The Color of Water Report - Book Report/Review Example

The Color of Water – Book Report She herself was also a victim of sexual abuse and incest by her father. The book is an interesting account of different kinds of emotions and feelings that both the mother and the son go through during the course of their lifetime, mostly with respect to race and an identity in society. McBride had to face a lot of trouble in his growing up years with regard to the person he was and where he came from. Because of his mixed background, race-wise, the book provides the reader with a stark description about the kind of dilemma the man was in, and the kind of extreme emotions that raged on in his mind – all while striving to become the person he is today.

The thoughts that have been collected in this book with respect to McBride’s mother, Ruth, are not concerned with her familial past. This is because of the harsh childhood she was made to suffer through. A vast amount of imagery and metaphors in the book help to understand how she feels hesitant to speak about her parents because of the embarrassment and shamefulness she was made to undergo. Throughout the book, she has tried to leave her past behind and start a new future with her black husband and son.

James’ personal narration begins as one turns the pages to the second chapter. It is here that the reader is explained as to how the author attempts his best to find out the kind of incidents his mother was made to go through, and how they are different from his present and future. He tries to make a difference analysis of his mother’s experiences as well as his, with respect to his friends and other family members. The author has over here, made use of portraying his mother’s bicycle to the readers.

This is both symbolic of the kind of freedom of movement that she longed to have, and the kind of liberation she felt after freeing herself from the clutches of her father. She was a carefree woman without giving much thought to societal norms and thoughts. The bicycle also helps the reader to understand the kind of free time the mother needed to get away from her children and husband, just to be able to spend some time on her own. This book written by the author is a sort of tribute to his mother, a memoir, consisting of gratitude for the kind of hardships she struggled through in life, despite which she put aside time for her own family and raised him so well.

He mentions a number of times, about the kind of peril he felt from within because of his mother’s personality and carefree character, however, in his later years he began to realise how all that was a symbol of the strength she contained within despite having undergone some of the worst kind of struggles in life. The entire book runs along the lives of both mother and son, with chapters revolving between the two, in accordance with their respective ages. It is a comparative analysis of the stark difference the two had in their lives while of being the same age in their particular times.

James writes about the nagging feeling of loneliness that kept playing at the back of his mind at all times with respect to ‘where he came from.’ He writes about his pleas and requests to his siblings and cousins regarding his mother’s background, and how all this inquisitiveness was met with dreary responses. The book moves to the life of Ruth in her childhood, and how she