Brother, I'm Dying

by Edwidge Danticat

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Showing 1-5 of 14 (next | show all)

I have been interested in reading Edwidge Danticat for some time but this is the first book of hers I actually read. Powerful writing, personal recollections of how Haitian history affected her family, especially her father and the uncle who raised her until adolescence, this is a great book. I got a sense of Haiti, its culture, its history, its street life and its values and language, all from this memoir. I also got a sense of outrage at the treatment of Danticat's uncle by U.S. immigration authorities, and of her uncle's great courage, patience and wisdom. (

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nmele | Apr 6, 2013 |

My choice for bookgroup. Interesting book about Haiti.

PaulaCheg | Sep 13, 2011 |

When Danticat was a little girl, her parents moved to New York to begin shaping a new life for their family, while she and her brother were left in the care of her Uncle in Haiti. Danticat weaves a touching narrative with this memoir about two of the most important men in her life. It's beautifully written and very moving. (

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andreablythe | Jun 22, 2010 |

A book that starts out quietly, then builds to a very moving finish. It gave me a lot to think about. (

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meredk | Mar 11, 2010 |

I read this as a love story between two brothers. Although separated for most of their lives, they are profoundly linked through devotion. Their story is a moving backdrop for Edwidge Danticat's own complicated life -- left behind in Haiti with her brother for most of her childhood and then brought to the United States to be reunited with her parents and young siblings, who are virtual strangers to her. The tumultous events in Haiti are also central to the narrative of this interesting and moving book. (

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theageofsilt | Dec 2, 2008 |

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Haiti

Hispaniola

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Awards and honors

New York Times Notable Book of the Year (Non-Fiction, 2007)

National Book Award finalist (Nonfiction, 2007)

National Book Critics Circle Award (Autobiography/Memoir, 2007)

Dayton Literary Peace Prize (2008.4|Non-Fiction Winner, 2008)

Hurston/Wright Legacy Award (Non-Fiction winner, 2008)

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Danticat came to think of her uncle Joseph, a charismatic pastor, as her "second father" when she was placed in his care at age four when her parents left Haiti for America. So she experiences a jumble of emotions when, at twelve, she joins her parents in New York City, whom she struggles to remember--she has left behind Joseph and the only home she's ever known. The story of a new life in a new country while fearing for those still in Haiti soon becomes a terrifying tale of good people caught up in events beyond their control. In 2004, his life threatened by a gang, the frail, 81-year-old Joseph makes his way to Miami, where he thinks he will be safe. Instead, he is detained by the Department of Homeland Security, brutally imprisoned, and dead within days. It was a story that made headlines around the world.--From publisher description.… (more)

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