by Valerie Boyd
First published 2022
Valerie Boyd assembles voices from Pearl Cleage, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Tayari Jones, Kiese Laymon, Jason Reynolds, Alice Walker, and others to document Black experiences during twin crises of COVID-19 and systemic racism. The collection mixes original essays and poems with influential nonfiction pieces. Karen Good Marable blasts "Whip My Hair" during quarantine car rides with her daughter. Deesha Philyaw categorizes Zoom calls by whether they require a bra. Pearl Cleage draws connections between the current moment and the AIDS epidemic. Jason Reynolds explores heat and flavor as ways to honor his father's memory. Boyd structures the anthology as a loose chronology of this unprecedented period, using poems as breathing space between prose pieces. The contributors write from within the experience rather than looking back at it. Family gatherings, music, meals, and home anchor these accounts. The collection records how Black Americans claimed joy as resistance during a time of isolation and upheaval.
Genres: anthologies, african-american, contemporary, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional-atmospheric, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, personal-narrative
Period: AIDS Epidemic, COVID-19 Pandemic
256 pages · Paperback · Lookout Books
Content warnings: racism