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Virgin Soul
From a lauded poet and playwright, a novel of a young woman's life with the Black Panthers in 1960s San Francisco
At first glance, Geniece’s story sounds like that of a typical young woman: she goes to college, has romantic entanglements, builds meaningful friendships, and juggles her schedule with a part-time job. However, she does all of these things in 1960s San Francisco while becoming a militant member of the Black Panther movement.
When Huey Newton is jailed in October 1967 and the Panthers explode nationwide, Geniece enters the organization’s dark and dangerous world of guns, FBI agents, freewheeling sex, police repression, and fatal shoot-outs—all while balancing her other life as a college student.
A moving tale of one young woman’s life spinning out of the typical and into the extraordinary during one of the most politically and racially charged eras in America, Virgin Soul will resonate with readers of Monica Ali and Ntozake Shange.
"A novel so unlike any I've read in years—a little of Al Young's poetry and humor, a little of Toni Cade Bambara's boldness, but Judy Juanita has given us a Bay Area in her own inimitable voice, which is California like no one else. She lays it out for you; with this writer, there is no half steppin'." — Susan Straight, author of Between Heaven and Here
At first glance, Geniece’s story sounds like that of a typical young woman: she goes to college, has romantic entanglements, builds meaningful friendships, and juggles her schedule with a part-time job. However, she does all of these things in 1960s San Francisco while becoming a militant member of the Black Panther movement.
When Huey Newton is jailed in October 1967 and the Panthers explode nationwide, Geniece enters the organization’s dark and dangerous world of guns, FBI agents, freewheeling sex, police repression, and fatal shoot-outs—all while balancing her other life as a college student.
A moving tale of one young woman’s life spinning out of the typical and into the extraordinary during one of the most politically and racially charged eras in America, Virgin Soul will resonate with readers of Monica Ali and Ntozake Shange.
"A novel so unlike any I've read in years—a little of Al Young's poetry and humor, a little of Toni Cade Bambara's boldness, but Judy Juanita has given us a Bay Area in her own inimitable voice, which is California like no one else. She lays it out for you; with this writer, there is no half steppin'." — Susan Straight, author of Between Heaven and Here
312 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
About the author
Judy Juanita
15 books27 followersJudy Juanita’s latest book, a collection of essays, was a finalist in the OSU Non/Fiction Collection contest in 2016. The book, DeFacto Feminism: Essays Straight Outta Oakland (EquiDistance Press, 2016) examines the distance between black and female empowerment. Her poetry and fiction have been published widely, and her plays have been produced in the Bay Area and New York City. She has taught writing at Laney College in Oakland since 1993. She lives in Oakland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
May 8, 2013
The story of a young Black woman in Bay Area California going through college and not only being schooled academically, but learning street smarts as well. In fact the book is broken into four parts, Freshman, Sophomore, Junior and Senior. Each part serves as a backdrop for that particular year of College, but this is not a novel about education and the university. The main character Geniece happens to be attending school around the time that the Black Panter party is taking shape in Ca.
What happens when kids go off to school, apparently of one mind set, but come back with an entirely different one? What influences young folk to act? Well, there are no easy answers and this novel does a great job of delineating the various options open to young and ambitious students. Although the novel is set in the time period of 1966-69, the themes are not limited to those years. And parents everywhere are still asking their college age children, How did you get into this or that?
So what we get are historical figures mixed into the novel, to lend authenticity to the work. Huey Newton is a character, Bobby Seale and others from that time period grace the pages. This mostly works, as long as you are clear it is all fiction. The author does a good job of showing what choices might have been available for someone like Geniece, and how one might have decided to join with the Panthers at a time that was fraught with danger for anyone calling themselves a Black Panther.
The writing is good and the story is engaging. Although you may differ with some of Geniece's choices, you won't get the sense of her decisions just being arbitrary. It's all in context and the energy of that period is justly captured. The only annoyance, was toward the end of the novel. There is an incident of an inapposite nature. Didn't seem necessary, and may serve as a distraction from an otherwise very good debut.
Of course you will have to read the novel to discover what I'm referencing. A good solid debut novel and I'm looking forward to more from this author.
What happens when kids go off to school, apparently of one mind set, but come back with an entirely different one? What influences young folk to act? Well, there are no easy answers and this novel does a great job of delineating the various options open to young and ambitious students. Although the novel is set in the time period of 1966-69, the themes are not limited to those years. And parents everywhere are still asking their college age children, How did you get into this or that?
