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Life on the Color Line: The True Story of a White Boy Who Discovered He Was Black Kindle Edition

4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 450 ratings

“Heartbreaking and uplifting… a searing book about race and prejudice in America… brims with insights that only someone who has lived on both sides of the racial divide could gain.”—Cleveland Plain Dealer
 

“A triumph of storytelling as well as a triumph of spirit.”—Alex Kotlowitz, award-winning author of There Are No Children Here

As a child in 1950s segregated Virginia, Gregory Howard Williams grew up believing he was white. But when the family business failed and his parents’ marriage fell apart, Williams discovered that his dark-skinned father, who had been passing as Italian-American, was half black. The family split up, and Greg, his younger brother, and their father moved to Muncie, Indiana, where the young boys learned the truth about their heritage. Overnight, Greg Williams became black.
 
In this extraordinary and powerful memoir, Williams recounts his remarkable journey along the color line and illuminates the contrasts between the black and white worlds: one of privilege, opportunity and comfort, the other of deprivation, repression, and struggle. He tells of the hostility and prejudice he encountered all too often, from both blacks and whites, and the surprising moments of encouragement and acceptance he found from each.
 
Life on the Color Line is a uniquely important book. It is a wonderfully inspiring testament of purpose, perseverance, and human triumph.
 
Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Williams, dean of the Ohio State University College of Law, tells the affecting and absorbing story of his most unusual youth. Born to a white mother and a black father who passed for white, Williams was raised as white in Virginia until he was 10, when his mother left. His father brought his two sons back home to Muncie, Ind., in 1954 and sank further into drink. The two boys were eventually taken in by Miss Dora, a poor black widow. Williams's many anecdotes are a mixture of pain, struggle and triumph: learning "hustles" from Dad, receiving guidance from a friend's mother, facing racism from teachers and classmates, beginning a clandestine romance with a white girl he eventually married. And while his scarred, grandiloquent father was never reliable, he did instill in young Greg-though not in Greg's brother-sustaining dreams of professional success. Along the way the author decided, despite his appearance, he would proudly claim the black identity that white Muncie wouldn't let him forget. Williams ends his narrative when he reaches college; in the epilogue, he regrets that "there were too many who were unable to break the mold Muncie cast." Photos not seen by PW. Author tour.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Williams's coming-of-age years were hard. His father was an alcoholic, and his mother left when Greg was still in grade school, not to be seen for more than a decade. His father soon lost his business, and the rest of the family set out from Virginia for Muncie, Indiana to be near relatives. To Greg's amazement, having lived his short life as white, his fair-skinned father's relatives were black. Facing a lifetime of choosing whether to be black or white and, whatever his decision, opprobrium from both races, Greg opted for black. Today he is dean of a respected law school, a man who in the 1950s Muncie of his youth might have been patronizingly called "a credit to his race." "A credit to the human race" is more like it. Recommended for all libraries.
--Jim Burns, Ottumwa, Ia.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B001QWDRVU
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Plume (February 1, 1996)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ February 1, 1996
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1465 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 316 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 450 ratings

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Gregory Howard Williams
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Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
450 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book engaging and worth reading again. They describe the story as powerful, profound, and uplifting. Readers appreciate the insightful portrayal of life in segregated America during the 1950s. The writing quality is well-received, with raw emotion and an easy flow. The character development is described as kind and compassionate.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

47 customers mention "Readability"47 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and worth reading again. They describe it as an excellent memoir about a mixed-race child growing up in segregated America. Readers also mention it's a moving, memorable read with an unbelievable storyline.

"This is an absolutely, wonderful book. Should be required reading for everyone especially college or high school students...." Read more

"...Little did I know that I was about to read one of the best books of my life...." Read more

"...Now about the content...This book should be a standard read for every student in America...." Read more

"This is the most heartwrenching, heartbreaking,heartloving book I have read in a very long time...." Read more

40 customers mention "Story quality"40 positive0 negative

Customers find the story powerful and profound. They describe it as an uplifting tale about human triumph in spite of tremendous odds and pain. The book contains numerous anecdotes that reflect on life impacted by hatred, fear, and discrimination.

