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casparb's review against another edition
firstly anthropological, don't wander in imagining a novel. Zora's talking about voodoo in Haiti & Jamaica & o my it is WILD what she was permitted to see, firsthand accounts in Tell My Horse of rituals you would imagine? are private? detail on zombies. & she's coming from such a calm & available place, partly I think because of her anthropological background in college and so forth. but delicious. a quiet entry in some ways , in others, so much.
also go watch this three minute film with her exquisite ! voice!:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chfQ44g2g1I
also go watch this three minute film with her exquisite ! voice!:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chfQ44g2g1I
karinlib's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting travelogue and expose of voodooism in Jamaica and Haiti.
lindsayb's review against another edition
3.0
I am super fascinated by Hurston's anthropological work, and her treatment of the voodoo and politics of Haiti and Jamaica was terrific...but...I think the delivery was difficult for me. I loved it when her wit shone through, but there's a lot of "this happened, then this, then this," which made me doze off or read for pages without actually reading and then I had to back up. And not having a working knowledge of Haiti's history, I had a hard time following the often non-linear addressing of that topic. I am looking forward to reading some more of Hurston's nonfiction, though, to see how it compares.
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Read Harder: Book published between 1900-1950
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Read Harder: Book published between 1900-1950
mariesreads's review against another edition
3.0
Informative and entertaining--Hurston had such an elegant and simple style, and could really create a memorable image.
jeriklein's review
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
3.0
Tell My Horse is billed as a memoir about voodoo rituals in Haiti and Jamaica. However voodoo isn’t even mentioned until after page 100 (what?!)
The deep dive into voodoo rituals (when she finally gete there) is worth a read, however her storytelling + overall writing style is just not my cup of tea. With that said, I’m told if you liked her famous novel Their Eyes Were Watching God (which I have not read) then you will greatly enjoy this book.
natbennett's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
4.25
passionyoungwrites's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
“Gods always behave like the people who make them.”
🐎
This book follows Zora as she travels through Haiti and Jamaica learning the ins and out of the Voodoo religion and culture. So if you’re interested in the History, Culture, and Practice of Voodoo this is an informative read.
Zora explores and learns about race, colorism, medicine, politics, customs around burial, birth, and marriage as well as Voodoo saints. She also writes about zombies, and how they are “turned”.
🐎
Much of this read is actual encounters she experienced as well as conversations with important people that she met along the way.
Though I thought the book may have been structurdifferently - it was an interesting read to get an in depth insight on Voodoo itself as well as the life of those in Haiti and Jamaica.
🐎
This book follows Zora as she travels through Haiti and Jamaica learning the ins and out of the Voodoo religion and culture. So if you’re interested in the History, Culture, and Practice of Voodoo this is an informative read.
Zora explores and learns about race, colorism, medicine, politics, customs around burial, birth, and marriage as well as Voodoo saints. She also writes about zombies, and how they are “turned”.
🐎
Much of this read is actual encounters she experienced as well as conversations with important people that she met along the way.
Though I thought the book may have been structurdifferently - it was an interesting read to get an in depth insight on Voodoo itself as well as the life of those in Haiti and Jamaica.
jonbrammer's review against another edition
4.0
Everything Hurston touched with her pen turned to gold. Easily one of the five best American novelists of the 20th Century, ZNH was also an anthropologist and folklorist. Tell My Horse explores the culture and customs of Jamaica and Haiti, with a harrowing descriptions of a pig hunt, zombies, and secret cannibal societies. Hurston maintains her witty, particular voice throughout, placing herself as a character on the scene, someone who is trusted to share in the most arcane rituals.
There is some discussion in the postscript of Hurston's chauvinism, in the way she pronounces some dancing "barbaric" and is drawn to the more lurid aspects of voodooism. Throughout her life, she had a more conservative, contrarian bent than many of her AA contemporaries (like Richard Wright). She is not interested in the politics the black experience in the Western Hemisphere, just as she does not idealize her subject matter. She does idealize a white doctor who presides over an insane asylum, a friend who introduced her to some of the elites in the Port au Prince expat community. There is anundertone of disparagement towards Haitians (they are corrupt liars), reminiscent of the character of Mrs. Turner in Their Eyes Were Watching God.
There is some discussion in the postscript of Hurston's chauvinism, in the way she pronounces some dancing "barbaric" and is drawn to the more lurid aspects of voodooism. Throughout her life, she had a more conservative, contrarian bent than many of her AA contemporaries (like Richard Wright). She is not interested in the politics the black experience in the Western Hemisphere, just as she does not idealize her subject matter. She does idealize a white doctor who presides over an insane asylum, a friend who introduced her to some of the elites in the Port au Prince expat community. There is anundertone of disparagement towards Haitians (they are corrupt liars), reminiscent of the character of Mrs. Turner in Their Eyes Were Watching God.