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Made in Detroit: A South of 8 Mile Memoir | 
| Author: Paul Clemens
Publisher: Doubleday
Category: Book
List Price: $23.95
Buy Used: $0.46
You Save: $23.49 (98%)
New (22) Used (36) Collectible (3) from $0.46
Avg. Customer Rating:  26 reviews
Sales Rank: 377747
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.9
ISBN: 038551140X
Dewey Decimal Number: 305.8090977434092
EAN: 9780385511407
ASIN: 038551140X
Publication Date: September 13, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Ex-Library. Help save a tree. Buy all your used books from Green Earth Books. Read -> Recycle -> Reuse!
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Paul Clemens grew up in the northeast corner of Detroit, just south of the city’s famed 8 Mile border. In this moving and affectionate memoir, Clemens, born the year Detroit’s first black mayor (the legendary Coleman Young) was elected, tracks his own growth to maturity against the background of the city’s long decline during Young’s twenty years at the helm.
Made in Detroit describes what it was like to grow up white and working class in a city that had become emblematic of white flight and urban decay. Clemens writes with passion and unflinching honesty about the crime and the prejudices, both black and white, that marked his days in Detroit, and about the linguistic confusions that attend being a minority in a city where minorities are the majority. His neighborhood’s common denominator, Catholicism, helped keep Detroit’s disorder at a distance. Likewise, Clemens’s father, a car enthusiast and weekend drag racer of the kind only Detroit can produce, helped keep at arm’s length the racism that infected much of white Detroit. Though he may have grumbled about the corruption and inefficiency of the Young administration, he would not tolerate expressions of racial hostility.
Made in Detroit is the story of a young man’s education in social and racial realities most writers would rather avoid. But it is also the story of a literary apprenticeship in the classic American mold. In addition to his youthful Catholicism, Clemens acquired another belief–in reading and writing–and he embraced the writer’s vocation with the enthusiasm that only those raised in a household devoid of books can. Yet, in coming to grips with Detroit, and race relations in America in general, he discovered that there are places–geographic, mental, emotional–where even literature cannot help.
This is a story about being caught in the middle: about being white in a black city, urban in suburban America, blue collar in an increasingly obsolete Rust Belt, and Catholic in a place where churches close at an unprecedented pace. Sparing no one–including himself–Clemens depicts with raw authenticity and redemptive grace the realities of one city’s, and one family’s, recent history.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 21 more reviews...
 Painful Read March 16, 2008
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
I am also a white male who is part of the Detroit diaspora. In my case I simply left for better economic possibilities elsewhere. Much like author Clemens I find the city and its dominant African American culture to be a great part of what has shaped my world view for a lifetime.
Unlike author Clemons, I find America's racial barriers to be much greater beyond the boundaries of the city of Detroit, than within the friendlier confines of them. The older I get the more I find myself longing for the place, and the plain speaking warmth of its people. Because I consider the city of Detroit to be my home, I often return to visit.
I wish I could recommend this book. I just can't! I think there is a dark space in Mr. Clemens soul that he is struggling with, but still refuses to confront. Call that dark space anything you like.
 Wonderful Tale of Growing Up in a Crumbling City February 20, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
For the record- I grew up in East Detroit, right over the border from 8 Mile around 8&Kelly.
I'm white, and I had plenty of white relatives who lived in Detroit. I went to an integrated private school on the border between Detroit and the suburbs, and had lots of black acquaintances with whom I got along with really well. I'd say, "I don't consider myself a racist," but the phrase doesn't benefit anyone. The people who would assume I'd say that, and who would judge me based on my skin- they'll presume I'm a racist no matter what I say.
I'm here to say that I love this book- I was given it for fathers day last year, and I only picked it up to read in the past few weeks. I'm just finishing it and I can say without any doubts that this is a wonderful book that really pegs the thoughts and feelings of the author accurately. His thoughts and feelings on growing up in Detroit, and as a minority white in a black majority city are typical of my friends and families experiences.
I love the city, and I love its people; although the majority of Detroiters seem to suffer from a "seige mentality" that leads them to make rather poor political choices. It seems- all you need to be successful as a politican in Detroit is highlight the troubles of the city and point North of 8 Mile indicating the problems were caused by outsiders. Or, at least that's my feeling- and this book captures that sentiment accurately.
White and private schooled in Detroit July 9, 2007
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Also being a white kid in a black city, I can relate to this book, as I too was sent to private schools to avoid the "dreaded" public schools in the Motor City.
CONFESSIONS OF A CATHOLIC SCHOOLGIRL by Michelle Kane is another good book set in the city of Detroit, although the main character is from a broken home and not as lucky as Clemens to have both parents to turn to in confusing times.Confessions of a Catholic Schoolgirl
A wonderful personal history, set in a decaying town November 3, 2006
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
When I ordered this book, I thought that it might be about someone closer to my age (64) who grew up in the City of Detroit. It turns out to be a much younger man: one who grew up during the years just after I moved away from Michigan in 1972.
Although this book is somewhat different than what I expected, it turned out to be a thoughtful read. Yes, there is a lot of Detroit history and visits to places I recall, but you do not have had to live in Michigan to enjoy this book. It covers family life, religion, schooling, racial issues and much more. I think that the book does bog down a bit near the end. This is where the author is trying to resolve much of his upbringing and beliefs. Nevertheless, MADE IN DETROIT is very worthwhile. Particularly wonderful is the description of the author's dad and his continuing episodes throughout the book. Reminded me a lot of my old man and many other Detroit relatives and acquaintances of my parents. The occasional glimpses into the personality of Coleman Young (Mayor of Detroit for many years) are quite humorous. Mr. Young was a real genuine character.
 TOO MUCH SELF AGGRANDIZEMENT March 16, 2006
9 out of 19 found this review helpful
If the author had spent more time telling us about Detroit and less time telling us how literate he is then it would have been a lot better book.
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