Book Review: The Man from Another Land - Isaiah Washington

After reading this book, it felt like we knew Isaiah. It felt like we had sat down with him on the porch, lit up a cigar, poured a glass of wine, and listened to him tell us stories about his life. It felt like he was there with us, relaying to us the lessons he learned; some hard, some fast, and some ever slow.

A Man From Another Land is not just about the journey of a famous actor, it is an insightful tale that encapsulates a coming of age story with the interwoven theme of self-realization. This is BIG for Black folks, or as some prefer to say, African-Americans. We are a group of people who lack the knowledge of home. We do not know from whence our people came beyond the southern horrors drenched with our ancestors blood, but I digress. This novel sheds light on the reality that although we are resilient, although we persevere, it is imperative that we tap into our core.

Isaiah introduced us to a part of him we have never known, namely because he didn’t know this part himself. I must say that after reading this autobiographical piece that was written more like a colorful novel, we were all filled with curiosity. Not necessarily a desire to know more about Isaiah, he gave us much of that, but a desire to know more of who we are, where we come from, and how many of our personal characteristics and behaviors were echoes of our ancestors. DNA has memory is a notion that Isaiah introduces to us in this book, and a thought that has stayed with me ever since. The notion that our blood itself maintains the memory, the feeling of those who came before us. It's fascinating.

Now, some may pick up this book in hopes of getting all the juicy details of the drama of Grey’s Anatomy, and I must say, as an avid fan myself, I wanted at least a little juice. Well, don’t bring a large cup, because that’s not what this book is about. Although Isaiah gives us a sip or two about the Grey’s “tea” it isn’t overkill, and we appreciated him for it. In fact, many members of the club knew Isaiah Washington from his other pieces of work, there’s plenty you know. A number of Spike Lee joints for starters. And he tells about that too. We find out he spent time in the service, went to an HBCU, had some amazing mentors, and we get a peek into his personal life. It’s really beautiful.

In reference to criticism, I would say that we felt somewhat like outsiders taking a peek into the male perspective. As a group of women, reading a man’s coming of age story is reminiscent to watching your youmger brother go from a boy to a man. You watch in awe, you empathize with him, you fight him, you love him, you learn from him, but at the end of the day as much as you relate, your experiences will never be exactly the same. So we do not hold that difference against this book, as it is autobiographical. In general, we all loved the book, and in fact wanted to trace our genetic history as a result.