Rating: 
Summary: Its Excellent you documented this life as being part of Hist
Review: There is no doubt, its about time. Even though this takes only parts of the country, try the "Class 400" visits favorite spots at the "Shores" of New England. I hold a picture of Alex Haley takeing a picture of his wife and friends sitting at Brunch in the back yard of my neighbor. "Intimate Friends" sharing the countryside.
Rating: 
Summary: A 16 Year Old African American Male Left Proud and Saddened
Review: I was highly pleased with this book and at the same time a confused and hurt.I was proud because I enjoyed reading about succesful African Americans who had prospered and passed this prestigous heritage on to their children for many years. I was also excited becuase my Uncle lives in the Palmer Woods area, a section in Detriot where the black elite reside, and also have various family members that are a part of some of the organizations such as Jack and Jill. At the same time I was hurt because these "model" black people of society probably would not allow me in to the very social circles the loved so. I am a little darker than the brown paper bag and my parents although both educated professionals did not come from the "right family" from the standards of the elite. This saddens me because I too have to struggle with the same pressure of children of the "old gaurd". I go to school and get scrutinized for being black and speaking the proper American English dialect and dressing in clothes that are not considered ghetto enough. I too suffer the blunt remarks of the ignorance of my fellow white friends and associates. So i'm left with the question where in the world do i fit in and I thought your book would give me some positve insight that I was a part of "those kind of people" but I was wrong. Now I also was left proud in the fact knowing that yes I do have family members with degrees and pedigrees who are engineers, educators and physcians but I learnned from the ignorance of your group not to exlude and be just as proud of my family members who scrub floors and are factory workers that still make ends meet to make a way for their family. It saddens me from this book that such great black people put there noses up at the rest of there own people and they try so hard not bow down to white mainstream America but they seem to be doing a better job than Uncle Tom himself, and he even had a reason to do it. Now as I look to the future I will stive to form the new black wealthy families that don't exclude but come back to help their fellow brothers and sisters but at the same preserve respect for our race. Don't worry you will see "my kind of people" buying homes in Sag Harbor and Martha's Vineyard, and don't worry i'll keep my property up to par.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Revealing Picture
Review: I'd have to say that I really enjoyed the book but tend to disagree with most of the people who read it. I can understand where the black elite are coming from. If you work hard all your life to have a comfortable lifestyle then you tend to associate with people who have gained the same stature and share similar interests. And as far as the children are concerned, I am not a member of the balck elite, but if I were and had children I would put them in the same types of activities as the elite do. If you send your child to an expensive exclusive private school, chances are that there aren't going to be that many blacks there. And there's a good chance that they won't be accepted by the white students that do go there. And if they go to public school there is still that good chance of ridicule by people who may not have as much as they do. So it only makes sense that the place these kids would feel the most comfortable would be with other kids with similar backrounds. The book did show the ugly side of eletism but it really just showed what most people do, associate with people who are like them and form cliques. These people just have more money than God.
Rating: 
Summary: the "real story" on the author
Review: This is one of the bitchiest books I've ever read--pictures and all. I had admired how he went up against country clubs several yrs ago, but now I am sickened by these superior, high-yellow black people. Since my family is from Memphis just like Mr. Otis Graham's, it should be pointed out that there is a lot that he doesn';t tell about himself and where he comes from. My grandmother remembers both sides of his family--and she says they are nothing more than the marriage of two social climbing families. The author's maternal grandmother was related to the Walkers (a family that founded an insurance company) but she had no money. Like the author, she was fixated on breeding and credentials. She snubbed other folks because the Walkers were college educated and she attended the private LeMoyne School, unlike most other blacks in Memphis who went to public school. Her daughter (the author's mother)had a fancy debutante party on Mississippi Boulevard where only light-skinned kids were invited. But, she got her just desserts after she got into all-white Vassar and her parents told her they couldn't afford to keep her there. The author obviously left this out because he'd have to explain the lack of money. So, to her dismay (and evidently to the author's), she had to go to college with blacks instead of whites up north. But, typical of this family, she ended up social-climbing her way into gradschool at Columbia University. The author's paternal side wasa mirror image of the Walkers. They had lots of money (a trucking business, some restaurants and farms), but had no class and no professional credentials. The author talks like his family was so courageous, but he neglects to mention that his grandfather had to hire a white man to front as his business partner just so he could truck cereal products interstate in the 30s. Graham somehow neglects to point out that his own ancestors don't live up to standards he admires: his mother's family had some so-called elite credentials and light skin, while his father's familly had money from non-prestige jobs and businesses. Maybe Graham's generation of family is all upperclass now, but in the 30s and 40s, that family was distinctly "new money wannabes" in Memphis. The last time I saw the author's parents was in the early 1960s and they were trying to buy my cousin's summer home in Oak Bluffs. They were trying to get their son (the author) into Jack & Jill, and they just about said they'd pay anything so they could get a big summer home in the right place to be sure they got accepted by the right people. Judging from what the author focuses on in Our Kind of People, he isn't any different from his socialclimbing parents and grandparents. It's interesting to see what they and he have turned out: a big fat symbol of elitism!
Rating: 
Summary: Now I understand why they are so strange.
