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tellsbooks's review against another edition
5.0
Yooo the transparencyyyy!
It takes guts to share this story and stand in it with your whole chest and Brian Broome did that!!!
...But you did tho! Brian Broome's written pieces let off several bells and I have so much gratitude for the effort that I'm sure it took to tell this story. That he allowed us to hold space for him, and took it upon himself to hold space for others, the future and the up and comers. The gay black boys who feel like there is no place for them. It's hard to read this story and not be changed, to not have your eyes opened to the complexities of growing up in households where manhood is transferred through brutality. It's so important to allow the space for kids to be who they are.
The savagery in households that seek to stifle the beauty of their children’s diversity is breathtaking and sad, it's even sadder when committed as an act of protection from white supremacy. This violence can be life-snatching for the kids who can't hold-on long enough to escape these places of violence and diminishment. Not to mention, it's difficult to not drown in spaces of minimal love and attention in the home and outright hate and discrimination in the classroom, on the campus, at work, etc. It's preposterous to side-eye unhealthy coping mechanisms, when you ain't seen health and wealth promoting activities around you. That's why when health and wealth gets made, you give folks their flowers, especially when they give back like this to their community.
This book was incredibly written. It was so vivid. Even the parts I wanted to be less vivid *cough* being chased down naked at a dick-swinging sex party *cough** were super vivid. My heart broke and then broke again and again and again and was restored as he found his way to the chosen home of James Baldwin.
This is a highly recommended read. More thoughts on it here.
It takes guts to share this story and stand in it with your whole chest and Brian Broome did that!!!
"I have no method to persuade you that the act of shoving your most tender feelings way down deep or trying somehow to numb them will only result in someone else having to pick up your pieces later." - 98% in 'Punch Me Up to the Gods' by Brian Broome
...But you did tho! Brian Broome's written pieces let off several bells and I have so much gratitude for the effort that I'm sure it took to tell this story. That he allowed us to hold space for him, and took it upon himself to hold space for others, the future and the up and comers. The gay black boys who feel like there is no place for them. It's hard to read this story and not be changed, to not have your eyes opened to the complexities of growing up in households where manhood is transferred through brutality. It's so important to allow the space for kids to be who they are.
The savagery in households that seek to stifle the beauty of their children’s diversity is breathtaking and sad, it's even sadder when committed as an act of protection from white supremacy. This violence can be life-snatching for the kids who can't hold-on long enough to escape these places of violence and diminishment. Not to mention, it's difficult to not drown in spaces of minimal love and attention in the home and outright hate and discrimination in the classroom, on the campus, at work, etc. It's preposterous to side-eye unhealthy coping mechanisms, when you ain't seen health and wealth promoting activities around you. That's why when health and wealth gets made, you give folks their flowers, especially when they give back like this to their community.
This book was incredibly written. It was so vivid. Even the parts I wanted to be less vivid *cough* being chased down naked at a dick-swinging sex party *cough** were super vivid. My heart broke and then broke again and again and again and was restored as he found his way to the chosen home of James Baldwin.
This is a highly recommended read. More thoughts on it here.
whatcourtneyreads's review against another edition
5.0
Punch Me Up to the Gods is not a memoir for the sake of writing a memoir, where an author writes 250 pages about their life from start to finish in an act of self-indulgence. Rather, Broome has something really profound to say about the intersections of racism in America, Black masculinity, and sexuality.
Broome takes the reader to some dark places, dwelling long enough that we feel uncomfortable, but there is always a point; a lesson to be learned, rather than simply being a story of a life of trauma. As a white person I feel like there’s always opportunity for learning, and I had a lot of moments of reflection on how sometimes without meaning to, we can become complicit just by saying or doing nothing, usually because we don’t *know* what to say or do.
As well as the power of Broome’s message, he is an exceptional writer. I understand that this book has won several awards, and I’m honestly not surprised. His words are like poetry, and at times I almost forgot that what I was reading was non-fiction. I found myself hoping by the end that one day he will write fiction, as his beautiful prose would serve it well.
I’m yet to read anything but glowing reviews for this book, and here’s another one to add to the pile!
Broome takes the reader to some dark places, dwelling long enough that we feel uncomfortable, but there is always a point; a lesson to be learned, rather than simply being a story of a life of trauma. As a white person I feel like there’s always opportunity for learning, and I had a lot of moments of reflection on how sometimes without meaning to, we can become complicit just by saying or doing nothing, usually because we don’t *know* what to say or do.
As well as the power of Broome’s message, he is an exceptional writer. I understand that this book has won several awards, and I’m honestly not surprised. His words are like poetry, and at times I almost forgot that what I was reading was non-fiction. I found myself hoping by the end that one day he will write fiction, as his beautiful prose would serve it well.
I’m yet to read anything but glowing reviews for this book, and here’s another one to add to the pile!
savvystory's review
5.0
I don’t think I’ve read a memoir like this before. Brian Broome manages to be honest about painful and embarrassing moments without being melodramatic. Heart wrenching without being cheesy. Inspiring and deep without relying on platitudes. His descriptions of things hit you in the gut, and you can imagine exactly how things felt. This is a perfect portrait of intersectionality. His empathy opens up the story to include the experience of his mom and Black women, his dad and Black men surviving white America, all while holding the edges of his unique experience as a gay, Black man.
journeytoreader's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
acechemicals's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
5.0
samantha_refvik's review against another edition
5.0
I do believe this was the best memoir I have ever read
erinthelibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
This was a fantastic and devastating memoir. Broome is GenX so his younger years grappling with his developing homosexuality was very rough all around, within his family and amongst his fellow Black students. His particular exclusionary life is heart breaking and eye opening. The intersection of race, masculinity and sexuality is very challenging in the Black community - especially due to how important religion is. I learned a lot and Brian's voice was strong and inspiring.
imchelsi's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
4.0
I don't read very much nonfiction but this was a heartwrenching and critical look at what it means to be black and gay, the the concept of masculinity as a whole. I really enjoyed the format and the culmination was very effective.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent