Rating: 
Summary: Human Triumph
Review: The Color of Water is the story of Ruth McBride's life written as a biography and autobiography in one by her son James McBride. This book shows why Ruth McBride is a heroine through her son's eyes by retelling her childhood and opening our eyes to the hardships some people face, that most people are fortunate enough to avoid, and how caring souls can cope and make it through hard times and pull others out with them.
Ruth McBride had orchestrated her house into an organized chaos power struggle that runs smoothly despite all appearances. All of her children are straight A students until one by one they each have what the children jokingly call their revolution, when they find jazz music and drugs. Eventually, the children are brought out of their slump by a sibling or their mother and life continues on. This demonstrates how Ruth McBride is a heroine because she was able to cope with having 12 children and did not go insane by organizing her house so that it is mostly run by the children with everyone responsible for the people younger than them.
James's mother supported her large family by working the late shift at Chase Manhattan Bank. She would leave the house at about 6pm and return home at 2am without having dinner and bringing home small treats for her perpetually hungry children. This shows how she sacrificed her time and food for her children and demonstrates hero-like qualities.
The Color of Water is an astounding book. Mixed in between the pages of Ruth's life is that of her son's struggle growing up as a black boy in New York City with 11 black brothers and sisters, a white mother and no father figure during the 1950's. This book is wonderfully written and beautifully demonstrates the relationship within families during times of hardship.
This book also deals with problems of racial difficulties both through the eyes of a young, confused black boy and an equally confused, young white girl. This book is an interesting read for anyone and everyone because it is a wonderful story and is written so well that you will not want to put it down.
Rating:
Summary: Loving and Believing
Review: James McBride's The Color of Water is an inspiring biography written by a black man as a tribute to his white mother. His mother, Ruth McBride Jordan, is an astounding woman, who showed many characteristics of a Greek Hero. As a child, she grew up as an Orthodox Jew with a father as a rabbi at a nearby synagogue. Her family and family friends strongly hated the black culture. Growing up, Ruth learned to look passed race and see a people for they really are inside. Being brought up in a black-hating household, she was forced to be brave and stay true to what she believed was right. Ruth was compelled to overcome many obstacles in her lifetime, such as being Jewish. She overcame them all with dignity and pride, making her a true hero in many peoples' lives.
As Ruth grew up, she learned to overlook the race of the people in her community. She began to see them for what they were inside. When she was older, she married a black man named Dennis McBride. He loved her and took exceptional care of while he was alive. Ruth had seven children with Dennis, all of whom were blacker in skin then white. Dennis later died of cancer while Ruth was pregnant with another child. Years later, she married another black man named Hunter Jordan, having five more children. As the children got older, they began to notice how much lighter their mother's skin color was. When they would ask why her skin was so much lighter she would say, "You ask too many questions," and ignore it. Soon, they began to question their own race, also. When they would ask what color they were, Ruth would answer, "You are the color of water." (Pg. 51) As her children got old enough to go to school, she sent them to white schools, although they were teased and ridiculed, because she did not believe in having two separate schools for two separate races.
Ruth McBride Jordan was an extremely brave woman. She fell in love with a black man when she was young and they decided to marry. She did this, knowing that she would be disowned from her Jewish family. On page 215, her father says, "If you marry a nigger, don't ever come home again." She ended up following her heart and marrying Dennis. As Dennis was dying of cancer, Ruth stood by him every day, comforting and helping him through it. She helped him eat and cared for him knowing that he was dying. When Ruth would here of a white person speaking cruel words about them, she would stand up for them, risking being injured or killed.
In her lifetime, Ruth McBride Jordan overcame numerous obstacles. As a child, she was an Orthodox Jew with a rabbi as a father. The children in school would treat her cruelly and never thought twice about hurting her feelings. She was forced to live with her father's abuse towards her, her siblings, and her mother. Later in life, Ruth was kicked out of the family for marrying a black man whom she loved very much. Raising twelve children, and suffering from two husbands' deaths, were other obstacles she had to overcome. With her hard work, and loyalty to her children, Ruth managed to put all twelve children into college, some even to become doctors.
