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All Who Belong May Enter
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- $25.99
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- $25.99
Publisher Description
A collection of personal essays examining relationships, whiteness, and masculinity.
Nicholas Ward’s debut essay collection, All Who Belong May Enter, centers on self-exploration and cultural critique. These deeply personal essays examine whiteness, masculinity, and a Midwest upbringing through tales of sporting events, parties, posh (and not-so-posh) restaurant jobs, and the many relationships built and lost along the way. With a storyteller’s spirit, Ward recounts and evaluates the privilege of his upbringing with acumen and vulnerability. Ward’s profound affection for his friends, family, lovers, pets, and particularly for his chosen home, Chicago, shines through. This collection offers readers hope for healing that comes through greater understanding and inquiry into one’s self, relationships, and culture. Through these essays, Ward acknowledges his position within whiteness and masculinity, and he continuously holds himself and the society around him accountable.
All Who Belong May Enter was selected by Jaquira Díaz as the winner of the 2020 Autumn House Nonfiction Prize.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ward writes about coming of age as a white man with an awareness of racial and social injustice in his candid debut essay collection. The first part, "Boys Always Play at Killing Each Other," examines the toxic masculine norms embedded in his drunken escapades with friends and describes family relationships he's lost due to disagreements over political differences. Part two, "No Honest Way to Make A Living" recounts his experiences working in restaurants and theaters, and the compromises and letdowns required to participate in these industries. The third section, "I Can Always Be Found," dips into friendships and loss, and the relationship that set him "on a path towards understanding the social and political project of whiteness." Along the way, Ward traces his experiences in the Midwest feeling at odds with the casual racism that surrounded him; his burgeoning awareness of classism and racism made him reconsider things he once enjoyed carefree, such as baseball, a pastime he loved and watched with his father but now sees "as a tool of US imperialism and nationalism." Well observed and curious, these essays will appeal to readers who, like Ward, are sensitive to inequality but unsure how to combat it.