The other side of the river
Subtitle: a story of two towns, a death, and America's dilemma
By: Alex Kotlowitz.
Edition: 1st ed.
Publisher: Nan A. Talese; Nan A. Talese/Doubleday
Published: 1998
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 317
Subjects: McGinnis, Eric, d. 1991; Hate crimes -- Michigan -- Saint Joseph -- Case studies; Murder victims -- Michigan -- Saint Joseph -- Case studies; Saint Joseph (Mich.) -- Race relations -- Case studies; Benton Harbor (Mich.) -- Race relations -- Case studies
Description: In The Other Side of the River, Kotlowitz brings readers to two Michigan towns, St. Joseph and Benton Harbor. Separated by the St. Joseph River, they are geographically close, yet worlds apart: St. Joseph is a 95 percent white, prosperous lakeshore community, while Benton Harbor is impoverished and 92 percent black.

When the body of a black teenage boy from Benton Harbor is found in the river, unhealed wounds and suspicions between the two towns populations surface as well. The investigation into Eric Mcginnis's death inevitably becomes a screen onto which each community projects its resentments and fears.

Beautifully written and painstakingly reported, The Other Side of the River sensitively portrays the lives and hopes of the towns' citizens as they wrestle with this mystery and others - and reveals the attitudes and misperceptions that undermine race relations throughout America. This powerful story challenges us to think about our own assumptions about race, no matter which side of the river we live on.
Notes: Maps of the towns of St. Joseph and Benton Harbor, Michigan on endpapers.