The Color of Water is an incredibly moving tale of a hero, who overlooked race in a time where race meant everything to many people, was unbelievably brave in certain moments of her life, and who overcame numerous obstacles throughout her lifetime. The book is exciting, and inspiring to readers who feel the need to make a difference in the world. I would recommend this book to everyone because it is a well-written novel, and extremely touching.
Rating:
Summary: Heroic Qualities in "The Color of Water"
Review: The book, "The Color of Water" by James McBride, is an extremely inspirational memoir for all races. The story is about a white Jewish woman who leaves her past behind when she marries a black man and discovers the world of Christianity. She raises twelve black successful children in Harlem. James McBride writes the story of growing up in this diverse home with brief flashbacks of his mother's childhood.
Much like a Greek hero, Ruth Jordan McBride, the mother in the book, overcomes many adversities.She faces racial issues but most of all she faces obstacles in her past. She grew up in an immigrant family from Poland. Her father was abusive and her mother was handicapped. She eventually runs away leaving her crippled mother to the mercy of her little sister. She met a black man with whom she makes a family and learns of a new life. She raised twelve professional children despite her background.
Many Greek heros were adventurous and brave. Ruth displayed an adventuresome nature as she faces an impoverished new life alone. She willingly left her family of origin and struck out on her own. She always worked hard both at home and at her night job at the factory.
Much like a Greek tragic hero, Ruth had one fatal flaw. Due to her upbringing, she was unable to empathise or understand her children's dilema. Each child went through a period where he experienced cultural confusion, but Ruth's high expectations and emphasis on education won the children's hearts."The Color of Water" is a great detailed story about a chaotic family with a tint of sadness. Ruth McBride Jordan is a true hero as a loving mother who raised twelve bright children in a disadvantaged enviroment. This book was eloquently written with vivid details and moving qualities.
Rating:
Summary: Heroic Qualities In The Color of Water
Review: The book, The Color of Water by James McBride, is and extremely
inspirational memoir for all races. The story is about a white Jewish woman
who leaves her past behind when she marries her first black husband. She
delves into a world of Black culture and Christianity. Ruth Jordan McBride,
the mother and her in the book, raises twelve black successful children in
Harlem. James McBride writes the story of growing up in a diverse home with
brief flashbacks of his mother's childhood. Ruth is a wonderful hero of
our time.
Much like a Greek hero, Ruth Jordan McBride overcomes many adversities.
She faces racial issues, the death of both her husbands, but most of all she
faces obstacles of her past. She grew up in an immigrant Jewish family from
Poland. Her father was abusive, her mother was handicapped and her older
brother, Sam, ran away at a young age. Ruth also flees her family leaving her
crippled mother to the mercy of her younger sister. Ruth meets a Black
minister with whom she makes a family and learns of new life. She overcomes
her background and raises twelve professional children.
Many Greeks are adventurous and brave. Ruth displayed her bravery when
she faces an impoverished new life in a new city. She willingly left her
family of origin and struck out on her own. She always worked hard at home
and at her night job at the factory. There is one incident in the story that
showed her true heroism. Ruth is walking home from the market with her son
James when a person tries to steal her purse. She immediately fights back
throwing down her groceries. In the end, she loses the purse to the robber
and takes up James hand and walks back home. Of course, young James is shaken
but he looks at his courageous mother with new respect.
Ruth can be called a Greek tragic hero. A tragic hero is a character who
has one fault that can bring someone bad fortune. Ruth had one fatal flaw.
Due to her upbringing, she was unable to empathize or understand her
children's dilemma. Each child went through a period where he
experienced cultural confusion, but Ruth's high expectations and
emphasis on education and religion always won the hearts of the children and
the reader in the end.
The Color of Water is a great detailed biography about an unique chaotic
family. The book is extremely fascinating and honest. Ruth McBride Jordan is
a true hero as a loving mother raising twelve educated children in a
disadvantaged environment. This book was eloquently written with vivid
details and moving qualities.
Rating: 
Summary: Colorless?
