water

The Color of Water is about the narration of James McBride as he explores the history of his mother Ruth McBride Jordan, and his heritage and upbringing. Ruth McBride Jordan is a light-skinned lady evasive regarding her ethnicity, however unwavering in her love for all her black children. As the son of a woman who believed she was not white and of a black minister, the bringing up of James McBride was in coordinated chaos in Brooklyn with his eleven siblings (McBride 140). His mother was always protective and guided them towards the open cultural events that Manhattan has to offer, sent them to the best Jewish schools, expected

He hated black people, particularly the men. She, however, identified with the black community in her home area. Because she was a Jew, Ruth was often excluded from the white community in the South thus the reason she could partly sympathize with the privation of her black neighbors. Ruth explains how there was a racial divide in Suffolk, a completely white school and a black school. The Jewish discrimination was equally pervasive, which made her alter her name from Rachel to Ruth because it appeared less Jewish (Waxler 1). It also made sense that she would eventually marry a black man. Ruth explains how interracial relationships were extremely dangerous during those days, as black men faced death for even glancing at a white

Their mother ensured that they went to every free occasion in New York such as concerts, parades, festivals, and libraries. James realized that they actually never experienced poverty or felt deprived. “As a grown man, I understand now, understand how her Christian principles and trust in God kept her going through all her life’s battles” (McBride 33; Ch. 4).her trust in God assisted her in raising her children. When the racial transformations of the 1960s started, James had a hard time integrating the rise of black power with the reality of his mother’s race (McBride 32). James constantly felt embarrassed because of his mother 's race, as it made her different from the rest of the community. However, as he grew older he started to understand his mother, accepting her eccentricities instead of