Customer Reviews

Chocolate Thoughts: Short Stories, Essays and Poetry from the Hearts and Minds of Real Black Men

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I loved the writings. My heart was moved. Chocolate Thoughts is definitely going to be one of the hottest books out. Reading all of the writings through first person gives the reader a level of connection and kept me interested. Lately, I have had only tears of frustration and hurt, but the reading of Chocolate Thoughts brought tears of joy and laughter. I was moved by the writings because it challenged me to think about how I look at my own views and past relationships. One of the best things about Chocolate Thoughts is that you feel as if you're getting secret information that nobody else is privileged to know about concerning Black men. Clearly I enjoyed it and recommend it with a smile.

I have never had the pleasure of knowing a love so true as described in "Dedicated To You". Reading my eyes teared. I want to know the type of love that can be equated with that of Jesus' love for his people. You have me thristy for that type of love. I never conceived the notion that a man could ever love a woman so deeply. Just the fact that love must have been felt before describing in writing, a ffirms the fact that it does exist and leaves the reader hungry for more. I want to know more about this person. I want to know how they attained this level of happiness and completion. I must say that I went to sleep last night imagining a love so true and almost convinced myself

I have never read a book that spoke so much to the issues I have had with Black men in my own life. The stories concerning love and relationships are real. They touch you way deep down inside. At times my emotions were all over the place. Some of the stories regarding love are so beautiful that it made me just melt on the spot. Every one of the short story, essay and poetry resulted in me gaining unbelievable insight into Black men. I will forever be different and see Black men as different. In some cases that is better and in other cases that isn't good, but that is life. I like it so much that I purchased two more books even before I finished the book. Chocolate Thoughts was so good I wanted other people I care about to read what I was reading so that we can talk about it. This is definitely the type of book that is going to cause many a conversation. You will find yourself laughing, crying and praying. I will never forget Chocolate Thoughts and never will you.

If every man could love and appreciate their mate with such conviction that nature itself takes notice of that particular relationship, our society would most certainly be a different world. We fail miserably in knowing that it is not how much you love but the way in which we love. Mr. Guitard through the simplistic eloquence of his literary ability has definitely demonstrated that. Superbly written, I herald his work. He truly must be a scholar of Langston Hughes and James Baldwin.

Chocolate Thoughts provided a much needed relief from the convoluted shelves of the proverbial "no-good black man" and "scorned, revenge-filled woman" sagas being printed today. It was refreshing to return to a day of hope that a black union full of unconditional love exists within the souls of black men somewhere (the key is the union taking place). We have long since gotten away from the period of time surrounding slavery and the civil rights movement where I believe some of these heartfelt truths were birthed from. It did pose a question - Will we ever return to those days? With the over-saturation of hip-hop on our culture, the belief that I must be a global cultural lover (and you know where I could go with this one), and the absence of the foundation of appreciation for true black love paints a picture of frustration that we have a journey ahead of us. I say us because amid all these short stories, essays, and poems is the existence of a woman. To some extent I agree that although well-intended by the authors of each piece, we are not being truthful in what we see in front of us today. I would welcome the opportunity to talk to the individuals who helped to compose this book via a panel discussion to delve deeper into their inspiration for holding true to this/these principle(s) or if this was truly another book written to play upon hopes, wishes, and dreams of the black woman. We still wait patiently on our King but there are days when I don't think the converse is true (or at least not until every path is explored good or bad and then a last resort is chosen in some instances). All in all, its warmth, sweetness, and smoothness provide just the right amount of comfort and satisfaction when that craving arises. I recommend adding it to your collection.

Chocolate thoughts are collection of essays and short stores of men views on love, racism, and other things that black me go through. I throught the essay were really good an very informative about how black men think.

I applaud this author for his frankness, insight, spirituality, and yes, courage. A black man, intelligent and audacious enough to speak truth, will inevitably draw the ire of black and white critics who have a stake in the tired old stereotypes about the dysfunctional black male. Black men aren't the one dimensional people represented in popular media, and Mr. Guitard successfully illustrates thier rich diversity through his myriad characters. Throughout the book, Mr. Guitard remains true to his theme, that black men, for good reason, view the world through a different lens. Society doesn't give enough credit to those black men who go from the board room to the bedroom to the block and keep it real in each place.

I felt the book captured some of the romantic thoughts that Black men have towards our sisters... It really tapped into several "unwritten" rules of dating and beginning (or ending) relationships. An excellent book.

My faith in Black men in this world has been restored. The words written goes through you. You can feel the love and confidence as he speaks from the heart.

In Chocolate Thoughts, it appears that one very intuitiveauthor has been able to capture the essence of the Black man. The "man" or "men" in the essays go from being angry frustrated in "Time Bomb" to syrupy sweet in "Who's Fault Is It". This book reinforces what I have always believed: Black men experience a full range of emotions - not just the anger and machismo that are often used to hide their vulnerability. It is comforting to hear such varied thoughts and feeling of our Black men in a down-to-earth, yet intellectual, and non-X-rated voice.