THE FLIP SIDE OF SOUL: Letters To My Son

by Bob Teague ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 22, 1988

Teague, successful correspondent at NBC for 25 years and author of Live and Off Color and Letters To A Black Boy, here offers his reflections on the status of today's black Americans--in the form of letters to his son, Adam, now in his early 20s. Time and again in these letters, Teague blasts the cast of mind of blacks who try to make excuses for their condition by blaming white racism. Teague asserts that ""government handouts constitute the most damaging assault on black pride and dignity since the founding of the Ku Klux Klan."" He counts Joe Clark--baseball-bat-wielding Paterson, N.J., high-school principal--as one of today's heroes: ""Like Churchill, Joe Clark understands that when a decent chap is challenged by unspeakable, uncompromising ugliness, he does not hire the Marquis of Queensbury as a consultant."" Teague finds that he has more in common with ""Mr. Charlie"" (his all-encompassing term for the white race) than not. Mr. Charlie ""harbors no fear of the crooks who pull big rip-offs with telephones, computers, and snake oil. . .It is those crude bozos out there with knives. . .who upset Mr. Charlie. They scare me, too."" Apart from racial advice, Teague offers his son down-to-earth advice on dealing with the opposite sex: ""Never mind the size of her bra. Measure her C.Q.--crazy quotient--instead"";""Look for your second wife before you marry the first."" A refreshing viewpoint that urges strong families and parental responsibility as the way out of the welfare labyrinth.

Pub Date: Feb. 22, 1988

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Morrow

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1988

Categories: NONFICTION