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njderoche's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
This book was incredibly inspiring, I learned so much and it made me want to start writing again. These women spoke about their craft in such an accessible, compelling way. Their critiques of society, the literary world, each others works, and their own work wove together in a very cohesive way, despite each writer having a different perspective, a different approach. My biggest criticism of the book is that the interview questions felt choppy, they didn’t flow into the next in a natural, conversational way. There were answers given that could’ve been elaborated or expanded upon, but were not given the space to do so.
apollos_books's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
i am a better writer, scholar, and participant in society after having read this book. such an astonishing collection of mediations on not just writing, but society and LIFE from some of the greatest minds of human history. there is such an incredible RANGE of voices here - each writer had something unique and personal to offer. my copy is now densely annotated and i am continuing to copy quotes and journal about them. i did not expect to feel so emotional after almost every interview, but this book really gave me something (multiple things really) that i deeply deeply needed. this book is now near and dear to my heart. i will be revisiting and referencing it for many many years to come.
thank you SOOO much to haymarket for bringing this back in print. i simply cannot believe it was unavailable for so long.
thank you SOOO much to haymarket for bringing this back in print. i simply cannot believe it was unavailable for so long.
soafricane's review against another edition
5.0
A brazen and valiant collage of Black women writers’ interviews that I hope returns to print soon because these are urgent times and these are urgent musings on the Black radical folkloric/literary tradition.
Selected writers from Toni Cade Bambara to Margaret Walker vitalized my heart for literature and offered concise yet generous critiques of their own work as well as that of other writers.
Portions responding to the virginal purities of white womanhood as well as the violences wreaked upon Black women by both black men and white men were swollen with emotion and utterly moored.
Personal vignettes of their interior lives pepper the interviews rather well.
It feels like being taken back to the very beginnings of literature as a domain; to all who were originally excluded from it.
Selected writers from Toni Cade Bambara to Margaret Walker vitalized my heart for literature and offered concise yet generous critiques of their own work as well as that of other writers.
Portions responding to the virginal purities of white womanhood as well as the violences wreaked upon Black women by both black men and white men were swollen with emotion and utterly moored.
Personal vignettes of their interior lives pepper the interviews rather well.
It feels like being taken back to the very beginnings of literature as a domain; to all who were originally excluded from it.
keondra's review against another edition
5.0
i really took my time with this one - not because it wasn’t engaging, but it is a work to be savored and carefully digested. i enjoyed hearing from so many writers in their own words and grappling with what it means to write and the implications and consequences brought on by their perceived and self-defined gender and racial/socio-economic place in society. it’s also a gift to bear witness to the self-conceptualization of writers who have now solidified their place in the canon. Ntozake Shange and Audre Lorde’s chapters were highlights. for those interested in a history of black american letters, there are several references to out of print and rare texts from a broad range of writers in the collection. a welcome bonus!
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