Black Bottom Saints

I found this a really fascinating read and a lovely mix of fiction and history. I think it would be a great gift to high school or college graduates along with instructions to read it as a book of saints - one a week. It inspired me to do some research on many of the featured individuals because Randall's storytelling gave me just enough information to hook me on their lives. Highly recommended!

Black Bottom Saints is a most interesting and fascinating new novel from Alice Randall. This author and teacher is new to me, but I am a believer in her work, and I highly recommend reading Black Bottom Saints in the year 2020. Add this book to the stack of timely literature as it stands up with recent additions speaking about Black culture in the 20th century. What struck me most after finishing and reflecting on this book is that it is all at once a history lesson, eulogy, celebration, and obituary of the cultural epicenter, the eponymous Black Bottom, of Detroit in the mid-20th century. Told over the course of a year, each chapter representing one week’s passage of time, this book unfolds to reveal the most interesting and fascinating characters, as well as stories within stories. There are so many layers to this book, you will be engrossed throughout as you peel back the onion. This book is definitely a treat for those interested in contemporary history, but it also features a tender story about the relationship between the protagonist, Josephy “Ziggy” Johnson, a former dance-school instructor and Black Bottom historian, and a prized pupil, Mari, referred affectionately or instructively throughout as “Colored Girl”, which unfolds throughout each chapter. Ultimately, this book is a love song to a bygone era and long forgotten characters of the Black Bottom.

The language and the tone that Randall employs is utterly beautiful. She creates an wholly unique voice and cadence in the narrator of Ziggy. Each chapter unfurls a beautiful tapestry of interesting turns of phrase and vocabulary, forcing me to the dictionary multiple times. This is really a novel about people and characters, and Randall allows the poetry of her language to give these characters narratives color and depth that is breathtakingly memorable. Learning about these cultural icons is fascinating, but is only aided by the carefully chosen words and common descriptors that Randall employs throughout. It is reminiscent of sitting with a loved family member or neighbor while they regale you with stories from the past, some of which you might have heard, but are all too willing to hear again.

Ziggy becomes the caretaker of these narratives, the “unofficial” and self-proclaimed historian of the Black Bottom, canonizing his friends, family, and loved ones for all time. Ziggy himself is quite a character and he is the perfect docent to take the reader through this world because of his pure, genuine love and care for the people of the Black Bottom. His story parallels that of Mari, or Colored Girl, whom we get to see grow throughout the book. Additionally, each chapter features a cocktail pairing, which is such a fun summer treat and adds an additional layer of intrigue about the history of the era and the area, as these are actual cocktails devised by a Black Bottom mixologist. I am not a drinker, but I imagine making these drinks would be a fun summer, quarantine project.

**Spoiler Alert**: Stop reading here if you want to be surprised reading the book on your own.

Mari’s story parallels that of Ziggy so beautifully. There is a slight plot twist as we learn towards the end of the book that Mari is actually rewriting these chapters because Ziggy’s original manuscript has perished, along with Ziggy. Her rewriting of these tales highlights the importance and significance of local lore and the tradition of passing down stories about the traditions of a time and place between generations. Randall reminds us that story is a binding agent that holds societies, communities, and cultures together, and can be a uniting force. Books like Black Bottom Saints are important because they capture and preserve oral histories and memories of a place for future generations to have and cherish. I hope this is a book that preserves itself and has a long shelf life.