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A review by lindseyzank
Jam on the Vine by LaShonda Katrice Barnett
3.0
*3.5 stars*
Ivoe, an African American, Muslim, lesbian girl turned woman is a rebellious character who likes to challenge the status quo with her mere existence. The novel traces her coming of age, starting in 1898 at 9 years old and ending in the mid to late 1920s when Ivoe is in her 30s. I learned so much about life in Texas as a Black Muslim family. Barnett is clearly a scholar; she weaves her story with so much information about what life was like in both Texas and Kansas at the turn of the century for Black citizens. In detail, she depicts not only the physical and financial effects of segregation and Jim Crow laws but also the deeply emotional and psychological ones. She covers a lot of ground: from transportation and housing segregation to mass incarceration and chain gangs to the challenges facing Black business owners. Barnett also incorporates Black intellectual thought (a la DuBois and Washington) in the newspaper stories that Ivoe writes, and I found that discussion, albeit maybe a little bit too scholarly for the average reader, fascinating and informative. But this story is also a love story between Ivoe and the love of her life and how their interests in writing and journalism inextricably bind them. More lesbian characters and love stories are needed in literature, in my opinion, and this one, while not the most romantic or satisfying (it’s not the main focus of the story) is inspiring, considering all of the oppression and obstacles (both internal and external) that Ivoe and her lover have to overcome to be together.
Ivoe, an African American, Muslim, lesbian girl turned woman is a rebellious character who likes to challenge the status quo with her mere existence. The novel traces her coming of age, starting in 1898 at 9 years old and ending in the mid to late 1920s when Ivoe is in her 30s. I learned so much about life in Texas as a Black Muslim family. Barnett is clearly a scholar; she weaves her story with so much information about what life was like in both Texas and Kansas at the turn of the century for Black citizens. In detail, she depicts not only the physical and financial effects of segregation and Jim Crow laws but also the deeply emotional and psychological ones. She covers a lot of ground: from transportation and housing segregation to mass incarceration and chain gangs to the challenges facing Black business owners. Barnett also incorporates Black intellectual thought (a la DuBois and Washington) in the newspaper stories that Ivoe writes, and I found that discussion, albeit maybe a little bit too scholarly for the average reader, fascinating and informative. But this story is also a love story between Ivoe and the love of her life and how their interests in writing and journalism inextricably bind them. More lesbian characters and love stories are needed in literature, in my opinion, and this one, while not the most romantic or satisfying (it’s not the main focus of the story) is inspiring, considering all of the oppression and obstacles (both internal and external) that Ivoe and her lover have to overcome to be together.