Review: I really enjoyed this book, but it left me with an incomplete understanding of some of the characters. First of all, although Ruth tells her son James that "God is the color of water" (colorless), this seems to me to be in conflict how she sees the world. Color is, on the contrary, actually very important to Ruth; for example, she says, "I would have never even thought of marrying a white man." This is definitely not a colorblind, colorless way of perceiving the world. Ruth is not the only character that I find interesting in this way- I also wonder about James and his racial identity. I find it very intriguing that James does not consider himself biracial, but black. After all, the book is subtitled: "A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother" . . . can a person with a white parent be black? Or would they have to be biracial? Do James' siblings consider themselves black, white, or biracial? Is our race something we are born, or something we become or choose? These are some interesting ideas which are presented in this book.
Rating:
Summary: Skin-Nature
Review: I LOVE "THE COLOR OF WATER" BY JAMES MC BRIDE!!...I'M AN ADOPTED CHILD,FROM EL SALVADOR...I HAD A BROTHER BUT THAT BIOLOGICAL MOTHER SEPARATED US, SINCE I WAS 3 OR 4 YEARS OLD I NEVER SAW HIM AGAIN. I MISS HIM... WHEN I READ THIS BOOK LOTS OF SWEET EMOTIONS AND TEARS EMPOWERED MY HEART. I REALLY FOUND MYSELF WITH THIS BOOK. I USED TO HATE HER, BUT AFTER I READ THE COLOR OF WATER I NOW ONLY FEEL GLAD TO BE WHERE I'M AND TO BE WHO I AM. THANKS JAMES MCBRIDE
Rating:
Summary: Truly an inspiration
Review: I am biracial like the author and I found I had a lot of things in common with his experience. Mostly, I was in awe of the strength of the mother to bring up her 12 "black" children in such an unforgiving and jugemental world. This book is a true account of a mother's perseverance and love...
Rating:
Summary: A Moving Memoir
Review: I loved this book. Growing up in the inner city as a child of a single mother, I related with much of his experience. I also saw my own mother in his: she too was very private and would rarely tell much of herself and her true feelings. But McBride's patience with and love for his mother rings strong and true. It is well-written and honest, and if you love a good memoir, this one will touch your heart. It's truly a book of love, strength, and ultimately of understanding.
Rating: 
Summary: An insight into non sterotypical american family in 1960
Review: In "The Color of Water", James McBride tells of all his steps to find his mother's hidden history and at the same time find his idenitiy? Will he find what he wants to know? It is not just a story of a mother and son, but a story about family, life, and identity. "The Color of Water" by James McBride is a moving and thoughtful book. This book is poignant it will make you laugh at times, and will bring you to tears. James McBride is blessed with a loving mother and she is fortunate to have a son who appreciates her struggle. McBride shows the race crisis in 1960 America through his own confused eyes as young child. The color of water is the color of God. It is a magnificent explanation and theory of God, by his mother. Stand in front of God and everybody is equal, no discrimination if you are white, black, yellow or brown. That is what this book tries to transmit. James McBride's mother took no less than excellence from her children and enforced them to expand their minds. As the family grew though out the book, you can see a true unity amongst them. The family struggled through every task that was presented and, strived to get through the hard times together. This is a wonderful example of identity and what is most important in life: family. This book is inspiring.
Rating:
Summary: Desire Not to Quit
Review: As a boy, I never knew where my mother was from, where she was born, who her parents were. When I would ask she'd say, "God made me" (McBride xvii). James McBride's, The Color of Water, travels through a world of race, hate, love, and the strong relationship between families. Exploring all dimensions of life, McBride writes an autobiography of his life as well as a biography of his mothers long fought life. Throughout the whole novel McBride alters from his mothers' life between his own life. Taking a chance and reaching out for what one wants as well as needs to survive in the world, McBride explores it all. Life as a young black male living in Brooklyn during the 1950's was tough for McBride, but what was even tougher was the life of his white mother raising twelve black children during the time of the world. McBrides' The Color of Water leaves you overwhelmed and is unforgettable. His novel is powerful and leaves you reaching for the book on any given spare time.
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