A review by slowreadingjohn
Virgin Soul by Judy Juanita

3.0

In summary, this is the journey of how a young black woman is radicalized in the late 1960s and becomes a Black Panther. It is very informative of the inner workings of the Black Panther Party and the name dropping is great for those who may be unfamiliar with many key radicals of the time. It’s rare to hear from the perspective of a non-famous young person in the thick of the Black Power movement. I gave this book three stars because many aspects of the main character’s life don’t add up for me or are unclear. The main character takes on many responsibilities/activities throughout the novel. She’s a full time student, has a job, a boyfriend/boyfriends, and working for her student newspaper. But, the book doesn’t make it clear how she balances all this. They’re all mentioned so sparingly that I forgot she was involved in some of these activities or had previously mentioned friends. Some of her “friends” pop up so randomly and rarely you forget them but when they appear, she speaks of them as if they’re very close. The novel feels poorly edited. The writer doesn’t do a good job of making you understand some of her relationships or her choices regarding relationships. There is so much randomness. I think it’s a missed opportunity for a 4 or 5 star novel.