Playful dialog and great characters with an undercurrent of grim satire
Glengarry Glen Ross meets Spike Lee and "Invisible Man" in Chapter 5 of "Black Buck". Darren, a young Black man, has made the age-old deal with the devil: "You'll have a good salary and great benefits, but in return you have to do.... never mind, we'll tell you later." His girlfriend begs him not to change once he become a bigshot, but it's a classic setup, and we know the danger is real. What separates this book from others in this genre is its playfulness and heart. With the world coming down around our heads, it's truly theraputic to feel, just for a few minutes, like we belong to Darren's close-knit group of friends and family.
It's not all feel-good, though. In Chapter 5, we learn that for the majority-White workforce and Darren alike, the company is a place where you can only get ahead by embodying the stereotypes that society places on your race, class, or cultural heritage. The office has an id-governed circus vibe, like Lord of the Flies but with corporate-mandated positivity and drive. Molskines fly at windows during a group hype-shesh for hitting sales goals. And the threat of human sacrifice seems just credible. Though the over-the-top office environment is played for laughs, things get more menacing with the bucket of white paint that coats Darren as a "joke" when he sits down at his desk for the first time.
Throughout the chapter, there's an excellent balance between playful dialog and descriptions, sensual moments, and the constant low-volume menace of the White power structure operating both below and above the surface. How much will Darren have to give up before he realizes the cost is too high? How will he respond to his coworkers' racial aggression? Will the real-life dynamics currently breaking family and friend relationships all over the US succeed in tearing Darren away from the people who love him the most? I really hope not - and I'm certainly going to have to keep reading in order to find out.
It's not all feel-good, though. In Chapter 5, we learn that for the majority-White workforce and Darren alike, the company is a place where you can only get ahead by embodying the stereotypes that society places on your race, class, or cultural heritage. The office has an id-governed circus vibe, like Lord of the Flies but with corporate-mandated positivity and drive. Molskines fly at windows during a group hype-shesh for hitting sales goals. And the threat of human sacrifice seems just credible. Though the over-the-top office environment is played for laughs, things get more menacing with the bucket of white paint that coats Darren as a "joke" when he sits down at his desk for the first time.
Throughout the chapter, there's an excellent balance between playful dialog and descriptions, sensual moments, and the constant low-volume menace of the White power structure operating both below and above the surface. How much will Darren have to give up before he realizes the cost is too high? How will he respond to his coworkers' racial aggression? Will the real-life dynamics currently breaking family and friend relationships all over the US succeed in tearing Darren away from the people who love him the most? I really hope not - and I'm certainly going to have to keep reading in order to find out.