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ollie_the_enby's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
Very interesting essays with a lot to think about! I did get a little lost a few times, as I was listening to the audiobook, so if that tends to happen to you, I suggest having the physical book as a companion to the audiobook. Also, some of her essays are a bit rambly and took a minute to figure out the point
She really liked noses!
She really liked noses!
podanotherjessi's review against another edition
I don't want to discourage anyone from reading this because I see the value, but I wasn't getting out of it what I was expecting. The essays (obviously) were very grounded in their historical time, which I just don't have the background knowledge to appreciate. There was also occasional of-the-time rhetoric that would be interesting to explore historically, but again I'm not in a position to do so. I think I would enjoy exploring these works with modern commentary attached, but on their own were hard to work through.
readsewknit's review against another edition
4.0
This new publication gathers together essays by Zora Neale Hurston, now annotated with footnotes on relevant events and people, information that may be lost to distance and years but would have been familiar to readers at the time of publication.
Hurston's range is apparent, and her humor and wit are on display. There's a scathing, condescending review of a short story volume of Richard Wright's (readers are informed in a footnote that he had widely panned Their Eyes Were Watching God). We read an insightful essay comparing the (poor) substitute of margarine to butter and likening it to poor caricatures of Blacks in the arts.
The changing times are on display in "The Lost Keys is Glory." It starts with a parable of how men and women were created fully equal in every way, then concessions were made to enhance men's strength and then, later, to grant women the keys (to cradle, kitchen, bedroom), and through this tension they found ways to live together and use their strengths to gain what they desired from the other. But the essay morphs into an analysis of men's superiority and how wives must tread lightly when considering employment outside of the home, how such decisions could give them a misguided focus on priorities and lead their husbands to lose interest in them (a curious piece to analyze, given Hurston married -- and divorced -- three husbands).
In "I Saw Negro Votes Peddled," Hurston holds her peers to account, calling them out for selling votes and ignoring the possible impact they could have. She minces no words when she's challenging others to do better.
There are so many more topics, but the final section is a series of articles she wrote that illuminated a murder trial where a rich black women was charged with killing her white lover. Through courtroom accounts and interviews, Hurston pieces together particulars of the story.
As one who had limited exposure to Hurston's work previously, having only read her memoir, I enjoyed diving into this expansive collection, as Hurston demonstrates her skill as a journalist and an anthropologist.
(I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)
Hurston's range is apparent, and her humor and wit are on display. There's a scathing, condescending review of a short story volume of Richard Wright's (readers are informed in a footnote that he had widely panned Their Eyes Were Watching God). We read an insightful essay comparing the (poor) substitute of margarine to butter and likening it to poor caricatures of Blacks in the arts.
The changing times are on display in "The Lost Keys is Glory." It starts with a parable of how men and women were created fully equal in every way, then concessions were made to enhance men's strength and then, later, to grant women the keys (to cradle, kitchen, bedroom), and through this tension they found ways to live together and use their strengths to gain what they desired from the other. But the essay morphs into an analysis of men's superiority and how wives must tread lightly when considering employment outside of the home, how such decisions could give them a misguided focus on priorities and lead their husbands to lose interest in them (a curious piece to analyze, given Hurston married -- and divorced -- three husbands).
In "I Saw Negro Votes Peddled," Hurston holds her peers to account, calling them out for selling votes and ignoring the possible impact they could have. She minces no words when she's challenging others to do better.
There are so many more topics, but the final section is a series of articles she wrote that illuminated a murder trial where a rich black women was charged with killing her white lover. Through courtroom accounts and interviews, Hurston pieces together particulars of the story.
As one who had limited exposure to Hurston's work previously, having only read her memoir, I enjoyed diving into this expansive collection, as Hurston demonstrates her skill as a journalist and an anthropologist.
(I received a digital ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.)
glendareads39's review
4.0
You don't know us Negroes and other essays is a brilliant and informative essay collection on the Black experience (Culture, Black Church and Black Expression). Hurston’s frustration and anger at the racist and demeaning way America has treated Black culture. Hurston artfully expresses herself in each of these essays. One of the most insightful essays in the book was about the trial and conviction of Ruby McCollum who murdered a prominent white doctor in 1952. This extensive essay collection spans over 35 years.
k80uva's review
4.0
A really interesting collection of essays, published and previously unpublished, by Zora Neale Hurston. Really illustrates what a sharp, often against-the-grain thinker she was, and a fascinating insight into the discourse of her day. Essay topics range widely, including some ethnographies of Black southern religious practices, scathing criticism of Marcus Garvey, Alain Locke, and some Black colleges, and even a funny little piece about noses.
honeycoveredpages's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
5.0