A review by metafiktion
Afrekete: An Anthology of Black Lesbian Writing by L. Joyce DeLaney, Catherine E. McKinley
2.0
Catherine E. McKinley introduces this book as such:
And it does deliver exactly on that, though I found myself wishing for tighter curation as the variation among the stories was too much for me to fully enjoy the whole collection. Some clear favourites emerged though: I loved Jacqueline Woodson’s Tuesday, August Third and learnt a lot from Jackie Goldsby’s Queen for 307 Days.
I’m conscious that I’m reviewing this book with the immense privilege of having read it almost 24 years after it was first published, now in an age where queer Black literature is a lot more readily found (though ofc the publishing scene is still far from ideal). This means that say, the Biblical back-and-forth in Linda Villarosa’s Revelations — as the author and her detractors trade quotes from scripture on homosexuality — represents discourse so familiar to me now it no longer comes across as revelatory. I’m also aware that I’m approaching it as a non-Black reader, i.e. arguably not the primary audience for which this book is intended, so I do appreciate its importance situated in the time and place in which it was published even if it might not personally speak to me.
”The contributors and these editors identify as lesbian, gay, zamis, dykes, queers, Black, African, African-American, biracial—and often may use these terms and others interchangeably. And while sexuality, or race for that matter, is and is not always at the center of their work, both deeply inform the writer’s vision. The work featured is written in a range of styles, a breadth of aesthetics reflecting the birthing and meshing of seemingly disparate artistic sensibilities and traditions: Black and queer, as well as others.
And it does deliver exactly on that, though I found myself wishing for tighter curation as the variation among the stories was too much for me to fully enjoy the whole collection. Some clear favourites emerged though: I loved Jacqueline Woodson’s Tuesday, August Third and learnt a lot from Jackie Goldsby’s Queen for 307 Days.
I’m conscious that I’m reviewing this book with the immense privilege of having read it almost 24 years after it was first published, now in an age where queer Black literature is a lot more readily found (though ofc the publishing scene is still far from ideal). This means that say, the Biblical back-and-forth in Linda Villarosa’s Revelations — as the author and her detractors trade quotes from scripture on homosexuality — represents discourse so familiar to me now it no longer comes across as revelatory. I’m also aware that I’m approaching it as a non-Black reader, i.e. arguably not the primary audience for which this book is intended, so I do appreciate its importance situated in the time and place in which it was published even if it might not personally speak to me.