"We Cast A Shadow" A Kirkus Style Review
In a parallel future America, there is
a cosmetic surgical procedure that can change the color of your skin, making it
possible for anyone with enough money to achieve the perfect white complexion
that society desires. But what sort of
implications does this have when you are making these choices not only for
yourself, but also for your child?
In We Cast a Shadow the debut satire from author Maurice Carlos Ruffins, an unnamed black narrator progresses through his daily life in a Southern City with his white wife and young light-skinned son. He practices law, and is hoping to secure a promotion that will afford his son a surgery to remove, “the birthmark colored from wheat to sienna to umber,” marring his son’s otherwise perfect olive complexion. However, this is easier said than done in this version of the world, where black people are monitored in their homes by the City Police with, “Infrared devices that could look into the deepest reaches of our home” to ensure they do not exhibit signs of violence or depravity. Even the calmest and most docile black individuals are allowed to rise only so far before they are expected to bend to the societal pressure of “fixing” their faces; slimming their genetically wide noses and full lips, and lightening their skin tones until they reach the palest shade of peach. The wide, palm-sized birthmark, the narrator feels, will unfairly limit his son, and, by extension, his own potential. Walking us through this world Ruffins explores race from the perspective of a black man who feels the weight of society and its expectations while wishing there might be, but never pursuing, a different option. Beyond the pressures he feels from society to perform as a perfect, non-threatening black man, he feels the pressures of his family to accept the world as it is, and not try to change them or even himself to conform. Yet, as Ruffins portrays the narrator, we know he is not a man who defies expectations. Rather, the narrator sees the train wreck ahead, and finds himself hurtling headlong into the disaster, seemingly unaware how to divert himself or the crisis.
In We Cast a Shadow the debut satire from author Maurice Carlos Ruffins, an unnamed black narrator progresses through his daily life in a Southern City with his white wife and young light-skinned son. He practices law, and is hoping to secure a promotion that will afford his son a surgery to remove, “the birthmark colored from wheat to sienna to umber,” marring his son’s otherwise perfect olive complexion. However, this is easier said than done in this version of the world, where black people are monitored in their homes by the City Police with, “Infrared devices that could look into the deepest reaches of our home” to ensure they do not exhibit signs of violence or depravity. Even the calmest and most docile black individuals are allowed to rise only so far before they are expected to bend to the societal pressure of “fixing” their faces; slimming their genetically wide noses and full lips, and lightening their skin tones until they reach the palest shade of peach. The wide, palm-sized birthmark, the narrator feels, will unfairly limit his son, and, by extension, his own potential. Walking us through this world Ruffins explores race from the perspective of a black man who feels the weight of society and its expectations while wishing there might be, but never pursuing, a different option. Beyond the pressures he feels from society to perform as a perfect, non-threatening black man, he feels the pressures of his family to accept the world as it is, and not try to change them or even himself to conform. Yet, as Ruffins portrays the narrator, we know he is not a man who defies expectations. Rather, the narrator sees the train wreck ahead, and finds himself hurtling headlong into the disaster, seemingly unaware how to divert himself or the crisis.
Recently nominated for a Pen/Faulker award, We Cast A
Shadow is a riveting and timely read that explores race, family, and the
choices we make every day to fit into society.
Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-50906-6
Page Count: 324
Publisher: One World/Random House
This sounds like a very important book, especially for the current times. I'm a little bummed that I haven't heard of it. I definitely want to read it and will add it to my list. I think more and more authors are beginning to add in elements of important issues like racism, classism, or feminism into their fiction writing. Incorporating it in this scifi/Orwellian way is very interesting and really piques my interest.
ReplyDeleteNot only does this sound amazing, but I love the cover! How eye catching! But, back to your work :) Fantastic job on in the first and final lines, it really draws the reader in; same with the summary. Fantastic job, full points!
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