First published 2009
Sidney Poitier examines his own life through the lens of the values that shaped him. He traces his moral compass back to his childhood on Cat Island in the Bahamas, where his parents raised him without modern distractions but with clear principles of right and wrong. The memoir follows his transition from island life to breaking racial barriers in Hollywood, where he chose roles that reflected positive messages about humanity. Poitier refuses to present himself as having all the answers. Instead, he conducts what he calls "an exercise in self-questioning" to measure how well he lived up to his own standards. He explores the costs of maintaining artistic integrity and the balance between personal sacrifice and public achievement. The book examines his roles as actor, husband, and father through the framework of commitment, pride, humility, and forgiveness. What emerges is Poitier's honest assessment of a life lived according to principles learned in childhood and tested throughout a groundbreaking career.
Genres: biography, drama, 20th-century, african-american, autobiography, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: self-questioning, values-and-principles
Setting: Bahamas, Cat Island
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
272 pages · ebook · HarperOne