When Race Becomes Real: Black and White Writers Confront Their Personal Histories

In this deeply moving book, 30 of America's best-known writers on race step from behind the curtain of objectivity to turn the spotlight on themselves and bear witness to the racial divide. In this riveting collection of personal stories such luminaries as Robert Coles, Beverly Daniel Tatum, Natalie Angier, Patricia J Williams, David Bradley, Lisa Dodson, Leonard Pitts Jr, Jim Schutze, and Julianne Malveaux reveal the racial hopes, fears, fury, and triumphs of black and white writers of all stripes. These are writers who refuse to tip-toe around the issue, who don't wax nostalgic, preach sermons, or act as expert witnesses; in this book they are willing to bare their souls and tell the truth. Alternately invigorating, shocking, and inspiring, this book reveals what it really means to be black -- and to be white -- in the 21st century.