Another Day at the Front: Dispatches from the Race War

by Ishmael Reed

African Americans have been at war with certain elements of the white population from the very beginning. Being black in this hemisphere is a battle, and each day is one spent at the front. In this new collection of essays, his first since Airing Dirty Laundry (1993), Ishmael Reed explores the many forms that this homefront war has taken. His brilliant social criticism feints deftly among past and present, government and media, personal and political. From the author whose essay style has been compared to the punching power of boxers Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali, this book is a series of fast, powerful jabs at America's long tradition of racism."Reed wears the mantle of Baldwin and Ellison like a high-powered Flip Wilson in drag."--Baltimore Sun"Ishmael Reed is a genius."--Terry McMillan"The sweep of his work has both grandeur and genius, and even when you disagree with him, he has you laughing, often at yourself. His always-provocative writing has humanity, humor, power, and vision. A true original."--Jill Nelson

Genres: Nonfiction, History, African American, Essays

240 pages, Hardcover

First published December 17, 2002

About the author

Ishmael Scott Reed is an American poet, essayist, and novelist. A prominent African-American literary figure, Reed is known for his satirical works challenging American political culture, and highlighting political and cultural oppression.

Reed has been described as one of the most controversial writers. While his work has often sought to represent neglected African and African-American perspectives, his energy and advocacy have centered more broadly on neglected peoples and perspectives irrespective of their cultural origins.

Reviews

[Stewart Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first time reading Ishmael Reed’s essays, and they’re just as gripping as his fiction. He is characteristically blunt and confrontational, and he refuses to pull his punches when calling out racism in the media, in academia, even among his colleagues. He also holds nothing sacred and is critical of a few thinkers that most others would be afraid to touch - an essay titled “Was W.E.B. Dubois Pro-Nazi?” tells you everything you need to know about Reed’s bold takes. His tone is passionate and often angry, sometimes sarcastic, but also humorous enough to keep things readable and captivating, even when the nature of the collection (a bunch of essays written within a relatively short period of time) becomes repetitious. Reed has been one of my favorite novelists for the past few years, so it’s very nice to know that I have plenty of great essay collections to get through even after I’ve finished reading his fiction.

[HHS Staff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reed will make you think, laugh, and scream. In this essay collection, he will introduce you to the concept of the Negro-Saxon (descendents of W.E.B. Dubois' "Talented Tenth" who now front for white conservatism), remind you that Jews, Irish, and Italians were scorned in America until they "turned" white, obsess on the "conspiracy of silence" that keeps growing white-on-white violence, drug use, and out-of-wedlock birth out of the news, and argue that we are in a second Confederacy stage. That list should tell you whether you should pick the book up or not. Me, I loved it, even though Dr. Reed and I "got into it" this summer on-line over THE WIRE. (P. S. Black history nuts might want to know that Reed mounts an powerful defense of Booker T. Washington--often demeaned for being "Uncle Tom"-ish--in the best essay here.)

Reviewed by:
Phil Overeem
Language Arts teacher

[Curt Lorde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay. You thought you were living in a content of their character small world. Things have changed soooo much. Then you wake up and realize there are clean sheets on the bed, but the mattress is infested, lumpy, and smelly. The gleefully singing little 'bots are meant to look the other way. If they looked closer at their surroundings and themselves, they'd scream the joint down. These essays blow the congratulatory fog away and exposes the mattress.