So what we get are historical figures mixed into the novel, to lend authenticity to the work. Huey Newton is a character, Bobby Seale and others from that time period grace the pages. This mostly works, as long as you are clear it is all fiction. The author does a good job of showing what choices might have been available for someone like Geniece, and how one might have decided to join with the Panthers at a time that was fraught with danger for anyone calling themselves a Black Panther.
The writing is good and the story is engaging. Although you may differ with some of Geniece's choices, you won't get the sense of her decisions just being arbitrary. It's all in context and the energy of that period is justly captured. The only annoyance, was toward the end of the novel. There is an incident of an inapposite nature. Didn't seem necessary, and may serve as a distraction from an otherwise very good debut.
Of course you will have to read the novel to discover what I'm referencing. A good solid debut novel and I'm looking forward to more from this author.
December 12, 2014
Although technically fictional, this novel reads like a memoir, and depicts the coming of age of an African American college girl during the tumultuous 1960's in Oakland, CA. There is a lot of historical name dropping in this one, particularly with the Black Panther Party, who were founded in Oakland at the time the story takes place. Although it is not autobiographical, the author was actually a college student involved with the Party at that time, so there is a sense of authenticity to what's going on.
The novel's narrator, Geniece, is spunky and intelligent and interesting, and her story - discovering herself as a college student, as a woman, and as a Black person in the midst of the Black Power movement - is fascinating. But her story arc didn't maintain a clear focus for me, and I reached the end feeling dissatisfied. I think part of the problem for me was that she was the quintessential college student - experimenting with this, exploring that - with no real plan and no clear idea of what she wanted. Don't get me wrong, this felt realistic. But I need more meaning in my stories: I need to see how the character has grown and understand why she made certain decisions and how she feels about them. There were bits of reflection and analysis in the book, but they always seemed cursory to me, and sometimes contradictory, and were often too little too late, without her really seeing the consequences of her decisions.
I had a lot of trouble rating this book, because while I was dissatisfied with the main character's storyline, I did like her and cared about what happened to her. In addition, I learned a lot from all of the names and events referred to in the book, and I plan to do a lot of follow-up reading on this time period and the non-fictional people involved. For that experience alone I would recommend it, because this is such a unique context in which to write a coming-of-age novel. As a satisfying novel, though, I had to admit that this was an average book for me. The character does not do enough reflecting for my taste, and sometimes teaches what I thought were the wrong lessons about decision-making and thinking things through. I wanted this novel to be something more, because of the rich history presented, but it never really got there for me.
Bonus section of some of the names and books mentioned in the story:
Huey Newton, Percy Mayfield, William Goldman, Crisis in Black and White, James Baldwin's Another Country, Roy Wilkins, Thurgood Marshall, Marian Anderson, Nat Turner, Moynihan Report, Betty Shabazz, Kwame Nkrumah, Junior Walker and the All Stars, Cecil Taylor, Stokely Carmichael, McCoy Tyner, LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka), Pharoah Sanders, Don Lee, Aimé Césaire, Fannie Lou Hamer, Eldridge Cleaver, Medgar Evers, George Sams, Marlon Brando, and Martin Luther King Jr..
(Allwoods's book list): Muntu: African Culture and the Western World, David Walker's Appeal, Black Boy, Rebirth of African Civilization, Illusion and Reality: A Study of the Sources of Poetry, The Wretched of the Earth, Black Nationalism: The Search for an Identity, Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, The Souls of Black Folk, and The Fire Next Time (reread!).
The novel's narrator, Geniece, is spunky and intelligent and interesting, and her story - discovering herself as a college student, as a woman, and as a Black person in the midst of the Black Power movement - is fascinating. But her story arc didn't maintain a clear focus for me, and I reached the end feeling dissatisfied. I think part of the problem for me was that she was the quintessential college student - experimenting with this, exploring that - with no real plan and no clear idea of what she wanted. Don't get me wrong, this felt realistic. But I need more meaning in my stories: I need to see how the character has grown and understand why she made certain decisions and how she feels about them. There were bits of reflection and analysis in the book, but they always seemed cursory to me, and sometimes contradictory, and were often too little too late, without her really seeing the consequences of her decisions.
