Augusta Scattergood

Representation: Minor Black characters
Trigger warnings: Racism, racist slur, physical assault mentioned and implied injury, death of a mother in the past
Score: Six points out of ten.
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I saw this book hiding in the library shelves so I wanted to read it, and eventually I picked it up. When I finished (and mostly enjoyed) another one it was time to read Glory Be, so I read it. When I read the final page of Glory Be, it was okay. I expected more out of it but I should've lowered my expectations after seeing the mixed ratings and reviews.

The library thought the protagonist was Black. If she was, it would've been cultural appropriation as the author is white. Fortunately, that wasn't true as the leading character matches the author's attributes. Glory Be (not the prayer) starts with the first person I see, Gloriana June Hemphill enjoying herself during the summer of 1964 by using the 'community' pool until only a few pages in it closes indefinitely. A new character from the north whose name I forgot came to Mississippi and drank from the 'coloured' fountain much to Glory's dismay. The pool is closed not because of repairs but to stop minorities from using it. However, Glory initially only cares more about wanting the pool open than desegregation (she must be oblivious.)

Toward the latter half, Glory recognises the privileges she has that others don't and sides with the civil rights movement. Glory Be shines in its engaging pacing with its quick chapters and minimalistic prose but its most prominent flaws lie in the syntax and characters. Glory is not a person I could connect or relate to as sometimes her dialogue puts me off. Some parts of the text weren't enjoyable either. Glory Be has an aversion to two words: Black and racism, because it can say coloured and a racial slur beginning with n but not Black. Why did the author choose the words hatred, prejudice and bigotry but not racism? The author must acknowledge that racism does not only affect Black people; it also affects other races.

So this is what racism looks like from a white POV. I've read stories like this that are better and have perspectives that aren't from white people. To summarise, Glory Be initially sounded promising but even though it was enjoyable, it is not without flaws the author could've improved upon.… (més)

This was a family listen and it stretched over such a long period of time and had and lost my attention too many times to really give it a fair assessment. It is a sweet story of Theo Thomas, 14, (named for Thelonius Monk) and his uncle Raymond, a Vietnam vet struggling to adapt to civilian life who show up in Destiny, FL at Miss Sister Grandersole's Rooming House and Dance Academy. How Theo came to be in his uncle's care is foggy, but it is not a happy relationship. Raymond is bent on controlling Theo and hates his interest and amazing talent in music (Miss Sister has a piano) because it reminds Raymond of his sister, Theo's mother, who ran-off with a hippie and disrespected his military service. Both Theo's parents were killed in a car crash when he was little and he was raised mostly by his grandparents in KY. This move is hard on Theo even without his uncle's domineering ways (forbidding him to play piano, for one). Theo befriends Anabel and her interest in baseball cements their friendship, giving him another reason to stay in Destiny, despite his uncle's threats to move them elsewhere. The two work on a project for Destiny Day, the town's annual historic celebration and investigate the possibility that Hank Aaron spent time there during Spring training. Meanwhile, Miss Sister has an approaching dance recital and needs Theo's help on the piano. Anabel, though enrolled in dance class, must thwart her mother and Miss Sister to avoid participating. How Theo and Anabel leave expectations behind and gain a sense of self-worth is part of the story's appeal. The resolution (esp. between Theo and Raymond) is also a little foggy - to me- but satisfactory. A good, clean story with admirable characters, appropriate for ages 10-14.… (més)