Movement in Black [Paperback]

Pat Parker (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This is the new, expanded edition of a groundbreaking volume of poetry first published in 1978, 11 years before Parker's early death of breast cancer. Based in the Bay Area and steeped in the radical politics of the late 1960s, Parker was the contemporary of Audre Lorde, Adrienne Rich, and LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka. In her introduction, Cheryl Clarke identifies Parker as a "lead voice and caller" in the lesbian-feminist cultural scene, but chides her for careless editing, as if Parker feared that her vernacular poems would lose their power if she subjected them to cold critique. Her most potent works do rely on an inspired punch line rather than carefully plumed images or language, as in "For Willyce," when she describes making love to a woman:

and your sounds drift down
oh god!
oh jesus!
and i think
here it is, some dude's
getting credit for what
a woman
has done
again.

A distinguished collection, including previously unpublished work and tributes from many of Parker's friends and allies. --Regina Marler

Review

Autumn Morning
Best Friends
The Best Nightmares
Between The Light
Break-up
Brother
Child Of Myself
Conflagration
Cop-out
Desire
Dialogue
Don't Let The Fascists Speak
Exodus
A Family Tree
For Donna
For Michael On His Third Birthday
For The Straight Folks Who Don't Mind Gays But Wish They Weren't So
For The White Person Who Wants To Know How To Be My Friend
For Willyce
From Deep Within
Fuller Brush Day
Funny
Gente
Goat Child: 1. 1944-1956
Goat Child: 2. 1956-1962
Goat Child: 3. 1962-1966
Great God
Group
Have You Ever Tried To Hide?
I Have
I Kumquat You
I Wish That I Could Hate You
It's A Simple Dream
It's Not So Bad
Language
The Law
Let Me
Massage
Metamorphosis
A Moment Left Behind
Move In Darkness
Movement In Black
My Hands Are Big And Rough
My Lady Ain't No Lady
My Lover Is A Woman
Non-monogamy Is A Pain In The Butt
On Jealousy
Para Maria Sandra
Pied Piper
Pit Stop
Progeny
Questions
Reality
Reputation
A Small Contradiction
Snatches Of A Day
Sobriety
Solitary Lover
Sometimes My Husband Acts Just Like A Man
Sublimation
Sunday
Sunshine
Talk Is Cheap
There Is A Woman In This Town
To My Vegetarian Friend
To See A Man Cry
Tour America!
The What Liberation Front?
Where Do You Go To Become A Non-citizen?
Where Will You Be?
Who Is This Bitch?
Womanslaughter
Yes Ma'am
You Can't Be Sure Of Anything These Days
-- Table of Poems from Poem Finder®

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Firebrand Books; Expanded edition (February 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563411083
• ISBN-13: 978-1563411083
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,244,959 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Poetry to be Read Aloud, October 31, 2000

By 

jeanie simpson (Waynesboro, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Movement in Black (Paperback)

Pat Parker is an incredible poet, I had the pleasure of being introduced to, while attending college. She speaks simply, she speaks reality, she speaks energy. I could never read a Pat Parker poem, silently. Her words were meant to be spoken aloud. So, I did and I still do. I recomend her poetry to everyone. You do not have to be black to understand her. You do not have to be a lesbian or a woman, for that matter. She speaks to the soul about a common thread, human frailty.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful lady, April 1, 2006

By 

Myrtle A. McDonald "big_pretty2002" (Louisville, KY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Movement in Black (Paperback)

I was introduced to this book by a professor at my University. She asked me to make copies of one of the poems. I started reading it and had to have my own copy. I had never heard of her before but I will certainly search for more of her work. All of the poems were excellent. Its a short volume that can be read in one sitting which I highly recommend you do. This lady has been added to my list of favorite poets. I think she put her soul in this book. You must read it.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A true poet of the people, December 3, 2000

By 

Michael J. Mazza - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Movement in Black (Paperback)

Pat Parker died of cancer in 1989, the year of her 45th birthday. But she left behind a body of poetry in which she celebrated life. Parker wrote directly from and about her experiences as an African-American lesbian and feminist, but her work is relevant to readers regardless of their own gender, ethnic heritage, or sexual orientation. Parker's work sparkles with humor and compassion even while it confronts painful subjects.

This expanded edition of "Movement in Black," with a new introduction by sister Black lesbian poet Cheryl Clarke, is a valuable contribution to contemporary literature. In addition to containing the great poems from the previous editions of this book, the new edition contains a rich selection of new poems, as well as Clarke's insightful introduction, a fascinating history of the book's previous incarnations by publisher Nancy K. Bereano, and a collection of tributes by 10 more writers, among them Angela Y. Davis, Audre Lorde, and Barbara Smith.

Of course, poetry lovers may want to skip the supplemental material and get right to the poetry. Parker is an American poet in the tradition of Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes. She writes in a raw, forthright vernacular language that addresses the joys and sorrows of real people. She writes about sex, love, prejudice, pain, and friendship. It's hard to pick just a few standouts from this awesome collection. But some of my favorites include "Movement in Black" (from which the title of the entire book is taken), a longer poem that tells the history of the Black woman in America; "The _What_ Liberation Front?", a humorous poem about a dog who is intent on joining a militant canine liberation organization; and "For the White Person Who Wants to Know How to Be My Friend," an insightful meditation on the possibility of interracial friendship.

This new edition of "Movement in Black" is essential reading for those interested in lesbian literature, African-American studies, and populist poetry. The book is also a beautiful tribute to an amazing woman whose spirit continues to inspire people of all races and sexual identities.