Ace of Spades

A Memoir

David Matthews

Picador

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A take-no-prisoners tale of growing up without knowing who you are

David Matthews was born on the line between races. His mother was white, but she disappeared when he was an infant, leaving him with pale skin and the prospect of a Jewish identity. His father was black, a journalist and activist who counted Malcolm X among his friends. So growing up in the Baltimore ghetto in the 1980s, Matthews had a choice. He took one look at the school lunchroom and chose white. But that choice took on new implications when he came home to a neighborhood where his chosen race was a liability, if not a hazard. In the years that followed, Matthews slipped in and out of identities as the situation demanded, making use of each to get what he needed. He read the culture around him, soaked up its expectations, biases, and passwords, and fashioned a character that could only exist in this generation in America, an exuberant, open-minded, opportunistic young man making up his life and identity on the fly.

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Reviews

Praise for Ace of Spades

"Channeling the bohemian style of Jack Kerouac, the literary elegance of James Baldwin, and the hip-hop soapbox edge of KRS-One, David Matthews draws out the paradoxes of racial identity in America. . . . A necessary insight."--The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 

"A memoir with meaning, Ace of Spades is a story of self-deprecation and, ultimately, self-empowerment . . .  His lifelong search and the book come to a conclusion that is wrenching and redemptive."--USA Today

 

"Stylish, astute . . . What Ace of Spades demonstrates so vividly is the conditional nature of racial identity as a lived experience."--The New York Times

 

"Matthews's admirable honesty and mostly fluid writing are enticing--and he doesn't bother with blame or self-pity. . . .  It's a testament to his writing that, despite a tortured life chronicled over 300 pages, we want to know more."--Associated Press

 

"This is a loving portrait of a close relationship between a father and son, one slightly delayed by the fog of race."--Booklist

 

"Matthews writes with candor, anger, and humor about what it means to be all mixed up. Like the best of this genre, Matthews's memoir balances introspection with cultural commentary, using vivid scenes from his life to illustrate the themes of the times."--San Francisco Chronicle

Reviews from Goodreads

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Henry  rated it  
Mar 16, 2008
I found this book to be profoundly affecting. There's a lot going on, and it's about much, much more than race--it's really a classic coming of age story with racial identity as a framework. The writing is powerful and elegant, and definitely challenged me beyond most of the memoirs I've come across ...more
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Demetria  rated it  
Jul 16, 2008
This memoir by David Matthews is fascinating. The idea of "passing" is so Harlem Renaissance (and earlier) era to me that it is just mind-boggling to read about a man in his early forties who spent the first 20 or so years of his life passing as a Jewish man. David Matthews has a black fat ...more
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Kyla  rated it  
Apr 8, 2008
No holds barred, unpitying, un-PC...sounds like negatives but these qualities ensure this memoir is not another mamby-pamby "how we are all one and I learned to love my mixed race heritage". Told from his perspective growing up half-black, half-white but "passing" for white while ...more
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About the Author

David Matthews

David Matthews is a writer living in New York.

David Matthews

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Available Formats and Book Details

Ace of Spades
A Memoir
David Matthews

Trade Paperback

Trade Paperback
Picador
January 2008
Trade Paperback
ISBN: 9780312426316
ISBN10: 0312426313
5 1/2 x 8 1/4 inches, 320 pages
$14.00

Hardcover

Learn more about this edition
Hardcover
Henry Holt and Co.
February 2007
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780805081497
ISBN10: 0805081496
5 5/8 x 8 1/4 inches, 320 pages, 3 pieces of art throughout
$24.00

e-Book Agency

Learn more about this edition
e-Book Agency
Henry Holt and Co.
February 2007
e-Book Agency
ISBN: 9781429905039
ISBN10: 1429905034
320 pages
$6.99
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