Reviews with content warning for Racism - For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf by Ntozake Shange

9 reviews

bashsbooks's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

I pulled this off the shelf at my local library without many thoughts beyond "What's a choreopoem?" The answer BLEW ME AWAY. It's a combination of song and dance, poetry and play. The stars of this choreopoem are seven black women identified only by their colors: the lady in red, lady in orange, lady in yellow, lady in green, lady in blue, lady in brown, and lady in purple. In this smashing combination of mediums, these women explore racism, domestic & child abuse, rape, and abortion - to name only a few of the tough topics they get into. And yet, it's not a read that bogs you down as much as it opens your eyes. It's dynamic. It's difficult to describe because I've never read anything else remotely like it. I wish I could see it performed.

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zombiezami's review against another edition

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emotional fast-paced

5.0

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tabithae's review

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

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funmilayo's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

& this is for colored girls who have considered
suicide/ but are movin to the ends of their own
rainbows

This was one of the most intriguing and intimate poems I've ever read and I truly wish that I could see it as a performance (which is also why I didn't give it 5 stars).
I won't pretend as though I understood everything but I do believe that I felt everything this poem wanted to make me feel and more than anything this poem made me feel understood as a black woman and it made me feel loved and comforted. I don't think that I'll ever get to read anything that is quite like this again but that just means that I'll get to return to this poem again and again and rediscover it and myself every single time.
I don't really have the words to express my deep adorarion for this piece of writing.
Just know that it is one of those poems that will stay with you for the rest of your live.
I think I'll just end this review with one of my favourite verses:

i sat up one nite walkin a boardin house
screamin / cryin / the ghost of another woman
who waz missin what i waz missin
i wanted to jump up outta my bones
& be done wit myself
leave me alone
& go on in the wind
it waz too much
i fell into a numbness
til the only tree i cd see
took me up in her branches
held me in the breeze
made me dawn dew
that chill at daybreak
the sun wrapped me up swingin rose light everywhere
the sky laid over me like a million men
i waz cold/ i waz burnin up/ a child
& endlessly weavin garments for the moon
wit my tears

i found god in myself
& i loved her/ i loved her fiercly

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