MK Shrimper
Striker
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OBL and Ricey start us off....
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Battle OTB: Roots v Sniper One
- Thread starter MK Shrimper
- Start date
Tangled up in Blue
Certified Senior Citizen⭐
Roots was boring but worthy.
Ricky Otto
President⭐
I enjoyed Roots, haven't read sniper one but the wiki entry didn't sell it to me. So my vote is Roots
I didn't think many people on here would have read Sniper One but I thought I would bring awareness to this truly great true story. It's the story of Sgt Dan Mills who was deployed to Iraq on Op Telic for what he thought would be a simple peace keeping tour. What no one realised or invisaged was the **** storm that was coming their way, they experienced the worst barrage of attack at Cimic house that the whole of Op Telic tour had experienced. It also has a little bit about Johnson Beharry VC and his courageous acts during this time that earned him the prestigious Victoria Cross (His book Barefoot Soldier is also a very good read).
If you get a chance read this book especially if you like military history books, I know it's one of the current conflicts but a very enjoyable read.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sniper-One-Blistering-British-Battle-ebook/dp/B002RI9LDU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1416225573&sr=8-1&keywords=Sniper+one
If you get a chance read this book especially if you like military history books, I know it's one of the current conflicts but a very enjoyable read.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sniper-One-Blistering-British-Battle-ebook/dp/B002RI9LDU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1416225573&sr=8-1&keywords=Sniper+one
OldBlueLady
Junior Blues Coordinator⭐⭐
Roots is just such a significant book. I borrowed a copy from the library when it first came out, then was glued to the TV series and was finally given my own copy for my 16th birthday from a friend in 1978. I know that there were issues around allegations of plagiarism but I don't think that affects the overall importance of the book.
I think if we accept it as a work of fiction with a hint of fact then we're probably in the right area, for anyone who doesn't know it is the story of an American author with African heritage, and how the lineage purports to trace back to a specific ancestor, and the story of how this ancestor, ****a Kinte, was abducted by soldiers from his homeland as a slave in the mid 18th century. The story documents the horrors of the voyage from Africa to America, in conditions and how ****a is subsequently sold into slavery to a white "Massa" in the deep South. It tells how he repeatedly tried to escape and how he was punished by having part of his foot cut off to prevent him from carrying on.
The book describes how many Massas and other powerful white men, frequently forced themselves on the negro women and girls, how children born were considered inferior because their "blackness" had been diluted and polluted. There are colourful descriptions of how negroes were described as "high yaller" and "mulatto" - both quite offensive descriptions in current use, but in context, and the way in which Africans considered themselves superior, very illuminating.
****a goes on to marry (jumping the broomstick) and he and his wife have a daughter Kizzy. ****a begins a particular practice in America which he remembered from the births of his brothers in Africa, which is continued right the way through most of the future generations. Kizzy grows up hearing her father talking about things from Africa, and the meaning of certain words. Again, these words are passed on down the generations, and are key in identifying the area from which ****a had been taken.
Aged 16, Kizzy is separated from her parents and sold on. The first day with her new Massa, she is raped, which sets the tone for the years ahead. Eventually she bears a child, and Massa Lea names him "George". George grows up to be an expert gamecock trainer and escapes the fields that so many African slaves were confined to. The story continues through a further four generations to the birth of Alex Haley, each generation repeating the story of ****a Kinte who lived in Africa and was brought across the sea, who had called the river "Kamby Bolongo" and a guitar "ko"and who was caught by a group of soldiers when he went to chop wood to make himself a drum.
Haley proceeds to explain how, with a great deal of ancestral research and help, he goes to Africa, meeting a travelling holy man who, down the generations, become walking referencing books, detailing family histories. ****a's two uncles had been these travelling holy men, and through them the location of ****a's birthplace is identified. Alex visits, the identified area in The Gambia and the story comes full circle, ending up with him surrounded by distant relatives who all wanted to know the story of what had happened to their ancestor.
The story is set against the anti-slavery legislation, it shows the harrowing experiences of families being split up by the Massa who worse for them than they do their livestock, and how they strived to buy themselves out of slavery. It's still an amazingly powerful read, and I recommend anyone to read it.
There is a follow up book, which tells of the history on Alex's father's side, "Queen", this is equally moving, showing young women having to prostitute themselves to live.
