For many years the anticipation for the sequel of Sister Souljah’s best selling novel The Coldest Winter Ever was intense and did not slow down until the release of Midnight: A Gangster Love Story. The novel really is the pre-quel and recounts the life of Ricky Santiaga’s lieutenant Midnight from his first days coming to America from the Sudan at age 14. He and his Mother move into the Brooklyn projects where Midnight faces obstacles that will define his character later in life. However the major theme throughout this novel is Midnight’s first love affair with Akemi, a young Japanese girl who has Midnight’s nose wide open.
The average rating for this novel was 4.1 out of 5. The book club enjoyed the read but had mixed views about the story that Sister Souljah chose to tell. A few readers were disappointed that the novel was not really a gangster love story. They expected to experience the same danger and excitement found in the Coldest Winter Ever. However they did enjoy story which was told, they blamed the publisher for marketing it as a gangster story probably trying to capitalize on the success for the first novel. Other members were intrigued by the teenage love story and related well to the statements about family, immigration, power of self, love and respect that Souljah intertwined throughout the novel. They liked that Midnight had such a strong moral base; he was a soldier and remained true to that amidst the chaos of the New York City streets.
What the book club did not enjoy was Souljah’s use of Midnight and Akemi to criticize Black American women. Although some of Souljah’s viewpoints were accurate the book club felt that she was being too hard on Black women. They were given the impression that American born Blacks were immoral and had no shame. They recognized that she used Midnight as a tool to introduce readers to the beauty of Islam but also to scrutinize other religious beliefs.
They also discussed the decision to use a picture gallery in the hard cover copy of the novel. A couple of members weren’t feeling the pictures at all. They would have preferred to stick to their imagination. A few other members welcomed the pictures and figured it was a creative way to present and market the novel.
Debates also sprung up about the validity of teenage love. Were they too young to become as involved as they did? If Midnight lived in the Sudan he would have been looking for a wife or would have already been married. Book club members noted that Midnight was extremely mature and responsible for someone his age and that only in North America we’d have a problem with their age.
Book club members thoroughly enjoyed this novel and would recommend it as a very good read with the disclaimer of not to expect to another Coldest Winter Ever.