I had a lot of trouble rating this book, because while I was dissatisfied with the main character's storyline, I did like her and cared about what happened to her. In addition, I learned a lot from all of the names and events referred to in the book, and I plan to do a lot of follow-up reading on this time period and the non-fictional people involved. For that experience alone I would recommend it, because this is such a unique context in which to write a coming-of-age novel. As a satisfying novel, though, I had to admit that this was an average book for me. The character does not do enough reflecting for my taste, and sometimes teaches what I thought were the wrong lessons about decision-making and thinking things through. I wanted this novel to be something more, because of the rich history presented, but it never really got there for me.
Bonus section of some of the names and books mentioned in the story:
Huey Newton, Percy Mayfield, William Goldman, Crisis in Black and White, James Baldwin's Another Country, Roy Wilkins, Thurgood Marshall, Marian Anderson, Nat Turner, Moynihan Report, Betty Shabazz, Kwame Nkrumah, Junior Walker and the All Stars, Cecil Taylor, Stokely Carmichael, McCoy Tyner, LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka), Pharoah Sanders, Don Lee, Aimé Césaire, Fannie Lou Hamer, Eldridge Cleaver, Medgar Evers, George Sams, Marlon Brando, and Martin Luther King Jr..
(Allwoods's book list): Muntu: African Culture and the Western World, David Walker's Appeal, Black Boy, Rebirth of African Civilization, Illusion and Reality: A Study of the Sources of Poetry, The Wretched of the Earth, Black Nationalism: The Search for an Identity, Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, The Souls of Black Folk, and The Fire Next Time (reread!).
February 28, 2025
This is a fiction coming of age story based on the real life story of the author (fictionalized auto-biography? That a thing?). It follows an African American college girl during the 1960s in Oakland, CA while she’s going to university and becoming involved with the Black Panther Party.
As someone who isn’t American and knows limited stuff about *things*, I was hoping to be educated. But the political stuff was sort of limited and muddled with way too many anecdotes and unnecessary scenes. The politics/social movement aspect was difficult to follow (I see reviews mentioning there’s lots of name dropping but I obviously didn’t recognize any name lol anyways).
I wonder if this would have worked better as an actual memoir? As a fiction, it just got too distracted with unnecessary things which I assume are the author’s actual memories sprinkled into it? But I expect a book to be more focused. I just really wish that scene at the end where she’s teaching kids body parts by showing them her own urethra and anus and whatever had been removed. Like honestly what was that?
I wasn’t really interested in the main character’s life and the political aspect was whatever. So I’m giving it 3 stars.
As someone who isn’t American and knows limited stuff about *things*, I was hoping to be educated. But the political stuff was sort of limited and muddled with way too many anecdotes and unnecessary scenes. The politics/social movement aspect was difficult to follow (I see reviews mentioning there’s lots of name dropping but I obviously didn’t recognize any name lol anyways).
I wonder if this would have worked better as an actual memoir? As a fiction, it just got too distracted with unnecessary things which I assume are the author’s actual memories sprinkled into it? But I expect a book to be more focused. I just really wish that scene at the end where she’s teaching kids body parts by showing them her own urethra and anus and whatever had been removed. Like honestly what was that?
I wasn’t really interested in the main character’s life and the political aspect was whatever. So I’m giving it 3 stars.
November 22, 2020
This story contained a lot of squee moments for me, having lived in and near many locations in the book. (E.g., the narrator's first apartment was probably within a couple blocks of a place where I once lived in South Berkeley.) Enjoyed the behind scenes look at many famous figures in the history of the Black Panther Party (BPP), from the perspective of a protagonist who is doing daily work to keep things functioning, while she attends 4 years of college.
Right off the bat, I almost wanted to give the book 5 stars because of that saying about real estate: location location location. I know these places and felt totally at home, so I really enjoyed that. I felt like I understood and believed the protagonist's journey through college, her experiences with BPP, and where she lands at the end of the book. It reads very much like a college memoir, penned from a close perspective in post-college adulthood.
Fun fact: The author teaches at an institution in Oakland where once upon a time I took the best and most memorable English class I ever had in college.
Right off the bat, I almost wanted to give the book 5 stars because of that saying about real estate: location location location. I know these places and felt totally at home, so I really enjoyed that. I felt like I understood and believed the protagonist's journey through college, her experiences with BPP, and where she lands at the end of the book. It reads very much like a college memoir, penned from a close perspective in post-college adulthood.
Fun fact: The author teaches at an institution in Oakland where once upon a time I took the best and most memorable English class I ever had in college.
