The Grace of Silence

A Memoir

By: Michele Norris

Narrated by: Michele Norris

In the wake of talk of a “postracial” America upon Barack Obama’s ascension as president of the United States, Michele Norris, cohost of National Public Radio’s flagship program All Things Considered, set out to write, through original reporting, a book about “the hidden conversation” on race that is unfolding nationwide. She would, she thought, base her book on the frank disclosures of others on the subject, but she was soon disabused of her presumption when forced to confront the fact that “the conversation” in her own family had not been forthright.

Norris unearthed painful family secrets that compelled her to question her own self-understanding: from her father’s shooting by a Birmingham police officer weeks after his discharge from the navy at the conclusion of World War II to her maternal grandmother’s peddling pancake mix as an itinerant Aunt Jemima to white farm women in the Midwest. In what became a profoundly personal and bracing journey into her family’s past, Norris traveled from her childhood home in Minneapolis to her ancestral roots in the Deep South to explore the reasons for the “things left unsaid” by her father and mother when she was growing up, the better to come to terms with her own identity. Along the way she discovered how her character was forged by both revelation and silence.

Extraordinary for Norris’s candor in examining her own racial legacy and what it means to be an American, The Grace of Silence is also informed by rigorous research in its evocation of time and place, scores of interviews with ordinary folk, and wise observations about evolving attitudes, at once encouraging and disturbing, toward race in America today. For its particularity and universality, it is powerfully moving, a tour de force.

History of Blacks in the Military

I’m not sure how I ended up with a book written 14 years ago. Things in terms of race have certainly changed and not for the better. However as a retired military officer, I can certainly appreciate all of the military history that was included even though it was painful to hear. I’m in my 60s and only now starting to understand how much our ancestors left unsaid. I guess it was just too painful.

A wonderful memoir from Michele Norris

Michele's tone and cadence are soothing although the story is at times difficult to hear or painful. Her descriptions provide vivid pictures of her experiences and those of her family. Her family memoir is a captivating read/ listen. I am grateful she shared it. Cheers to the Norris family!

the untold stories; Family

I truly appreciated the history lesson, as she explored her parents background and more importantly asking the tough questions of family, which often times isn't an task.
the heartbreak & suffering they endured, simply because, "that's just the way it was back then" is often times, a tough statement to hear.

thank you for taking me, the reader on that journey.

Very revealing look at race in America

I've always enjoyed listening to Michele Norris on NPR's All Things Considered.

After I heard her speak at a recent event for librarians, I decided that I needed to read this book.

Norris decided to write her story after doing a series of interviews with people in York Pennsylvania during President Obama's campaign for office. I remember those interviews about race in American, and this book helped open my eyes even further to the problems in America, both historically and now.

Definitely recommended.

The Grace and Power of Michele Norris

I loved this book so much I'm going to use it as a text in my freshman composition class next fall at Southwest Minnesota State University, a small college in SW Minnesota attended by many 1st-generation farm kids. I discovered this book while doing research on Michele Norris prior to attending Michelle Obama's "Becoming".event in St. Paul, MN. I had long loved listening to Norris on NPR, and I was thrilled to find out she had a memoir. Her writing and story-telling are brilliant. Hearing her story in her own beautiful, rich voice was fantastic. I will be recommending this book widely and plan to create a book group at our college to discuss it and Michelle Obama's book.