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peachachu 's review for:
Zami: A New Spelling of My Name
by Audre Lorde
I've dabbled in Audre Lorde's poetry but this was my first time reading her prose, which personally, I think is just as good if not better. Her writing style alternates between sharp and intimate, languid and sensual, poised and insightful. She glosses over certain harrowing moments of her life with ease while drawing out meaning from seemingly mundane moments.
Frequently, Lorde mentions how she had no role models for how to "be" a young, black lesbian in the 1950s. In this sense, "Zami" feels like Lorde is opening an archive. Each page is an exercise in carving out her identity and committing it to historical record, the sheer novelty of it making the book that much more compelling. I would definitely recommend this one. You know a biography (or rather, "biomythography") is successful when you're intrigued both by the person's life, historical context, and the pressing implications it carries even in modern day.
Frequently, Lorde mentions how she had no role models for how to "be" a young, black lesbian in the 1950s. In this sense, "Zami" feels like Lorde is opening an archive. Each page is an exercise in carving out her identity and committing it to historical record, the sheer novelty of it making the book that much more compelling. I would definitely recommend this one. You know a biography (or rather, "biomythography") is successful when you're intrigued both by the person's life, historical context, and the pressing implications it carries even in modern day.