March 28, 2026
Lightly experimental autobiographical novel with maybe like 30% too much stuff going on for its own good. But that's kinda The Point, I guess. A compelling, if not novel, look at the promises and disappointments of The Revolution.
The books is mostly really short chapters in a way that I think puts it at odds with the reader. It benefits from momentum, but sometimes you have to supply your own momentum. But momentum is the book's job, not mine!
The books is mostly really short chapters in a way that I think puts it at odds with the reader. It benefits from momentum, but sometimes you have to supply your own momentum. But momentum is the book's job, not mine!
July 7, 2013
Virgin Soul is a rare treat and insight to the happenings of a city (San Francisco in the world's sights. For those who think Flower Power was all crazy kids, it had a huge impact on society beyond the daisies in the hair and the LSD bad trips. The 1960's was a turbulent and riveting time historically and the people who lived in the city or those who came, experienced the dramatic changes in values, models and views socially and politically.
The Black Panthers growth with the unforgettable Bay Area leaders that Ms. Juanita brings into her story, remain forever big and colorful as they were then. Reading about them and the story one will experience a sense of being back in the sixties. I know, I was there, coming of age in San Francisco.
This story is much more than about the Black Panther movement, it's about a young woman seeking to understand who she is, what's her life purpose and how does she move beyond her past. Living in the city for her proved that no matter one's upbringing, moral values, the heat of the changes grabbed up everyone to think and act differently. Ms. Juanita presents that quandary in a most impressive way, truly visual...I could see and hear it all. Since this is her debut novel, I won't go into areas that might have lacked in interest to me as a reader because all in all - it is a beautifully told story of a a time and place that will not be forgotten by those who were there and those who wished they were.
With all my research and interviews for my own novel about that time and BP, I wish I'd met this author to interview. She's so ALIVE in her writings with colorful scenarios. Kudos to you, Ms. Judy Juanita and I look forward to what else you will write.
City of Redemption
The Black Panthers growth with the unforgettable Bay Area leaders that Ms. Juanita brings into her story, remain forever big and colorful as they were then. Reading about them and the story one will experience a sense of being back in the sixties. I know, I was there, coming of age in San Francisco.
This story is much more than about the Black Panther movement, it's about a young woman seeking to understand who she is, what's her life purpose and how does she move beyond her past. Living in the city for her proved that no matter one's upbringing, moral values, the heat of the changes grabbed up everyone to think and act differently. Ms. Juanita presents that quandary in a most impressive way, truly visual...I could see and hear it all. Since this is her debut novel, I won't go into areas that might have lacked in interest to me as a reader because all in all - it is a beautifully told story of a a time and place that will not be forgotten by those who were there and those who wished they were.
With all my research and interviews for my own novel about that time and BP, I wish I'd met this author to interview. She's so ALIVE in her writings with colorful scenarios. Kudos to you, Ms. Judy Juanita and I look forward to what else you will write.
City of Redemption
September 21, 2013
Hmm. I really really liked this book starting out. But it kind of fell apart for me partway through. I'm not sure what the precise reason for this was, if the writing declined or if I was just more interested in Geniece's interactions with her family, herself, and the world in general than I was in hearing about the abusive guys she hooked up with, the potato salad she made for the meetings, how Bobby Seale was hiding from police, how many drugs she did...
Geniece was my favorite part of the book, and unfortunately Geniece gets kind of subsumed by the movement. I felt frustrated with that. I also felt frustrated about how We have some insights into why her personality might be mutable, but I still wish she had had more character devlopment, whether through internal thoughts/struggles or interactions with people. It didn't feel like enough to me...
Overall I liked this book but there were some choppy bits of writing, where I would scratch my head wondering why the author included a certain sentence, paragraph, or anecdote. At times I wondered if I would have understood more of what she was getting at I was black and/or older--my dad had a class with Huey Newton at UCSC, but all that stuff was definitely old news by the time I was growing up in the 90s/00s. Also, something just seemed...lacking. The spark was there for me early on but it didn't hold and I can't really pin down why.
Geniece was my favorite part of the book, and unfortunately Geniece gets kind of subsumed by the movement. I felt frustrated with that. I also felt frustrated about how We have some insights into why her personality might be mutable, but I still wish she had had more character devlopment, whether through internal thoughts/struggles or interactions with people. It didn't feel like enough to me...
