Reader Reviews

What the world is saying about M M & 'E Bittersweet Memories

4.9/5 Rating

"Truly enjoyed the story of Wills family."

"I have read many books but never had I the pleasure of reading a story of someone I knew personally. Thank you Willy for inviting all of us into your world. I loved how much he remembered. The smells, the tastes, the ability to describe with such clarity of his past. Also, I really appreciate his sharing his personal experience of being a young African American man in that era. I have a better understanding of the world his mom grew up in also. Thank you"

Steve Shohan

" Very happy with my purchase - book is amazingly detailed. Writing is quite different from anything I've read - very straight forward, exhilerating and non pretentious. It is what it is ! For both younger and older readers, this book is not only a history lesson, but one about values and relationships as well. This book presented to me a different view of black American life. I'm a voracious reader. I love this author's style .... I was never bored. Sometimes I laughed, sometimes I cried, sometimes I pontificated about Willie John's viewpoints and Emma Mae's values, but most of all I was made even more aware about the things that happened in the past in this country. I was impressed with the story of Willie John's childhood and family living in Brookyn. I became so much a part of the characters in this family's life - how they pulled themselves up despite the odds and conflicts. Emma's "isims" - her cakes and her philosphies should be be made into another book. I was saddened with her battle with Alzheimer's. At times, Leamon's novel sounds somewhat like a memoir and at other times, an engrossing novel. Race, history, Brooklyn and New York tidbits... childhood innocence, death, interracial conflicts, love, adolescence, growing up into manhood....this story covers it all ! It's different, it's good ...written with love .... I also love the book cover !"

Dottie, Verified Purchaser

"Character development is excellent. I became Emma for a while at the same time understanding the inner thoughts and feelings of Willie John. The book is appropriately titled: Mama, Me & `Em. The writing is very good for a first novel. It's about Emma, Willie John and all the people that enter in and out of their lives. They look for no mercy or pity. The two of them go on through their lives handling their conflicts as they arise. Will Leamon also gives us such a wide-open perspective of what times were like from the 40s thru the present. It is so interesting to see the world through the lens of a young black man growing up in America. The author's style is unique and he takes us in and out of dialect to the point that I understand it completely. As the chapters build, there is very little dialect and many times transforms into a unique style of writing. I enjoyed Willie John's schooldays' descriptions and the motherly love that he received from his mom as a child and young adult. I wept through some chapters and wept more so through the final chapters. I felt that Willie John was telling me his story in my living room in conversation--Terrific narration. I was right there with him listening and brimming with curiosity about what path he was going to take me down next. This book should be a lot more popular than it is---perhaps it will be, IT'S STILL NEW! There is a lot to share with the world in this large 800 page volume. It's long but not a slow read. I wondered how long it took Will Leamon to create and write down all those magnificent thoughts. I really enjoyed this unusual reading experience. Many of those "bittersweet memories" will stay with me for a very long time. I took a chance on this book and will never regret it for one moment."

KBG, Verified Purchaser

"I had heard good buzz about the book, and it all proved to be true. The journey is truly remarkable. The Washington portion brought back memories of my first trip at age 12, when we hired a black guide, and he could not eat with us at the Hot Shoppes -- Willard Marriott's early venture. When my father explained segregation (we were from the north), I was stunned and cried. This book gives an entirely new and deeper insight into life for some in America. I could not put it down."

Paul Feigenbaum, Verified Purchaser

"Will Leamon's, Mama, Me & 'Em reminds me of the past, the present and with the knowledge presented gave me hope for the future. Since I was born in the late seventies reading Will Leamon's novel gave me an understanding of Afro-American life that I can and will pass onto my children. The characters are so familiar because I can identify them with members of my own family.The size of the book was first a challenge, but once I began reading the first chapter I could not place it down. I will pass this novel onto other family members in my age group, so they can learn as I did."

Verified Purchaser

"The story of Emma Mae is one of the most powerful portrayals of maternal strength I've ever read."

SJ

"Vivid historical detail. I felt like I was walking the streets of Brooklyn with Willie John."