#BlackHistoryMonth Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois
FEBRUARY
by 
Honorée Fanonne Jeffers
Genre: novel
Rating: D-
Review: The Love Songs of W.E.B Du Bois (ISBN:9780008516482)
Good news: During 2023 I am going to concentrate on reducing the number of books on my Kindle. That is why I’m going to give ANY book on my TBR a chance. This looked like a good place to start for #BHM.
Bad news: This book is 300 pages too long… it sacrifices depth for breadth. I just could not finish it. So disappointed because I saw many rave reviews…(Oprah’s Book Club).
Personal: Undaunted by the introduction (HUGE family trees of several families)…I pushed on. While the first half of the book was interesting (1960s-1990s)… it became repetitious and felt like a long soap opera once the youngest (Ailey) was off to college. I made it to 50% mark…then was tired of the melodrama in the Garfield family (Coco, Lydia and Ailey). Lesson learned: Any book 800+ pages…I must read the reviews (score 2 and 1) before buying the book!! Once again…many people loved this book about a multigenerational Black American family…so you will have to read it for yourself and decide.
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NancyElin 
I have this on my TBR – I often enjoy a nice long epic story, but I do have to be in the mood for it. Sorry it didn’t quite make it for you.
The book didn’t agree with me…too long. So many family members criss-crossing the narrative left me confused and later uninterested.
The book has gotten rave reviews…but sometimes I just don’t see what others have seen! C’est la vie! Thanks for your comment!
Yes, I agree one has to be in the mood for this length of read. I bought this for a friend and she loved it, I started it on the kindle and couldn’t get into the narrative voice, I put it aside. Now I’m unsure whether to give it another go or focus on what feels more like my style. I’m reluctant given my initial impression, because now there’s a feeling of dread that comes with it.
Claire, give the book a chance…and you did. If the book doesn’t grab my attention in the first 100/200 pages (b/c book is 800 pages long!) I tend to skim…or mark it as DNF. There are so many other books that are worth reading for #BlackHistoryMonth! Blood in the Water (Heather Ann Thompson)…then The New Jim Crow (Michelle Alexander) Just Mercy (B. Stevenson) are excellent choices!
I couldn’t get into this one either and felt really guilty about it, as so many people have loved it and it seems such an important book. And I’m no stranger to a long intergenerational book, either: I read Roots!!
So glad you commented… it helps me come to terms with “not liking this novel ‘…at least somebody else had difficulty with it!
Yes, and I’m glad you said that in the first place!! It’s particularly bad when one is committed to diverse reading and sharing diverse books and then really doesn’t get on with something, isn’t it!
Diverse books especially for Black History Month are important to read…but after reading 4- 5 this year….I need a break.