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Introduction

Black Boy (1945) is an autobiography by Richard Wright. Depicting Wright's life in great detail, the book tells the story of his troubled youth and race relations in the South. It is about the struggles that many of his race had to go through to survive in the early 1900's. In the story, Richard is a non-religious child who grows up in a racist world. He must overcome those struggles to bring himself and loved family members to the north. There he becomes involved with the Communist party. Richard is a very lonely person, which allows him to realize the many advantages of reading books.