"...Outside of appreciating the tremendously uplifting premise, I laughed the hardest about the rooster and that dang Buster kissing President Kennedy!..." Read more

"...to any reader who desires to experience a detailed and motivational review of one man who had every reason to fail, but decided instead to succeed..." Read more

"...Williams' memoir tells the fascinating story of a young man who is born into the lower-middle class white world of suburban Virginia only to learn..." Read more

"This is the most heartwrenching, heartbreaking,heartloving book I have read in a very long time...." Read more

13 customers mention "Insight"13 positive0 negative

Customers find the book insightful and interesting. They say it provides an instructive account of life in Black America during the 1950s. The author humanizes issues of racism and prejudice, allowing readers to experience them firsthand. The story opens their eyes to the prevalence of discrimination and its lasting impact, making it a dynamic memoir.

"...This is a dynamic memoir. Each time I look at Greg's smiling face on the cover reduces me to tears...." Read more

"...way this Author's autobiography clearly illustrates and humanizes these issues in this near perfect book throws the soapbox in the gutter, putting..." Read more

"...us to enter both worlds - white and black - and experience the difficulties and prejudices, and then to look at others and ourselves with greater..." Read more

"...I was glad to read that he managed to rise above discrimination, and built a great career and family life for himself." Read more

11 customers mention "Writing quality"11 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the writing quality of the book. They find it well-written and easy to read, with no wasted words and raw emotion on every page.

"...So much is contained in this book. No word is wasted. Every page rocks with raw emotion...." Read more

"What can I say...this book is written with so much feeling that it's felt so strongly while reading...." Read more

"So well written that I could hardly put it down, I felt like I knew the boys and the book made me care what happened to them...." Read more

"Excellent book. Very well written. A true story that has you feeling for the author and his brother...." Read more

8 customers mention "Character development"8 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the character development. They find the protagonist compassionate and kind, describing him as a fine human being whose life was torn by difficulties. The book is described as engaging and heartfelt, with an honest account of the author's fragile childhood.

"...What a wonderful, kind and compassionate man he became in addition to becoming a college president." Read more

"...A story of strength, survival, and humanity; so go ahead and nourish your mind with this visionary book and maybe you to will become a little color..." Read more

"...Every person should read the story of this man. He is a fine human being whose life was torn by the difficulty of being thought black in a white..." Read more

"...Mr. Williams gave an honest, open account of his fragile childhood. It was a look into the past and present of race relations in America...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2024
    This is an absolutely, wonderful book. Should be required reading for everyone especially college or high school students. It took place in my home town of Muncie, Indiana during the time I lived there. What a wonderful, kind and compassionate man he became in addition to becoming a college president.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on April 17, 2011
    I will forever treasure this book as so very few books stop me in my tracks and force me to take a step back. Prior to reading Life on the Color Line I thought it was impossible for anyone, particularly a white person, to understand the black experience if they were not black. Sympathize certainly, and empathize maybe, but actually know it... no way. Greg Williams is the first man who proved me wrong in this thought.

    This is a dynamic memoir. Each time I look at Greg's smiling face on the cover reduces me to tears. Makes me think, what if there were no people in the world like his father, and mother, and Miss Dora, and the many people of Muncie... would there be a drive to help others? Would it alter they way we compete? Extolling another demographic of social intolerance intrinsic to the individual and collective human need to feel worthy... be superior? Would it ever lead a man such as Mr. Williams to bring his experiences to positions of influence that inspire us to take that step back to see further from a deeper scope?

