Bulletproof Diva [Paperback]

Lisa Jones (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 19, 1997

In Bulletproof Diva, Lisa  Jones brings the wit and candor of her infamous  Village Voice column, "Skin Trade,"  to a much larger audience. Chock full of the  "fierce black girl humor" that has made her  column so popular, this provocative collection of  essays and observations on race, sex, identity, and  the politics of style speaks to a young generation  of blacks who were raised in an integrated society  and are now waiting for America to deliver on its  promises of equality. The thirty-seven short  pieces and six long essays in Bulletproof  Diva cover a wide range of topics, many of them  extremely controversial. Jones moves smoothly from  issues of ethnicity in a changing America,  challenging viewpoints on African-American  and mixed race identity, to "butt theory"  and the roller-coaster politics of black hair.  Written in a style that is as appealing as it is  unapologetic, Bulletproof Diva  marks the debut of a genuinely gifted young writer  with a distinctive voice and a fresh perspective on  the black cultural scene.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Style is political, of course," remarks Jones in one of the essays of this volume; and she proves her point through a series of impressionistic tales of the lives of African American women that demonstrates that the politics of style are linked integrally with the politics of race and gender. "For black women without access to the room of one's own to make leisure-time art," Jones explains, "our bodies, our style, became the canvas of our cultural yearning." Accordingly, the essays, culled mainly from Jones's "Skin Trade" column in the Village Voice , uncover layers of signification behind everything from lifestyles to hairstyles--she reads "the hair trade as American social text." The insights yielded by these vignettes are particularly noteworthy because of the gap, explored by Jones adroitly, between the lives, ambitions and desires of the real women she writes of and the reductive, often negative iconography of black women in mainstream American culture. The Bulletproof Diva, a woman who cuts her own trail through the complex terrain of American culture without internalizing the repressive stereotypes this culture offers her as prefabricated forms of self-knowledge, comes to life repeatedly in these pages, yet is all but invisible elsewhere in the American media. Jones argues that it's time we recognize and celebrate her existence. Wickedly witty, savvy and on occasion breathtakingly insightful, these essays turn style into substance.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Jones covers the politics of style in a regular column, "Skin Trade," for the Village Voice , and this collection offers a sampling of her perspective on the contemporary black cultural experience. In essays ranging from an analysis of "supermama" roles for black women in films to the politics of hair care products, she explores what it means to be black in America today. Considering subjects that are seldom treated in the mainstream press, her distinctive voice offers new ways of seeing issues of gender, sex, and ethnicity. Jones, the daughter of writers Amiri Baraka and Hettie Jones, struggles with her own identity as a multicultural woman of the 1990s, weaving personal experiences with her reflections on the world she finds. The resulting essays are sometimes funny, often provocative, and always thought-provoking. Having coauthored three books with filmmaker Spike Lee, this is Jones's first solo effort and should be considered for purchase by most libraries. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 12/93.
- Judy Solberg, Univ. of Maryland Libs., College Park
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Anchor (February 19, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385471238
• ISBN-13: 978-0385471237
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.8 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #715,744 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars BulletProof Diva For Sure January 4, 2000

By "isislovechild"

Format:Paperback

I read this book in a 11th grade English Composition Summer School Class, my teacher was realitivly new and wanted to keeps us interested, so out comes the class trip to a local Bookstore to hear Ms. Jones read from her Book. All week long we had been going over it and I was impressed! Being a young Black female I could totally relate to the issuse in the book especially the ones on hair. In person Ms. Jones is very personable and funny. Reading this book and meeting her in person has given me the determination to continue my writing career in hopes that I too will become one of the Lisa Jones of the World. The Book itself is Funny,Interesting and at times very emotionally charged. I recommend it highly

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Better the 2nd time around February 21, 2000

By Char

Format:Paperback

I bought this book about 5 years ago, read it, loved it, then put it on the shelf. I've recently picked it back up and read it a 2nd time. I loved it even more. The essays are sharp, well-written, funny and "real". This is writer who truly loves being black and female and it shows in every word. I especially loved her insight into the "rainbow babies" as she loves to call interracial folks. This is book that you can pick up time and time again and still learn something new!

Ms. Jones, where's the 2nd collection of essays?

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, well written. April 12, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

If you don't have this book.....get it, you will not be dissapointed. It is well written. I am reading it for the second time, and even now I am enlightened by things I may have missed the first time.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a must read for every woman December 13, 2003

By "yemaya_phoenixfire"

Format:Paperback

I purchased this book when I was still a teenager, and to be honest, I dont remember what attracted me to the book. I like to consider it one of those moments where fate leads you to somthing that will make life-journies a lot easier.

Bulletproof Diva became "my bible" I carried it in my bookbag along with my schoolbooks and dreamed of becoming a woman like Lisa Jones who so eloquently articulates her lessons her passions, her battles and her life. I am now 26 years old, and my worn dog eared copy of this book (which has survived a building collapse, two moves and several tempermental boyfriends) is still listed as a favorite.

I hope that it will inspire, elevate and nourish your soul, as it has mine!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars INCREDIBLE April 21, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

She needs to write another and another and another. I thought I was actually there in her memories....real time....in color. I have read this book several times and I am suggesting it to be read for a book club I belong to. A great read!!!!!

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny and honest critic of Black Pop Culture December 16, 2007

By Naoki

Format:Paperback

I have only recently purchased this book and must say that Lisa Jones is hilarious! Her analysis about everything in black pop culture from big bottoms to blaxploitation puts a humorous spin on race in the United States. I really enjoyed how much of herself (Jewish, Black, woman) she put into the novel. I wish that she would continue to make essays such as these and keep them aligned with current events.

Though some of the events she talks about are dated news events (Mike Tyson rape and Dr. Dre assaulting Dee Barnes), her appropriately hilarious outlook makes reading her essays relevant even today.

I highly recommend this book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Rainbow baby's guide to life. April 19, 2006

By Aero-Faerie

Format:Paperback

My mum gave me this book a couple years ago and it opened my eyes to different ideas about race. I'm 15 and a few references to the old days are above me but this book speaks to me. It's the perfect cure for an identity crisis and Ms Jones thought processes are deep and humorous.

I especially love the essay "Tragedy Becomes Her" and "Is Biracial Enough". The essays in part 2 - Bring the Heroines made me think about the maltreatment of black women and gave me more reason to be proud of my mum and grandma's and aunties.

It's a good book to give to young black women especially to help them see that they are worth more than people will lead them to believe.

Pure genius.

5.0 out of 5 stars INCREDIBLE April 21, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

She needs to write another and another and another. I thought I was actually there in her memories....real time....in color. I have read this book several times and I am suggesting it to be read for a book club I belong to. A great read!!!!!