Starred review from October 21, 2024
Coates (Between the World and Me) delivers an incandescent rebuke of journalists—including himself—for parroting ideological narratives that reify Palestine’s oppression. The book opens deceptively low-key, as an almost laconic rumination on the political nature of storytelling—a theme Coates weaves into recollections of an emotional visit he made to his ancestral homeland in Senegal, his radical Black father’s intellectual commitment to the idea of a “return to Africa,” and the banning of Between the World and Me in a North Carolina school district where he encountered white allies whose argument in the book’s favor struck him as particularly clear-eyed: that there is need to hear many stories, not just one. This all crescendos to a devastating second half, in which Coates, beginning with a mea culpa for an uncritical defense of Israel that he embedded in his 2014 essay “The Case for Reparations,” suggests that storytelling of an ideological nature—even his own and his own family’s—elides too much, and that what is ultimately needed to arrive at justice is fact-based reporting. Coates then shifts into a more journalistic style, giving a straightforward, harrowing account of a 10-day visit he made to Palestine that minces no words (“I would sooner hear a defense of cannibalism than I would of what I saw with my own eyes in Hebron”). This is an incendiary shot fired over the bow of America’s mainstream journalistic establishment.
March 1, 2025
Coates (Between the World and Me) offers an intensely personal and thought-provoking set of three interlinked essays examining race, identity, storytelling, writing, and political morality. Narrating his own work, Coates weaves together cultural commentary with personal anecdotes and historical context, transporting listeners to Dakar, Senegal, where enslaved Africans embarked on ghastly voyages across the sea; to Chapin, SC, where he encountered white allies who spoke up against the banning of Between the World and Me; and to Palestine, where the brutal conditions of occupation forced him to reconsider his approach to reporting, writing, and bearing witness. Coates's voice brings power to his words and allows for an intimate and unmediated encounter with his ideas. Coates's delivery is measured, allowing listeners to absorb each phrase fully. His contemplative tone provides moments of quiet reflection, and his voice reveals his passion for the subject matter. The narration brings an added layer of depth, clarity, and warmth to an already powerful work. VERDICT Written at a pivotal time in history, this magnificent work addresses the pressing need to break free from destructive myths and envision a more just future. An essential and impactful listening experience.--Susan McClellan
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