The Beautiful Struggle

Hmm so I know that I, a 35-year-old white woman, am not the target audience for this book. I appreciated reading it nevertheless–Coates writes beautifully, of course, and I enjoyed the rhythm of his writing even if I didn't fully understand the content. I'm not sure how much of the disconnect is based on my whiteness, my age, my geographical location...and thus I'm not sure how much of this will be understandable for a teen in 2021? Obv I'd assume Black teens will be better able to relate to some of what Coates writes about but I also felt like some of this was issues of specific Baltimore/Black/90s slang? I know this was adapted for young readers from [b:The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, Two Sons and an Unlikely Road to Manhood 2784926 The Beautiful Struggle A Father, Two Sons and an Unlikely Road to Manhood Ta-Nehisi Coates https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320488176l/2784926.SY75.jpg 2810688], which I haven't read, and I suspect that elements of this story will work better for adult readers. But maybe in a classroom setting teens could work to unpack this memoir? I suspect they would find it rewarding. Or perhaps kids like Ta-Nehisi describes having been–struggling to complete coursework that didn't seem relevant to them, seeming to be a bad student, but devouring books of his (or his father's) choice that taught him more about his own history and culture–will appreciate this book. Again I myself appreciated the flow of this and feel like I understood the book as a whole despite not fully understanding words/phrases used. I am curious to know how this was adapted for young readers since it doesn't seem to shy away from a lot of “adult” content and it doesn't seem to be adding a lot of context?

I've seen so many mixed reviews on this author's style of writing. I have The Water Dancer and Between the World and Me on my shelf to read so when I saw this memoir, adapted for teens, I thought what better way to be introduced to this author and the way he writes.

I can see why some people struggle with his style but I really enjoyed it. It's almost lyrical in form and has a definite flow that, while not always easy to understand, is beautiful.

A profoundly beautiful memoir that vividly encapsulates the experience of growing up black in Baltimore. This book can be a bit hard to follow at times since Coates writes the entire book with the urban vernacular of Baltimore, but understanding the context with which certain parts are written should set you straight. Some of the detailed descriptions of his experiences are so poetic that I often read them over and over again, wishing that I could write with such prose. A highly enjoyable read.

An excellent read, especially if you read Between the World and Me and found it thought-provoking. You can learn so much from hearing where a person is from and how he or she was raised.

A beautiful read

This is the universal story of fathers and sons regardless of where they're born and raised. Ta-Nehisi and I are almost the same age and yet grew up in parallel universes on the same continent. My beautiful struggle was much less intense than his — much more of the “normal” that he describes as the desired state — and yet his beautiful turn of phrase gave me an understanding of how his life was lived. So lucky for all of us that he chose to share it, and to shed light into what may otherwise have remained in darkness.