Overall I liked this book but there were some choppy bits of writing, where I would scratch my head wondering why the author included a certain sentence, paragraph, or anecdote. At times I wondered if I would have understood more of what she was getting at I was black and/or older--my dad had a class with Huey Newton at UCSC, but all that stuff was definitely old news by the time I was growing up in the 90s/00s. Also, something just seemed...lacking. The spark was there for me early on but it didn't hold and I can't really pin down why.
October 1, 2025
This novel is set in the 1960s in the Bay Area, during the rise of the Black Panther Party. Geniece, the central character, tells of her role within the party--as a journalist, cook, general aid, etc. Though the novel is told in her voice at the time of the events, the voice contains vestiges of a much older woman telling the story from her deep past--which allows the novel to be overtly feminist, while the protagonist is only just figuring out the inequalities of power between the men and women in her life. Formally, this book is structured as a Bildungsroman--Geniece begins college at the beginning of the book and graduates by the end, and the novel is divided into sections by year: Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior. She begins her college career at the Oakland City College, the hotbed of various radical movements of the era, and then transfers to San Francisco State. Through her eyes we see the whole spectrum of political beliefs, from what she labels as "bourgie" to the militant resistance--and lots of others in between. She's a very compelling character and I found myself fully gripped by the choices before her, rooting for her to find a way forward through all the party politics and her own insecurities.
August 21, 2013
I've been on something of a reading jag lately reading books set in my home region (Berkeley/Oakland). The previous book I read was Michael Chabon's Telegraph Avenue, which sadly annoyed the heck out of me. This one felt much more authentic; the author less pleased with every cutesy turn of phrase. It brought the time period and place to life vividly.
Sadly, it was less successful at bringing to life the main character, even though it felt autobiographical. Geniece, for all her striving for agency, seems to let things happen to her so much of the time, it seems. She seems most alive when she starts looking after two girls that she met through an inner city tutoring/volunteer program - and their fate is a turning point for her.
Still, overall, a worthwhile read.
Sadly, it was less successful at bringing to life the main character, even though it felt autobiographical. Geniece, for all her striving for agency, seems to let things happen to her so much of the time, it seems. She seems most alive when she starts looking after two girls that she met through an inner city tutoring/volunteer program - and their fate is a turning point for her.
Still, overall, a worthwhile read.
October 23, 2016
I struggled with this book, for various reasons.
1. The main character was unbearable at times.
2. The writing felt choppy at times and didn't appeal to me.
3. The happenings were exhausting at times and meh at others.
But I also liked things about it.
1. Mainly the development of the main character, she really improved and became a lot less unbearable towards the end.
2. How informative and in depth it was about the Black Panther movement in the late 1960s and the events in the San Francisco area at that time.
1. The main character was unbearable at times.
2. The writing felt choppy at times and didn't appeal to me.
3. The happenings were exhausting at times and meh at others.
But I also liked things about it.
1. Mainly the development of the main character, she really improved and became a lot less unbearable towards the end.
2. How informative and in depth it was about the Black Panther movement in the late 1960s and the events in the San Francisco area at that time.
March 7, 2020
In summary, this is the journey of how a young black woman is radicalized in the late 1960s and becomes a Black Panther. It is very informative of the inner workings of the Black Panther Party and the name dropping is great for those who may be unfamiliar with many key radicals of the time. It’s rare to hear from the perspective of a non-famous young person in the thick of the Black Power movement. I gave this book three stars because many aspects of the main character’s life don’t add up for me or are unclear. The main character takes on many responsibilities/activities throughout the novel. She’s a full time student, has a job, a boyfriend/boyfriends, and working for her student newspaper. But, the book doesn’t make it clear how she balances all this. They’re all mentioned so sparingly that I forgot she was involved in some of these activities or had previously mentioned friends. Some of her “friends” pop up so randomly and rarely you forget them but when they appear, she speaks of them as if they’re very close. The novel feels poorly edited. The writer doesn’t do a good job of making you understand some of her relationships or her choices regarding relationships. There is so much randomness. I think it’s a missed opportunity for a 4 or 5 star novel.
October 25, 2020
Definitely evokes the time period. I missed most of this experience in college by about 4-5 years, but there were still remnants of the politics of the period when I was in school in NYC. I felt that it was a very honest and real account of a young woman from a working class family being exposed to politics, learning in general and becoming involved in a changing world. I’m not black, but I am part Pacific Islander and White. I feel that the experiences were universal to women in any movement at the time. Very good read.
