Lost in Language and Sound: Or How I Found My Way to the Arts:Essays

I received the item in a timely manner. For the most part, it was as described. However, there was a black mark across the outer edge of the book. I am building my hardback collection, so I was a little disappointed. Overall it was a good bargain.

This collection of essays was released earlier this month. Essays are usually hit or miss for me,overall this collection worked very well for me. I especially loved the first half, in which much of it read like a homage to African American dance,dancers Jazz. I only recognized a few of the dancers mentioned, I did a little better with the Jazz artist (though barely). But it did not matter either way, Ntozake Shange wrote in such a way that it made me feel like I knew them, or at the very least I felt their love of movement and that was more then a enough. The author reminisces about the beginning of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered When the Rainbow is Enuf. One of the messages I got from this collection was that you can try to steal or silence the African Americans but we will always new way to speak and be heard, be it through dance, music or any other artistic avenue of our choice."We must sing and dance or we shall die an inert, motionless, "sin ritmo" death. "Negros muertos," killed by a culture afraid of who we are and what we have to say with our bodies, our music, and our brains. Black folks do have brains. We even have ideologists, scholars, choreographers, and always the grace of the goods. "Reading this collection reminded me how much I love Ntozake Shange's work, there's a beautiful rhythm to her words which always have purpose. The author reveals much of herself in each piece. I truly enjoyed this lost in language & sound, though I did question the inclusion of one piece entitled "2 live crew" Black men demoralizing Black women is still an issue but I just felt the exploration of 2 live crews exploits was dated. Its in inclusion always halted a bit of the flow of the collection. However I still highly recommend lost language & sound without missing a beat.

Poetry and prose if presented and mixed well with a demonstrative esthetic can work wonders for anyone trying to illustrate artistic value. Obie award-winning author and principal of `for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf', Notozake Shange has given us yet, another gem after the acclaimed Some Sing, Some Cry. This time around it's `lost in language & sound.' Readers who may not be familiar with the author would get quite a bit of information behind the scenes as she writes poignantly her emanation from minor to major. As such, the book reads like an autobiographical sketch exploring and expounding on how linguistic fortitude and specific aspects of the humanities has shaped her voice and virtue. It's much more prolific as she gives a profound personal look at the reflections through flashbacks on what it means to be artistic without compromise, a woman of worth, while allowing her blackness to be all that the race requires.The book is unique in the fact that it's descriptive in how she got from point A to B and all other points in between! I like the fact that she wrote it in the style that is uniquely hers (i.e., writing in lower case and using backslashes throughout), and with a sense of continuity that doesn't lose the reader. I felt her angst, reveled in her passion for love of the arts in music and dance, and was in awe of why she had to dance, and why writing was much more than an expression. Written with three distinct themes, the chapters are short but inspiring, each with reasons for all things relative to the craft. If anything, the sheer stylistic rendering forces you to keep up with the pace without losing insight. Essays play a strong part in describing a storyline that defines clarity in specific points of view, and most importantly, telling more stories ranging from the sublime to dramatic interludes. Her celebrated play `for colored girls' is prominently highlighted relative to the fact that it defined her need to present on her own terms realigning the English language to allow that production to shine. In it, and vestiges of the book, it reaffirms both generically and individually the female experience, the black experience and racial overtones. The question rendered (and answered quite adequately) was how do one live the aforementioned lives simultaneously borrowing artistic traits from her father and mother and making them a vociferous force?Ntozake Shange wrote in such a way that it made me feel like I should have been there to witness first hand her maturation process, or at the very least know that she belongs head and heels along with her peers of other persuasions. Serious readers who're looking for something different without straying too far to the left should appreciated `language' of this magnitude, and fans of the author would be grateful to add this book to others written by this gifted writer. There's a beautiful cadence to her words that flow like the the best river without rapids, but full of purposeful rhythm. I had no problem rating this book 5 stars (out of 5) and recommend it for the masses!

Readers who may not be familiar with the author would get quite a bit of information behind the scenes as she writes poignantly her emanation from minor to major. As such, the book reads like an autobiographical sketch exploring and expounding on how linguistic fortitude and specific aspects of the humanities has shaped her voice and virtue. It's much more prolific as she gives a profound personal look at the reflections through flashbacks on what it means to be artistic without compromise, a woman of worth, while allowing her blackness to be all that the race requires.The book is unique in the fact that it's descriptive in how she got from point A to B and all other points in between! I like the fact that she wrote it in the style that is uniquely hers (i.e., writing in lower case and using backslashes throughout), and with a sense of continuity that doesn't lose the reader. Written with three distinct themes, the chapters are short but inspiring, each with reasons for all things relative to the craft. Read the full review and more book reviews from AALBC.com on your Kindle Edition