Review: I thought the book was interesting from an historical perspective. It also made some sense of my Howard Law experience. I always thought there was some secret society and the book confirmed my thoughts. I found it funny as to how seriously he took himself and his so-called elite friends, with all of the social trimmings and better schooling. However, I do not recall those at Howard who were heirs of the black elite and future elitees being all that brilliant. I guess with all of their money, they didn't mind spending big bucks for education with little quantative results -- my class ranking and grades where higher than the chosen ones. I was most saddened by how he seemed to be impressed by being accepted into his rather exclusive mens clubs. Also, when he discussed how a lady was blackballed because her (future) husband was unable to get tickets to the inauguration balls when Clinton was first elected. How trite can one be. And I know this type of thing is true, I saw it all to often in D.C., matter of fact, still do. While reading the book I kept expecting for him to turn the corner in his narrow minded thinking, but I guess he can't help it -- he's a part of the Black elite. Being the world traveler that I am, I now know which spots to avoid.
Rating: 
Summary: A lightweight treatment with obvious selfserving overtones
Review: Let me get this correctly. I am a middle-aged, dark skinned African American male, whose parents were both college educated professionals (nurse and engineer) but not wealthy; I graduated summa cum laude from a respected HBCU, but not Howard; received a Big Ten university (but not Ivy League) law degree; am a member of an exclusive, predominantly white private club (but not a frat); earn over 1/4 million dollars annually as a corporate executive; am a tithe-paying member of my church (but not Episcopal); a loyal, once-married husband (to an African American woman who would not be mistaken as otherwise); however, I would never be accepted by the so-called African American "elite." My question is: should I care?
Rating:
Summary: This book was not at all what I expected.
Review: This book sat around collecting dust for over a month before I finally picked it up. I assumed it would read something like an updated version of E. Franklin Frazier seminal work on the black middle class and would attempt a serious sociological study of class structure within African American society. I was quite disappointed with the both the methods of data collection Mr. Graham used and the theses stated throughout the book. I also wonder whether or not he realized or intended the fallout to be as divisive and ugly as it has been. Our Kind of People reads more like a how-to manual for those aspiring to social prominence within the Black community than a monograph or expose, and Graham, unfortunately, tips his own hand early and often. What I find most fascinating about this book is the fervor with which it has been and continues to be discussed. Clearly, African Americans want a forum for disucssion on our issues. The comments in other reviews, not unlike Mr. Graham's "insights" throughout the book, reveal far more about the writers than they do about the contentious issues of breeding, class, class mobility and color. I am sorry the book failed to treat its subject matter seriously and academically. Class structure, perceptions and uses of wealth and power, as well as the mainstream achievement of African Americans is certainly deserving of ongoing discussion and analysis. From the tone of many, many of the reviews I read today about this book it seems that our fears and insecurities about belonging and acceptance continue to prey upon our psychological well being to a troubling extent. Class is a social construct, we therefore have the power to change what meaning or value it has for us. None of us need accept what Graham says as gospel. I'm not at all sure that he believes all that he asserts. Certainly, the alarming number of factual and philosophical inconsistencies in the book would suggest that Graham himself does not have a balanced or carefully considered understanding of these issues. It would be nice to read a book by someone who does.
Rating:
Summary: BEWARE! SOME FEELINGS MAY BE HURT!
Review: As a black person who has worked very hard and realized very little, I read this book because many of the reviews were so harsh. I must say that for the most part I agree with most of what's been said. It's interesting, though, because this book is having quite an impact. There must be something to it. I do suggest that you read it for yourself and form your own opinion. I also suggest two other novels about black people struggling with issues of identity: PSEUDO COOL and SOULS BIZARRE... as both novels can only add to the discussion created by "Our Kind of People...." Congratulations to the author for getting people to WAKE UP!
Rating:
Summary: This could have been a great resource book, but.............
Review: This book had the potential of being a great resource book with the history of some of the accomplishments black folks have made against such great odds, especially during a time of Jim Crow and segregation. However the author misses the boat with all the talk of skin color and hair texture. He would have us believe that the brown paper bag test still exists. I for one don't believe it any self-respecting folk would subject themselves to that kind of hogwash. It is my understanding the many of those he has labeled as "elite" take exception with that label. Another thing is Mr. Graham's assuming attitude about the upper black class seems to focus more on the East coast, as I understand that is where he is from. In California and the West coast, people are not hung up over class differences. The bottom line is people just want to raise their families, focus on their education and career and live their lives. We as a people just cannot afford to look down our noses at those who are less educated and economically depressed. Our role is to help other black folk reach their potential. I am distressed by the personal attacks on Mr. Graham especially about his wife. This has no place in reviewing his book. However I understand that alot of people were hurt and made to feel that they hadn't achieved a certain status or they weren't good enough because of superficial things like family background, where they went to school, skin color, etcc. Those of you who pulled yourself up from adverse conditions, (growing up in projects, young welfare mothers, etc.), have gone to college, acquired good jobs, and can afford some of the luxuries Mrs. Graham espouses, have no reason to hang your head because you didn't start at the top. On the same token, those who come from such distinguised, prominent families should be proud of their heritage and accomplishments and not made to feel they should not be. Many of those "Our Kind of People" are able to put it all in perspective without attitudes of superiority. Again, the history was rich which is why I gave it a three, but the author was not able to distance himself enough from the subject without proving it was self-serving.
Rating:
Summary: I enjoyed this book
Review: I am glad I read this book for myself and did not rely on the reviews on this page. This was a very interesting, thought provoking book on a segment of society that is rarely addressed. I felt that Graham wrote objectively and there is nothing is this book that suggests that he is a wannabe. On the contrary there are instances where he is critical of some of the practices that go on in this book. There is also not a lot of attention on complexion, though it is a factor, but not as big a deal as some who have reviewed this book has made it seem to be. I have enjoyed all of Graham's books and if you want an enjoyable read, pick this one!
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