A Young Activist's Memoir of Race, Family, and the Mentors Who Made Him Whole
by Will Jawando
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published May 2022
240 pages
Genre: Biography/Memoir
Publication Information
Will Jawando tells a deeply affirmative story of hope and respect for men of color at a time when Black men are routinely stigmatized.
As a boy growing up outside DC, Will, who went by his Nigerian name, Yemi, was shunted from school to school, never quite fitting in. He was a Black kid with a divorced white mother, a frayed relationship with his biological father, and teachers who scolded him for being disruptive in class and on the playground. Eventually, he became close to Kalfani, a kid he looked up to on the basketball court. Years after he got the call telling him that Kalfani was dead, another sickening casualty of gun violence, Will looks back on the relationships with an extraordinary series of mentors that enabled him to thrive.
Among them were Mr. Williams, the rare Black male grade school teacher, who found a way to bolster Will's self-esteem when he discovered he was being bullied; Jay Fletcher, the openly gay colleague of his mother who got him off junk food and took him to his first play; Mr. Holmes, the high school coach and chorus director who saw him through a crushing disappointment; Deen Sanwoola, the businessman who helped him bridge the gap between his American upbringing and his Nigerian heritage, eventually leading to a dramatic reconciliation with his biological father; and President Barack Obama, who made Will his associate director of public engagement at the White House―and who invited him to play basketball on more than one occasion. Without the influence of these men, Will knows he would not be who he is today: a civil rights and education policy attorney, a civic leader, a husband, and a father.
Drawing on Will's inspiring personal story and involvement in My Brother's Keeper, President Obama's national initiative to address persistent opportunity gaps facing boys and young men of color, My Seven Black Fathers offers a transformative way for Black men to shape the next generation.
"In this rousing debut, attorney and community leader Jawando brilliantly uses the arc of his life to root out how 'Black male mentors...make America a more just place for Black boys and a better place for all Americans'...This effective combination of the personal and the political acts as a powerful call to action in these fraught times." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A passionate 'love letter to Black men'...Candid and uplifting...This book is a clarion call to families and communities to provide crucial support to young people, particularly young Black men." - Booklist (starred review)
"[Jawando] deftly uses his personal story to provide a trenchant structural analysis of how American racism plays out in Black men's everyday lives. His talent for creating striking imagery and memorable scenes draws readers into his masterfully constructed world. Jawando treats his past self with compassion without ever skirting responsibility for his mistakes." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"There is nowhere near enough writing about the inner lives of Black folks. Will Jawando's story is a necessary and important contribution to our understanding of Black men's grief, pain, and fulfillment. The story of the men who stepped in and helped raise Will not only shows us how present and capable Black men can be and already are within the Black community, but also provides us with an emotional template for Black male interventions that matter, that change the lives of Black boys and young men." - Michael Eric Dyson, New York Times bestselling author of Tears We Cannot Stop and What Truth Sounds Like
"Research tells us that Black boys who have access to Black fathers and mentors in their communities have a much better chance of navigating the world successfully and overcoming systemic racism to achieve their full potential. Will Jawando's story poignantly demonstrates this point but also provides critical insight into the form and structure of these relationships, and the power they have to not only transform the lives of Black boys but to rebuild whole communities." - Arne Duncan, former U.S. Secretary of Education
"Will Jawando's account of mentorship, service, and healing lays waste to the racist stereotype of the absent Black father. By arguing that Black fathers are not just found in individual families, but are indeed the treasure of entire Black communities, Will makes the case for a bold idea: that Black men can counter racist ideas and policies by virtue of their presence in the lives of Black boys and young men. This is a story we need to hear." - Ibram X. Kendi, New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist
This information about My Seven Black Fathers was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Will Jawando is an attorney, an activist, a community leader, and a councilmember in Montgomery County, Maryland, a diverse community of more than one million residents. Called "the progressive leader we need" by the late congressman John Lewis, Jawando has worked with Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senator Sherrod Brown, and President Barack Obama. His writing has appeared in the Washington Post and The Root and on BET.com, and his work has been featured in the New York Times and New York magazine and on NPR, NBC News, and MTV. He regularly appears on CNN, MSNBC and other media outlets.
The Flower Sisters
by Michelle Collins Anderson
From the new Fannie Flagg of the Ozarks, a richly-woven story of family, forgiveness, and reinvention.
The House on Biscayne Bay
by Chanel Cleeton
As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide.
The Funeral Cryer by Wenyan Lu
Debut novelist Wenyan Lu brings us this witty yet profound story about one woman's midlife reawakening in contemporary rural China.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
