Ruffin is a masterful writer, bold, satiric, and filled with dark humor. Many people will be drawn to his style as he powerfully elucidates the problem of racism in this novel. Nigel, a biracial child of a black father and white mother presents to the world a white complexion "tainted" by an ever-growing black birthmark . His father, a lawyer in a firm that has few blacks, is fervently trying to make partner so he can give his son a whitening treatment to help him achieve further success in a world that devalues the black experience. To accomplish this, he engages in a series of outlandish activities, some surreal and others debasing. Haunting and pressing, this novel is an important piece of work. However, I found myself tiring of the constant loops of satire and looking for more literally based sequences. But for those who love caustic wit, this will sure to be a winner.

I had mixed feelings about this book, but came away liking it. The premise was strong, and the author makes his point sharply. It was so thought-provoking, and the scary part was that I could totally see how we could get from our current political and racial issues to this near-future world he describes. I also really enjoyed the way he wove together issues of race at both the broad and personal levels - meaning, how do we fight for equality on a broad scale while also protecting our children personally? Is it fair to give our personal child an extra advantage or to compromise our broader principles to make his life easiest? It was like a racial and parenting commentary mixed together, which makes sense, because truly the two can’t be separated - especially for parents of color, as the book deftly points out. I did have some trouble following what was happening, and found it confusing and frustrating at times. But overall, as an allegory, it wasn’t there for my enjoyment so much as to challenge all of its readers - and it succeeds in that, easily.

A necessary and important debut, Ruffin's We Cast A Shadow depicts a bleak future in this satirical novel that reads right now more as a warning: this is what we are in danger of becoming. The beginning of the novel was almost a bit too on the nose for me (this very well could be my lack of fluency in satire), but by the end, I forgot we were in a world of Ruffin's imagination and accepted these drastic circumstances and outcomes of systematic racism as reality. Clever, unflinching, desperate and unrelenting, this debut is one that should be on everyone's required reading list of 2019.

This is the latest novel to explain and deal with the issue of racism in America employing fantasy, magic realism, dystopian concepts, call it what you will. From Underground Railway, to White Tears, to Underground Airlines, to Sing Unburied Sing, among others, authors have eschewed reality because the subject matter is too painful to deal with and offer alternative worlds in which to address the subject. Mostly, as here, they are satirical, thusly carrying an undercurrent of rage, quite appropriate especially here. This particular novel has been compared to Get Out and The Sellout, both of which apply. The well meaning father here is trying to help his bi-racial son avoid the pain of being Black in America by seeking a bleaching treatment. I found myself alternately appalled and enraged at a world that would make such a solution desirable. A very timely book given the national atmosphere with hate crimes increasing.

As I began to write this review, I asked myself: how do I write this review in such a way that I don’t offend white people?

And then the irony of that question hit me like a punch in the gut.

In We Cast a Shadow, our main character and most black Americans have spent their lives not only trying not to offend white people, but trying to amuse them, cater to them, and, yes, be them. You see in our near future tale, those with money enough can have a series of procedures to become white. Why do they want to be white? Because in our author’s world, racism and segregation are very much back as part of the American Landscape. And to be honest, simply watching the Barbeque Becky’s and torch-bearing White Nationalists of today, the author’s world isn’t quite so implausible.

For a black person to succeed in this America, they need to act the minstrel, be perfectly inoffensive, and make absolutely sure that whites don’t see them as a threat.

Our main character is desperate for his bi-racial son to be white and only white. And he’ll act the fool and be the perfect Uncle Tom in order to make this happen.

Even as his world starts falling apart, that pale skin is the only thing he strives for.

The book is enormously painful. Oddly, though, it’s not the white people laughing at, controlling, or demeaning the non-whites that is the most painful.

It’s our main character and his absolute lack of pride or respect.

The author does an amazing job of getting the reader to truly understand why our character is the way he is. His behavior isn’t any more palatable, but we get it, and in getting it we feel a bit complicit.

The book is uncomfortable – and from the first page to the last it doesn’t get less so.

Not a happy book, but a relevant one – and I’m glad I read it.

*ARC Provided via NetGalley

This book was touted as being in the same ballpark as Sellout and Get Out. It might have seemed like a good idea to throw this in with two such popular things, but for me it was a turn off. Though I’m glad not so much as to prevent from checking it out. Initial attraction was that gorgeous striking cover. Plus I was interested to see if it is indeed possible to write a good modern book about race. Sellout, despite all its acclaim and awards, for me didn’t do the trick. Get Out was a paranoid racist (yes, racism works in every direction) fantasy that jumped on the trend bandwagon at just the right time. This book, this absolutely terrific and most auspicious debut darling, actually works. The author anchors the race talks down to a very relatable and engaging father/son story and from there on its classic dynamics of familiar relations presented against the context of a racially divided (think exaggerated version of modern day US) social order somewhere in the South. The father, the well intentioned tragic narrator, is a black man who has done every possible thing to fit in and prosper in a society where black men seldom do, one so obsessed with white supremacy that many choose to alter their appearance to suit the social norm, including but not limited to going Michael Jackson white. The well intentioned tragedy comes when he tries to quite literally whitewash his young biracial son to as he sees it optimize his chances in the world. And so he sets off on this dangerous course while performing something of a balancing act between his career and his marriage, while dealing with his own difficult relationship with his father and all the while maintaining this delicate balance by chemical means and holding on too tightly to things he values the most only to watch it all slip away. It’s a mess, life’s messy. And sad. Positively devastating at times, especially towards the end. And mind you, this is a satire, so it’s also darkly humorous at times, particularly the first chapter. But what it is…is clever. It feeds the mind while it entertains and creates an emotional connection with characters, so that it elevates it above the usual casual glib aloofness of satires into something with power and meaning, something that genuinely commands attention and makes you think complex difficult thoughts. Turns out it is possible to talk about race, it just has to be done right. This book does it right. Forget gimmicky titles with Out in them and read this instead. Great book. Important, timely and just well done all around. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

There could not be more of a must read book than this.

While the concept seems to be that this is a satirical look in the near future, incidents in the book [no spoilers] but looks and actions of those around the main character could be happening today, here and now. The writing is superb and just wraps you into the story from the first page, while also making you think.

I really need to say it again, this is a must read book. Excellent.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.