I think if we accept it as a work of fiction with a hint of fact then we're probably in the right area, for anyone who doesn't know it is the story of an American author with African heritage, and how the lineage purports to trace back to a specific ancestor, and the story of how this ancestor, ****a Kinte, was abducted by soldiers from his homeland as a slave in the mid 18th century. The story documents the horrors of the voyage from Africa to America, in conditions and how ****a is subsequently sold into slavery to a white "Massa" in the deep South. It tells how he repeatedly tried to escape and how he was punished by having part of his foot cut off to prevent him from carrying on.
The book describes how many Massas and other powerful white men, frequently forced themselves on the negro women and girls, how children born were considered inferior because their "blackness" had been diluted and polluted. There are colourful descriptions of how negroes were described as "high yaller" and "mulatto" - both quite offensive descriptions in current use, but in context, and the way in which Africans considered themselves superior, very illuminating.
****a goes on to marry (jumping the broomstick) and he and his wife have a daughter Kizzy. ****a begins a particular practice in America which he remembered from the births of his brothers in Africa, which is continued right the way through most of the future generations. Kizzy grows up hearing her father talking about things from Africa, and the meaning of certain words. Again, these words are passed on down the generations, and are key in identifying the area from which ****a had been taken.
Aged 16, Kizzy is separated from her parents and sold on. The first day with her new Massa, she is raped, which sets the tone for the years ahead. Eventually she bears a child, and Massa Lea names him "George". George grows up to be an expert gamecock trainer and escapes the fields that so many African slaves were confined to. The story continues through a further four generations to the birth of Alex Haley, each generation repeating the story of ****a Kinte who lived in Africa and was brought across the sea, who had called the river "Kamby Bolongo" and a guitar "ko"and who was caught by a group of soldiers when he went to chop wood to make himself a drum.
Haley proceeds to explain how, with a great deal of ancestral research and help, he goes to Africa, meeting a travelling holy man who, down the generations, become walking referencing books, detailing family histories. ****a's two uncles had been these travelling holy men, and through them the location of ****a's birthplace is identified. Alex visits, the identified area in The Gambia and the story comes full circle, ending up with him surrounded by distant relatives who all wanted to know the story of what had happened to their ancestor.
The story is set against the anti-slavery legislation, it shows the harrowing experiences of families being split up by the Massa who worse for them than they do their livestock, and how they strived to buy themselves out of slavery. It's still an amazingly powerful read, and I recommend anyone to read it.
There is a follow up book, which tells of the history on Alex's father's side, "Queen", this is equally moving, showing young women having to prostitute themselves to live.
OldBlueLady
Junior Blues Coordinator⭐⭐
Bloody swear filter doesn't allow his name - Kilo Uniform November Tango Echo!
Haven't read either.
I'm leaning towards Ricey's on the basis that OBL's summary appears a bit too "blue" for a family forum such as Shrimperzone, seemingly containing more asterix than the complete works of Goscinny and Uderzo.
I'm leaning towards Ricey's on the basis that OBL's summary appears a bit too "blue" for a family forum such as Shrimperzone, seemingly containing more asterix than the complete works of Goscinny and Uderzo.
Uncle Leo
This cook is an anti-semite
Bugger. That's reminded me - I should have nominated Asterix The Legionary.
OldBlueLady
Junior Blues Coordinator⭐⭐
Lol, should have been prepared for that!!! There's a lot of sex in the story to be truthful, mostly because of the "oberseers" (poor white men acting as overseers in the fields) or the Massas themselves forcing themselves on the slave women.
MK Shrimper
Striker
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2005
- Messages
- 52,643
Hmmm...a draw. Anyone not voted fancy the power of the decider?
MK Shrimper
Striker
- Joined
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- Messages
- 52,643
anyone.....
MK Shrimper
Striker
- Joined
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Ha, nice try. :raspberry:
You have to go with the home side. We do after all play at Roots Hall.
OldBlueLady
Junior Blues Coordinator⭐⭐
I am liking this thinking :smile: particularly as YB hadn't voted!
MK Shrimper
Striker
- Joined
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- Messages
- 52,643
Oh the pressure. Sorry Ricey, Roots goes through.
OldBlueLady
Junior Blues Coordinator⭐⭐
Sorry Ricey x:smiles:
steveo
mine to stay the same please
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2005
- Messages
- 7,545
Cant remember seeing anything in the rules about homefield advantage. I would appeal if I were you Ricey.
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