Page Title

MEMOIRS

THE FIRE IN MY SOUL - A MEMOIR
written by Tim Sheard WCPCA Member (with Delbert McCoy)

Oral history, working at the auto factory, the limitations of the profit-based health
care system, and the personal challenge of a devastating illness are brought vividly to
life in The Fire In My Soul – a memoir. This book (196 pages) tells the mesmerizing
story of Delbert Mccoy, a young African-American auto worker, husband and father
of two infant daughters, who found himself engulfed in a fire set by two arsonists at a
teen disco in Detroit. As McCoy struggles to survive, his family and friends work
tirelessly to keep his hope and his health intact.

The book captures the collective spirit of the working class, its deep abiding faith, its
day-to-day struggles to put food on the table and a roof over their heads. It shows the
importance of the family when an individual must cope with hardship. And it recalls
the lives of Detroit families, who sent their children to the grandparent’s farm in the
south to work – the working class version of camp; who thrilled to the new Motown
sound coming from downtown clubs; and who followed the decline of the auto
industry and their beloved city.

Students in colleges across the country have enjoyed A Fire in my Soul. McCoy’s
experiences draw the reader through the book with the power of a best selling thriller.
And the joy, love and faith that the McCoy family share with each other reminds us
of the strength and moral fortitude of the working class.

The book is an excellent choice for classes in sociology, American history, psychology,
medicine, nursing, and English reading and composition

CLASS STRUCTURE

Charlesworth, Simon. 2000. A Phenomenology of Working-Class Experience.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.