Reviews

I really struggled through this. It took me months (during which I read three other books) and I've been sitting with why. It finally hit me that I struggled through this book because it shows Lorde in all her complexity - in not only the shining light of her genius, but in the dark side of her petulance and constant need for recognition. It portrayed her in all of her humanity which in turn forced me to look at myself in all my dark and light. That's the beauty of this biography. It doesn't white wash anything about Audre Lorde and allows you to truly understand the inner and outer work it takes to be at the top of your game and reminds us that all of our greats are fallible humans. We all fear our own mortality and relevance. We change our opinions and positions as we expand our awareness of the world around us. We make mistakes in our interpersonal relationships. We need and sometimes ask for more than we give. But through it all we make our mark. We contribute to our collective growth and liberation. I'm thankful for Lorde's gift and the work Alexis De Veaux did to contextualize and humanize the person behind the art.

ehmannky's review

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I simply am not familiar enough with Audre Lorde's work as an activist or a poet to grasp this yet. I will return to this after some extensive reading with her writing to have the proper appreciation of this biography of her.

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