A review by chaetrain
White Girls by Hilton Als

challenging dark funny reflective tense medium-paced

4.25

tristes tropiques is the most beautiful essay i’ve ever read. als’ voice is so lush and rich and sharp. he is equally unafraid to meander and to go in. besides tristes tropiques, loved the piece on louise brooks, andre leon talley, gwtw, and richard pryor. there’s a lot to learn from him as a writer- he switches up form so much but his voice feels so distinctively his.  i definitely definitely don’t agree w a lot of his takes but he makes them so definitively and seductively that even when i don’t agree i still admire them. and rly just enjoy the way he continuously prods at the edges of race gender and sex with the fluid rigor of his language. so good and also quite difficult