If a girlfriend told you she was pregnant and did not give birth for twenty-four months, would you listen?

What if that same girlfriend told you she had millions upon millions invested into Turner Broadcasting Systems but she resided in the ghettos of Los Angeles, would she have your attention then?

What if that same friend, at this time probably a distant friend, bore a child resembling a famous actor and named the infant Not Sidney Poitier?

That's exactly the storyline presented by author Percival Everett in the book I  Am Not Sidney Poitier.  In doing so, he "cliff notes" various settings of the real Mr. Poitier's movies. For example, the relationship with his teacher mimics the scene of "To Sir With Love"; class and race boundaries at Thanksgiving dinner resembles some facets of "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner", and more. The connection to his movies are least obvious unless you truly know Poitier's acting career.  

But wait!  There's more . . . . 

This tale is an assembly of oddities.  A convention of characters that make you say "huh".  There is an order of nuns who are not Catholic and eat only bread.  There is an escaped convict who says Poitier is an effeminate name even though his own name is Patrice. The dialogue between Am Not Sidney (aka Nu'Ott) and a fictional Ted Turner is far more hilarious and dizzying; Turner holds one conversation on three topics in no sequential order.

I Am Not Sidney Poitier is meant to be unbelievable and exceptionally fictional. Simple fiction.  Readers' caution: the sex scenes are abrupt and deemed unnecessary.

The book club gave this read 4.8 out of 5.0 rating.

Copies of I am Not Sidney Poitier are available at the Weekend Reader Book Shop. 

Next month the book club meets on April 10th at 10:30.  We will discuss Pirate Latitude by Michael Crichton.