Autobiographies

I really enjoyed the autobiographies by Walter White and Gordon Parks.  Some of the words White says towards the end of his portion are really powerful.  Overall, however, Parks' passage was even more powerful.  He seemed to have more frequent and violent experiences than some of the other African-Americans in the book dealing with discrimination and racism.  It seems like he tells story after story about the deaths of blacks in his town.  And yet, he still seemed to develop a strong character that, as his brother told him, eventually fought with his brain instead of his fist.  I also found the set-up of the passage interesting from a literary standpoint; he was on a train to a new life, reminiscing about his past life and the experiences it entailed and how things would be different in Minnesota (despite the cold welcoming of his brother-in-law when he finally arrived).  I admired his mentality and was fascinated by his experiences growing up.