First of all, in case it affects your level of interest in the book, I wouldn't say "We Were Eight Years in Power" is about the Obama presidency, exactly. It's about the US (both during the Obama years and through history), and about racism, and it's sometimes about Obama, but not mainly. Also, Coates is in many ways quite critical of Obama, while also admiring and respecting him. I think it's a really important book, but more for its examination of American racism than anything specifically about Obama as a president. And just in case you're interested, Coates' earlier book "Between the World and Me" (it's framed as a letter to his son, inspired by James Baldwin's classic essay that's a letter to his nephew) is also excellent and has thematic overlap, though it doesn't go as deep into the history.
As to your sentiments about the US as a state...believe me, I understand. (Imagine having all that rage, mistrust and terror you describe...but also being FROM this country. It's a dissonance I can't even really describe.) I know it's naive, but I'm kind of stunned at the idea of Americans who would respond to critique of legitimately horrible stuff about the US by defending the US. (No, I know there are people who feel that way – so, so many people. But it's incomprehensible to me.) I mean, it's true that it's hard not to take it a bit personally – but that's out of guilt about these things, not disagreement!
What you say about how the Icelandic attitude towards Americans used to be really surprises me! I mean, I'm not surprised give the history, but personally I've never experienced even a whiff of that. (I've only been spending time in Iceland for less than a decade, and my friends are people mostly in their 30s and 40s, though not only.) You don't happen to know of any books (that have been translated!) that cover that period in Icelandic history? (WWII/post-war period.) I'd certainly like to know more, since I only really know Iceland post-crash, and during this current and exponentially increasing tourist boom. (Where the general attitude to Americans, along with other tourists, seems to be mostly very eager.)
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2019-01-02 11:13 pm (UTC)First of all, in case it affects your level of interest in the book, I wouldn't say "We Were Eight Years in Power" is about the Obama presidency, exactly. It's about the US (both during the Obama years and through history), and about racism, and it's sometimes about Obama, but not mainly. Also, Coates is in many ways quite critical of Obama, while also admiring and respecting him. I think it's a really important book, but more for its examination of American racism than anything specifically about Obama as a president. And just in case you're interested, Coates' earlier book "Between the World and Me" (it's framed as a letter to his son, inspired by James Baldwin's classic essay that's a letter to his nephew) is also excellent and has thematic overlap, though it doesn't go as deep into the history.
As to your sentiments about the US as a state...believe me, I understand. (Imagine having all that rage, mistrust and terror you describe...but also being FROM this country. It's a dissonance I can't even really describe.) I know it's naive, but I'm kind of stunned at the idea of Americans who would respond to critique of legitimately horrible stuff about the US by defending the US. (No, I know there are people who feel that way – so, so many people. But it's incomprehensible to me.) I mean, it's true that it's hard not to take it a bit personally – but that's out of guilt about these things, not disagreement!
What you say about how the Icelandic attitude towards Americans used to be really surprises me! I mean, I'm not surprised give the history, but personally I've never experienced even a whiff of that. (I've only been spending time in Iceland for less than a decade, and my friends are people mostly in their 30s and 40s, though not only.) You don't happen to know of any books (that have been translated!) that cover that period in Icelandic history? (WWII/post-war period.) I'd certainly like to know more, since I only really know Iceland post-crash, and during this current and exponentially increasing tourist boom. (Where the general attitude to Americans, along with other tourists, seems to be mostly very eager.)