A PERSONAL ODYSSEY

Thomas Sowell worked his way from poverty through the Marine Corps to become a leading black economist. He is as outspoken about the foolishness perpetrated by his own people as he is about the injustices done to them by others. Offered a job simply because he was a black man, he turned it down and said why. Despite this righteousness, he has retained a sense of humor. "I’m eating watermelon," he told one caller. "Pardon me while I wipe my ears." Sowell admits to having had plenty of enemies, but enough friends to save him. This memoir should multiply the latter. Jeff Riggenbach doesn't become Sowell, but he renders the narrative vividly. B.H.C. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 02]