    Outside of appreciating the tremendously uplifting premise, I laughed the hardest about the rooster and that dang Buster kissing President Kennedy! Just as I did, Greg found a way to find humor in some of his father's embarrassments, which otherwise may have left him powerless to become the man he became. The greatest penchants however, were the numerous lessons he took from his father, and Miss Dora. There just aren't enough words to express what a spiritually grounded woman Miss Dora was. So much is contained in this book. No word is wasted. Every page rocks with raw emotion. Life on the Color Line is an absolute inspirational must read.
    25 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2012
    Life on the Color Line is an inspirational account of an extraordinary life. I was drawn to the book when I learned my neighbor Sonny Sage, an outstanding quarterback for Richmond High School in Indiana, was mentioned in the story. Little did I know that I was about to read one of the best books of my life. The author details his journey from the most meager of beginnings in a manner that has all the drama of a novel; he possesses that essential tool of any successful lawyer---a memory that includes details of conversations, scenes and situations. His utter surprise when his father tells him that he and his brother are black; his gritty poverty; his refusal to give up or give in; his will to succeed; his love of his family despite their many flaws; his love of those who raised him and his recounting of their many selfless acts---gripping scenes that will move most readers from tears to joy. I recommend this story of an heroic individual to any reader who desires to experience a detailed and motivational review of one man who had every reason to fail, but decided instead to succeed beyond all expectations. This book should be required reading for today's teenagers; it will direct young readers toward success regardless of circumstance.
    4 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2006
    I learned about this book in an article in the Baton Rouge newspaper. LSU has assigned it as summer reading for many of their students and a group is working to get others in Baton Rouge to read it as well. At our church's partnership group with a local African-American church we decided to read it as a group project, and I'm glad we did. Williams' memoir tells the fascinating story of a young man who is born into the lower-middle class white world of suburban Virginia only to learn when he is about six years old that his father is the son of a mixed-race couple from Muncie, Indiana. Circumstances resulting from this news takes the boy, his father and his brother to Muncie where they live among their African-American (or colored as they were called in the 1950s) family. Billy's (or Greg) father Tony (or Buster) is an alcoholic, which makes life no less difficult as he's scorned by his white classmates and, with his white skin and Caucasian features, standing on shaky ground in his own colored community. A good-hearted woman named Dora raises the two boys as her own, as their birth mother spurns her now-black children. Dora's kindness and Greg's determination to do more than survive are inspiring.
    7 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2013
    I had wanted to purchase this book years ago after seeing the author on Oprah. I would recommend getting a traditional paperback so you can enjoy the pictures better.
    Now about the content...This book should be a standard read for every student in America. It clearly helps to see how myths and misconceptions about how race have maligned our ability to just be good stewards of humanity.
    His life story shows just how connected we really are to one another. Everyone wants to dream, to love, to survive.
    We should thank him for sharing his sorrows and triumphs. This book is profound!
    After reading this story of making it, no child , no person should have any excuse as to why they can't achieve!
    All the elements for failure are here but Greg survived!
    Upon finishing this book you will ask yourself? What is race? Why has society been allowed to continue to shape my views of what my eyes can see?
    Believe none of what you hear and only half of what you see.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2022
    This is the most heartwrenching, heartbreaking,heartloving book I have read in a very long time.
    Mr. Williams became an amazing person when others would have fallen in the deep cavern of a welfare state. Thank You, Mr Williams for sharing your soul with us.
    2 people found this helpful
    Report

Top reviews from other countries

  • Simi Bignall
    5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing true story
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 25, 2012
    This book had me laughing, crying and despairing of humanity only to be raised up in hope again by people's kindness.
    There is nothing further I can add to the other positive reviews given by others.
    This book is extremely well-written and you feel like you are there at the time the author was going through his experiences.
    A remarkable book and a keeper.
  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Triumph over prejudice and adversity - through choice and diligence.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2016
    This book is an amazing account of human nature, its prejudices, misfortunes and finally triumph through choices and hard work. I have found it enormously inspiring and am currently passing it on to any that might be so inspired and educated. A wonderful read!!
  • CLEOMENES III
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 18, 2016
    Item as described, No problems. Would buy from this vendor again.
  • joan Odell
    4.0 out of 5 stars I'd recommend this book
    Reviewed in Canada on November 4, 2016
    I first heard about this book on utube. The author was telling a university class his real life story. In the 1950s there was segregation and
    Black people were very discrimated against. He was so interesting, that I just had to read the book. I'd recommend this book. A very good read.
  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good Read
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 6, 2016
    Interesting read. Sad reflection of the times

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