Full disclosure: I was given a free advance reader copy of this book by Book Publicity Services in exchange for an honest review.
Over the years, I’ve read plenty of books that are undeniably unique, as they contain unusual storytelling methods. Anything from John Marzalkowski comes to mind as some of the best examples. However, there are others that are not as effective. Today’s subject Old White Man Writing by Joshua Gidding sounds like it could be something that interests and humors people, especially written by a man exploring his privilege. However, he fumbles the execution by doing too much and with a weak structure.
Old White Man Writing is a memoir about an old white man analyzing his life and the societal and cultural changes in the twenty-first century. As the author examines his privileged background, he explores his relationships with some of the people of color in his life and begins to address his white guilt and complex feelings that have arisen from an uneasy racial conscience despite being left-leaning. The events and reflections are conveyed through two characters. One is the author himself, who is an unreliable narrator in his own story, and the other is a fictional alter ego Joßche (or Jossche), a German literary biographer with a titanium membrane in his skull-the result of a childhood bicycle accident. With his commentary, Joßche keeps the author honest (at least he tries to), giving way to rather surprising results at the end. Ultimately, the readers and the two Joshes face a question, whose roots run deep through our contemporary culture: In an age of increasing diversity, who gets to have a biography, who doesn’t, and why?
Let’s start off with some good things about the book. The first is undoubtedly the premise itself. We certainly need more old white male authors examining their privilege, and he is more than willing. He does this with plenty of self-deprecating humor. I especially enjoyed the back and forth with Joßche. Joßche provides some good kicks to the author’s rear end. Moreover, I like how even though he claims he’s a progressive, he bravely admits that he has said and done insensitive things like gawking at a black man at a restaurant when he was a kid and flashing a group of black girls at college. In some ways, he reminds me of my husband and his friends.
The author is also not afraid to be sincere. The best part of this memoir was reading about his wife Diane’s battle with cancer and her eventual death. I could feel how much the author loved her and how hard he felt her loss. When he met Diane, he was going through a depressive episode, and she lifted his spirits. In turn, he became the best husband and father that he could be. After her death, the author tried to have a relationship with a Chinese-American woman named Mei-Li, but it didn’t work out. He does eventually find love again with a woman named Julie. I wanted to know more about that particular relationship. Regardless, I invested in his quest to find love again.
With all that being said, I had a hard time getting into it. It felt like the author wanted to introduce every possible theme all at once at the beginning instead of letting them play out naturally. This included his exploration of his white privilege, his bouts of depression, and Joßche. Speaking of Joßche, I didn’t have that much of an issue with him interrupting the author, for it’s set up well although I found the ending to be more a thud.
In addition, I was not a fan of the structure. It’s written in three parts with several sections. This could have worked if it was a one-man show performed live. But because it’s written, it should have been organized in a simpler way to offset the memoir’s ambitious nature. For example, John Marzalkowski’s work, especially Buy My Book: Not Because You Should, But Because I’d Like Some Money, is really absurd. To balance that out, he has them in chapters to make them more digestible. This structure would have been beneficial to Old White Man Writing, especially when introducing its many themes.
Old White Man Writing by Joshua Gidding is a decent memoir. Although there was plenty of humor and sincerity in examining Gidding’s privilege, the structure was wonky, and Gidding felt the need to introduce every theme all at once. These made it difficult for me to get into. That’s why I was invested in some parts, but not the whole. I will give it this: at least he’s not on his high horse unlike the author in the other book that examines white privilege I’ve reviewed for this website. If I had to recommend it, it would be to old, white readers, especially if they studied Latin and/or German (Gidding knows plenty about those languages). While Old White Man Writing is certainly unique, it could’ve been better.
Subscribe below to get notified when I post new updates. Also feel free to email me here for any review suggestions, ideas, or new titles!
Book Reviews by a Chick Who Reads Everything 