![]() ![]() Nonetheless, he writes, “the stories that I favor are not only upsetting, but uplifting.” Walker’s rich compilation adds up to a rewardingly insightful self-portrait that reveals how one man relates to various aspects of his identity. Race threads its way through many of the essays, which reveal the subtle indignities often suffered by Black people in public settings. Elias Rowley’s enthusiasm turned out to be spot-on. Life in academia is yet another-the struggles of graduate school, job seeking, and attaining tenure, and, at times, of being the only Black person in a white milieu. Walker’s manuscript became How to Make a Slave and Other Essays, published by The Ohio State University Press imprint Mad Creek Books. His life as a writer is another, with a particular emphasis on paying tribute to his late writing teacher, short story writer James Alan McPherson. Parenting and disability is one: he is the child of blind parents, and the parent of a son with a neurological disorder that causes seizures. Beginning with Frederick Douglass’s famous declaration, “You have seen how a man was made a slave you shall see how a slave was made a man,” Walker tackles a number of themes through his 22 selections. ![]() ![]() Walker ( Once More to the Ghetto), an Emerson College creative writing professor, delivers a stylish and thought-provoking collection of reflections on his personal and professional life. ![]()
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