Book Report: I am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett
The Book: I am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett (2009)
The Goods: I am Not Sidney Poitier is – blarg – a bit hard to blurb. It’s the story of a young man named Not Sidney Poitier who looks, in fact, an awful lot like Sidney Poitier, and his coming-of-age, which the author (Percival Everett, not to be confused with the novel’s character Percival Everett, who turns up throughout the story along with a hilarious fictional version of Ted Turner) casts as an intertextual adventure through Sidney Poitier films. (Did the best I could, briefly.)
The Report: Book club really enjoyed I am Not Sidney Poitier. We found it nearly impossible, though, to talk about the novel without moving the conversation into more theoretical territory: what postmodern narratives can or can’t achieve; why our approaches to the book may have created very different types of enjoyment (some readers felt that this was an enjoyable, thoughtful text that ultimately didn’t move them while others – okay, really just ME — felt greatly moved by the identity crisis at the heart of the novel AND how that may have been informed by our relationship to literature/film in general); and how literature constructs identity and race. But we did also talk about THE book!
Thoughts about the book from our collective book club brain…
WTF, Percival Everett? Discussion quickly honed in on trying to understand some of the narrative logic of I am Not Sidney Poitier. Doing some research on Poitier films was very useful: in addition to the novel’s obvious film references (Lillies of the Field, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and In the Heat of the Night), we also managed to identify references or allusions to The Defiant Ones, A Patch of Blue, Buck and the Preacher, Let’s Do It Again, and Stir Crazy, and we’re sure that there’s others. Understanding Everett’s use of Poitier films made things a bit clearer, but also raised lots of questions about how we’re ‘supposed’ to read the novel. I was more excited than most, because this kind of narrative treasure hunting is something I really enjoy, but I also understand why others feel that needing to track down the intertexuality calls into question the very success of the story. In any case, we agreed that despite the fact that the novel is wicked smart, funny, and uses Poitier films in a really interesting way, it still seemed lacking at times.
Wicked funny wordplay. Already mentioned it, but we couldn’t emphasize enough Everett’s funny and skillful play with language. One member has recommended this book to friends on the strength of this alone.
Identity crisis! The novel plays with identity in ingenious and vaguely maddening ways. I feel inadequate in my ability to convey our conversation about this in a blog post, but suffice to say we all agreed that Everett riffs awesomely on the concept of the unreliable narrator, blurs real/fictional personalities (the author himself, Ted Turner) and overturns a great many literary/film tropes about race. But I also think it’s important to share that I am Not Sidney Poitier resonated with many of us about our own mixed-up feelings about who and what we are supposed to be. In that way, our feelings about the novel were not just limited by our intellectual interest, which seemed to really dominate our reading and discussion.
Final thoughts: I am Not Sidney Poitier elicited the greatest range of reasons why people liked it that I’ve ever heard at a book club. It also elicited one of the most theoretical discussions of casual reading I’ve ever had with a group. I would have strongly recommended the novel anyway, but this makes me all the more excited to tell you that I would love for you to read it and let me know your thoughts.
Bonus recipe: Our gracious host served up some delicious homemade pizza, which seems like a rare treat in NYC. I wanted to share the recipe for her quick-rise pizza dough, because it was REALLY great. So, here you go: book club pizza dough!
- 1 pkg. dry yeast
- 3/4 c. very warm water (120-130 degrees)
- 2 c. flour
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. sugar
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Soak yeast in water for 5 minutes. Add flour, salt and sugar and mix to blend. Knead for 2-3 minutes until flour is well blended. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 15 minutes. Roll dough to fit a 12 inch pizza pan. Top pizza with tomato sauce and toppings of your choice. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is browned and bubbly. (Readers in high altitudes: you’ll be out of luck with this recipe. Sorry!)
Later this month: Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn!
