Thank you @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of People of Means by Nancy Johnson. This is a dual timeline story of two generations of a black family from Chicago. Freda is a student at Fisk College in 1959, and to her parent’s dismay, gets involved in the Civil Rights Movement. She ends up graduating and marrying the man that her parents approved, and lives a quiet life. Freda’s daughter Tulip is also going against her parents’ wishes, she has a good job in public relations, but is dating a bus driver. The common thread of the story is the racism that both see and face. And how some things have changed and improved, and many things haven’t. This brought up a lot of good issues and was a family story which is my type of story. I did think it was a little longer and more detailed than it needed to be. #peopleofmeans #nancyjohnson #netgalley #advancedreadercopy #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks #booksofinstagram #bookwormproblems #bookaholic #booknerd #whattoread #readingtime #bookaddict #ilovetoread #ilovebooks #needtoread #readallday

Loved the story. Loved the writing. Looking forward to reading more from Nancy Johnson. Set in the 60's and the 90's we follow in Mother and Daughter's footsteps. We see how racism was in the 60's while trying to segregate and in the 90's after Rodney King was attacked by police and how it brings back in the focus how racism is a hard fight that must continue.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing company for this Advanced Readers Copy of People of Means by Nancy Johnson!

I had high hopes for People of Means after reading Nancy Johnson's The Kindest Lie and was not disappointed.. Nancy is a master of writing about families, class differences, racism, and the struggle for equality. The Gilroy's are upper middle class African American family navigating the world in 1960's Nashville and 1990's Chicago. The novel is full of rich characters, family secrets, and personal choices. The dual timeline was perfect in showing how far the US has come in dealing with the struggle for equality and how far we still need to go. Read this in your book group now.

I enjoyed this novel overall, with just a few reservations. The last half seemed stronger than the first to me. I did not find the characters particularly complex or multidimensional with the exception of Freida, and, perhaps, Tulip. But even this mother-daughter pair seemed to have one major internal conflict each and that conflict happened to be the same: striving for racial equality through Black excellence vs. through protesting for social justice.
In early chapters the figurative language was sometimes too easy: for example, describing cotton bols as "sharp as needles," or describing someone's excitement as "like a child at Christmas." However as the novel progressed the language became increasingly fresh and original, which elevated the writing overall, in my opinion. Overall, the story definitely held my interest with its well-constructed dual timeline, and I thought that Johnson did a really fine job of portraying a lesser known Black point of view regarding how to achieve full equality. I definitely recommend this novel, especially for those interested in African-American history and also for a general readership.

A mother and a daughter caught in different historical watershed moments of civil rights in America - Tulip is irate at the miscarriage of justice for Rodney King while her mother was at the forefront of the civil rights movement. Through Tulip’s passion for the cause she begins to learn surprising facts about her mother and her own journey.

The book goes back and forth between the Jim Crow south and Chicago in the 90s and shows (as we all know) that there is so much more work to do. Unfortunately, I found the story sort of predictable and slow paced. In addition there was one thing that really clouded the whole book for me - there is one Jewish character in the story and he was written as a caricature of a Jewish man (while eating lunch at a diner he orders latkes, rugelach, and ends his conversation with Mazel Tov) - if we are trying to show how minorities need more respect and rights, we shouldn’t be using stereotypes to describe another minority. Beyond that, the characters never really felt multidimensional and because of that I honestly could not get particularly invested in the characters or their story. The audiobook made the pacing better but in the end this didn’t work for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC to review

People of Means by Nancy Johnson is a book that will stick with you for a long time. It tells the story of a mom, Freda, who was affected by the Civil Rights Movement in Tennessee in the early 60s and her daughter, Tulip, who is affected by the beating of Rodney King in the early 90s. It really made me think about where we were as a nation 60 years ago, 30 years ago, and today when it comes to equal rights for all. This would be a fantastic book club pick. Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for the advance digital copy of this book.

This was a good dual timeline historical fiction novel that also explores family relationships. One thread of the book is the Civil Rights era in the 1960s south. The other is modern day Chicago. The main characters we follow are Freda, the mother in the 1960's south and Tulip, in modern day, an ambitious young woman in public relationship.
For me, the novel is strongest in the 1960's Civil Rights thread and in the exploration of the relationship between mother and daughter and of themselves. When it is in present day, the novel lapses into stereotypical racism which while it is, of course, very much present, there are few surprises and allows the author to lapse into delivering messages in a heavy handed manner. I think the novel was strongest in relaying the events in both time periods and letting the readers see the racism that still exists than when the character delivers a speech about it. I also thought the ending, which I won't reveal here, was a little obvious.
That said, the book was engaging and there was strong character development. I would give it a solid 4.25 stars.
I listened to about half the book on audio and the narrator was good, with good inflection as she read the novel.
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow and Harper Adult Audio for providing me with print/audio version of this engaging book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Well- told and interesting story about 2 black women - Freda in the 1960s and Tulip, her daughter, in the 1990s - who become involved in the civil rights movements of their times. The stories of how they became involved, how their involvement changed their lives - in both positive and negative ways - and the aftermath of their involvement sheds light on how similar these two eras are and how much remains to be done.

For readers who enjoy a slow, lyrical story with a dual timeline "People of Means" is an important look into the Civil Rights movement. The novel begins during the heart of the Civil Rights movement and jumps back and forth to the 90s with the main character's daughter and her experience with the Rodney King police assault and subsequent riots. This book is filled with love, family, history and the resilient spirit.

**Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.**

I liked it but it drug on at points and it sort of read like a book club book. however it talked about important topics and the end did have me teary eyed so I still suggest reading it.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Lately, because of the stresses of life, I’ve been reading, fast, paced, urban lit, which is not my usual fair; however, it’s all my brain would really allow me to do for the time being. When I saw this book become available, I was hesitant to read it, because I knew it would require me to think and feel. That’s exactly what it did, and I’m very glad that I took a chance on reading it. The writing was fantastic. It took you directly to the place and hit you in the heart when it needed to. The story of course, it should go without saying given the subject matter, was very timely and thought-provoking. It took me back to that summer in LA and it also invited me on a trip to a time before I was even born and allowed me to see so many parallels between the mother and daughter in this story. I almost wish that we could’ve gotten more of what happened with Freda when she got the chance to simply be herself. To honor herself. To love herself. But perhaps that is fodder for another book. This was really well done.

This story happens across two time periods approximately 30 years apart - the civil rights movement in the 1960s and the immediate aftermath of the Rodney King police beating in the early 1990s. And, the timing of its release in 2025 comes after another 30 years filled with (some) hope and (a great deal of) devastation around racial equality.

I was a young adult in 1992 and remember very clearly what happened to Rodney King: the beating, the lying, the riots, the trial, the acquittal… but I realized while reading this book that I did NOT internalize what it all meant, the overwhelming and ongoing fight to be seen as equal and deserving of respect, of basic human decency, for a large number of people. And, because most of us have not looked in the mirror and asked the tough questions, we are still here…with Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and so many others.

This is a novel of two women, mother and daughter, struggling with many of the same challenges, the same concerns, and the same desires to make a change when society is designed to maintain the status quo. Overt racism in the 60s and more subtle, but just as insidious, office politics/micro-aggressions in the 90s. How far would you go to fight for your community, your family, yourself?

Please note: I received a digital copy from NetGalley & William Morrow in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are strictly my own.

A story about how activism touched a mother’s and daughter’s lives. With a dual time line the reader gets two college students of age during the 1960s and 1990s. I liked that I learned while being entertained by the story.

Thank you to Net Galley and William Morrow for the chance to read and review this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
I enjoyed this book. It is the story of a mother and daughter both involved in social change. In 1959 Freda Gilroy is enrolled in Fisk University. She soon becomes aware of racial injustices. Even though her parents encourage her to just leave it alone, she becomes involved in the movement for social strange. She also becomes involved with two men and is not sure which one she wants to marry. Things soon get out of hand, and she is forced to make some decisions. In 1992 Chicago, her daughter Tulip also becomes involved in protests and joins the fight for social equality. This story is about Civil Rights, but at its heart it is a mother-daughter story. It is a good read!

I loved the dual timeline in People of Means….it was interesting how things have both changed and stayed the same…my favorite part of the book was Freda’s friendship/relationship with Darius.

𝗣𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗟𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗠𝗘𝗔𝗡𝗦 follows mother and daughter, Freda and Tulip, as they both fight for civil rights, Freda during the 1960s while attending Fisk University in Nashville and Tulip in the aftermath of the Rodney King verdict in 1990's Chicago. While the timelines take place 60 and 30 years ago, many of the issues addressed - including racism, sexism and economic inequality - are unfortunately still timely today. What struck me most while reading is that we should have made more progress in eradicating these by now, and it terrifies me that the strides we have made are under attack.

Along those lines, two passages really inspired me in terms of taking a stand like Freda and Tulip and others in the novel do. One is a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. - "There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor polite not popular. But he must do it because conscience tells him it is right." And the other is from the author's note at the end - "You don't need to have a fancy degree, title or money to have means - just the grit and gumption to live and love and leave your imprint on the world."

3.5 stars rounded up

Thanks to William Morrow for the copy to review.

Solid generational book. It wasn't my favorite, but also wasn't my least favorite. There were some repetitiveness and slow moments. Thank you NetGalley.

This novel explores family, history, and the personal costs of fighting for justice. Freda Gilroy’s story, set against the backdrop of 1950s Fisk University, is one of resilience and internal conflict as she navigates the complexities of her own ambitions, her family’s expectations, and the intense political climate of the Jim Crow South. Her struggle between love and duty and her reluctant yet undeniable involvement in the civil rights movement form the emotional heart of the narrative.

Fast forward to 1992, and Freda’s daughter Tulip faces her battles in a corporate world full of microaggressions and systemic barriers. Like her mother, Tulip must choose between personal gain and standing up for what’s right. The parallel journeys of mother and daughter, separated by decades but united by their commitment to justice, make this a deeply compelling and thought-provoking read.

With rich historical context, complex characters, and a poignant exploration of racial inequality and sacrifice, this book will resonate with anyone interested in the intersection of personal and social change. A truly unforgettable story about the courage it takes to challenge the status quo, Freda’s Legacy is a testament to the power of individual and collective action in pursuing justice.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC!

This book is told in dual timelines. It follows Freda in the 1960s and her daughter, Tulip, in the 1990s. Both mother and daughter find themselves dealing with similar challenges, and we see them decide if they are willing to join the fight for justice and equality.

There are so many important themes throughout this book that make you reflect on yourself and the world. Unfortunately, we still see so many of the same racial injustices today.

I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend it!