Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Mar 16, 2020 Graceann rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: memoir, audio, popsugar-2020, aty-2020

Trevor Noah's experiences, what he's learned from them, and how he shares that information, demonstrate why he was an inspired choice as host of The Daily Show when Jon Stewart stepped down in 2015.

Firstly, and I cannot say this loudly enough. Get. This. On. Audio. I'm not normally a big fan of audiobooks, but in some cases, in memoir, they work really well. This is a case in point. Noah's facility with accents, languages, and mimicry is put to amazing use here. If I had only read this memoir, Trevor Noah's experiences, what he's learned from them, and how he shares that information, demonstrate why he was an inspired choice as host of The Daily Show when Jon Stewart stepped down in 2015.

Firstly, and I cannot say this loudly enough. Get. This. On. Audio. I'm not normally a big fan of audiobooks, but in some cases, in memoir, they work really well. This is a case in point. Noah's facility with accents, languages, and mimicry is put to amazing use here. If I had only read this memoir, I'm sure I would have come away informed, entertained and happy with my choice. Having listened, though, I was all those things and more. The listening experience is transformative.

The title of the memoir describes Trevor Noah's conception and birth quite literally. It was illegal for whites and blacks in South Africa to have a sexual relationship, and his birth was proof of the breaking of that law. His parents could have gone to prison for having sex and then having him. He was born in 1984. I'm having such a hard time imagining what it must have been like to be told that you must call your father by his name, rather than "Daddy," because to do the latter would be to endanger his freedom.

What Born a Crime becomes is a love letter to the immensely strong woman that is his mother. She did what she could to keep him safe, and to simultaneously teach him that there was a wider world in which he could take part. She helped him grow into a decent human being, and simultaneously cut him down to size when he got too big for his britches. Raising a human being of whom you can be proud is difficult enough; doing it while in abject poverty, which they were a lot of the time, is even more of a feat.

Noah is honest about the things he got up to, the trouble he got into, and the things he got away with that some of us might not want to have to mention in something a family member might read, much less a book that is likely to reach a worldwide audience of strangers. I marveled at his sharing of some not-so-savory details, even as I was laughing.

This is also full of things to think about, for those of us who thought we had faced poverty, but now realize that we were just "broke" on occasion compared to these experiences. I ended up putting some of the quotes in my book journal as excellent reminders of the prose, the experience, and the lesson. This is an excellent memoir, and given that, as of this writing, Mr Noah is only 36 years old (he was born in 1984), just think of what we might have to look forward to if he decides to update us in another 36 years or so. ...more

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Aug 04, 2017 Jen Ifer's Inklings rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-books, diverse-reads-2017-challenge, read-in-2017, 5-star-reads

This was the best, most entertaining, enjoyable memoir that I've ever listened to. Now, don't let that fool you in thinking that it wasn't a horrible, tragic story. But just like Trevor's mom, it resonated with strength and hope. ...more

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Jul 04, 2017 Doug rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks

Highly recommended. Listen to this one instead of reading it. Trevor Noah's narration is amazing! ...more

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Sep 27, 2018 Joanna rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, passport, biography-memoir, nonfiction, 2018-read, rws-2018-fall

A really wonderful audiobook read by the author (who made a living as a comedian, so he has the timing down perfectly). Definitely a perfect way to experience these stories; it absolutely felt like I was just hanging out with the author at a cocktail party as he told me little stories from his childhood. But the stories are still heartfelt; he isn't just looking for comedy here.

He could also have called this book Ode to My Mother because much of the book centers around her willingness to ignore ...more

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Apr 10, 2018 Larissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: top-favorites-of-all-time

This book was really really good! The stories Trevor tells really draw you in to how life was like for his little corner of the world and is fascinating. Cats beings strung in his front yard...people arrested for witchcraft when someone was struck by lightening....domestic violence issues...apartheid...and the ending...whew! So powerful! Dorothy we are not in Kansas any more! I really enjoyed this book and his story and I thought it would delve more into how he ended up where he was in his life/ ...more

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Jun 27, 2018 Amy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: non-fiction, audio-book, biography, book-challenge-2018, audible-deal

I loved this book. I loved it even more because the audible was read by Trevor Noah himself, and I think his accent is very soothing.

To be honest, I had no idea who Noah was - nor have I seen him on tv to this day. His story, however, is really intriguing and an awesome read. Really eye opening to learn about life in South Africa under
Apartheid. Even more amazing to read how this man, growing up under those circumstances, somehow managed to find a brilliant career on television and basically c ...more

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Sep 12, 2018 Dana rated it it was amazing

Shelves: moms-club-book-club, listening-to

This is a really powerful book. Yes, it's written by a comedian, and Noah does put a comic spin on parts of his story. But he offers incredible insight into life growing up in South Africa during and after apartheid, and especially into his experience as someone with a black mother and white father. I thought I knew a fair amount about South Africa, but Noah peppers in history lessons between his stories that taught me much more. His descriptions of what he and his mother go through living with ...more

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Feb 14, 2018 Taryn rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favourites, audio

Amazing. Did the audio for this and HIGHLY recommend it. It's safe to say I am OBSESSED with Trevor's mom, Patricia. She is an incredible woman, holy wow. ...more

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