May 20, 2026
Virgin Soul is a powerful and deeply human novel that brings the energy and tension of the 1960s Black Panther movement to life through the eyes of Geniece, a young woman caught between ordinary dreams and revolutionary change. Judy Juanita writes with honesty, emotion, and vivid detail, showing both the passion and danger of the era without losing the personal struggles at the heart of the story. The novel feels raw, intelligent, and unforgettable, making it more than just historical fiction—it becomes a deeply personal journey of identity, courage, and survival.
October 25, 2020
This novel started a bit slowly and the writing initially seemed a bit confusing in parts. However, there was always enough to keep my attention. As my reading of the book progressed, it became more and more fascinating and the writing style no longer seemed confusing. By the end, I loved the book and feel the author used exactly the right style to capture the Zeitgeist of the times and of the life of one individual in the Black Panther Party.
October 26, 2021
Honest, important, and lovely. Reading this in the shadow of the Ferguson/Stockley uprisings in STL, I know these voices and can recognize these people, some 50 years later and hundreds of miles away.
May 12, 2021
I listened to this book because it was on Last Chance U. It was interesting in some parts but boring in others. Would not recommend it to others.
Read
June 24, 2023dnf 30%
i’m bored
i’m bored
April 1, 2021
Exquisitely written, this novel captures a life & an era. It made me think about the most important quality for a revolution of a revolutionary--honesty.
Loved this so much. Highly recommend.
Loved this so much. Highly recommend.
November 13, 2020
IQ "Sure, I had fancied myself militant. That fit my naturally rebellious nature. But to bea militant was frightful. Yet intriguing." (199)
This is one of those rare books I stumbled upon, not physically in a library (because covid) but via Twitter when Kaitlyn Greenidge recommended it in response to her Twitter thread asking for books about Black women forming a political consciousness. I immediately bookmarked the thread and in that one regard in particular this book more than delivers, we witness Geniece gradually become more and more radical and it's a delightful journey. What I didn't love is how much of her radicalization comes from men, especially the men she's interested in, "I wanted to say intelligent but Allwood was an intellectual. I was neither" (32). I really wanted her growing political consciousness to come from female friends as well or even a professor or two so it felt slightly less condescending. And what makes it harder to stomach is that Geniece rarely interacts with the famous real life women in the Black Panther Party, we learn more about Huey Newton and Bobby Seale than we do Kathleen Cleaver. The author makes it clear that the BPP is sexist but she also reinforces their habit of ignoring women by not giving them equal or close to equal attention in her own novel. In addition to discussing the sexism of the Panthers Juanita also discusses colorism within the Black community writ large but also more specifically within the Black Panther Party. Geniece is dark skinned and treated even worse than other women who are light skinned. The other issue I had is the overly ambitious tone of the book, Geniece comes to embody the experience of every Black woman. SO MUCH happens to her and those she knows that it reads like the author tried to cram as many experiences as possible into a select few characters and the sole main character.
The book structure is somewhat confusing, each section is divided by school year but she bounces around a lot in the stories she tells and it's hard to keep the characters and chronology straight. There's also lot of slang specific to the time which is often funny but can be tough to follow even with context clues. The ending was also very disappointing, it felt predictable and too neat. I wanted to see Geniece learn how to be radical even outside of college and that's not the ending we get. Geniece herself is very naive which leads to some hilarious encounters and her voice is also quite distinctive and amusing. At the same time she is also refreshingly clear eyed about what she does and doesn't know which helps make the book feel more accurate and real as she goes from being a sheltered middle class child to a working class student enamored with the Black Panthers. The author doesn't shy away from the controversy around the Black Panthers either, aside from the sexism some of the characters do hard drugs and some own guns. Gun ownership as self defense and militant civil disobedience are topics the author unflinchingly addresses but she also talks about the breakfast program and newspaper and how they were run and really revolutionary in their very existence. FBI surveillance of Black militants is also matter of factly discussed although more could have been done with that storyline.
VIRGIN SOUL is a much needed new spin on historical fiction that is set in the Bay Area during the height of counterculture and Black liberation that explores the nuances of the Black Panther Party that is thoughtfully paired with an offbeat coming of awareness and shedding of naïveté. It is about Black identity and the many themes/movements during this specific point in time; Black is Beautiful, Black Power and Black Love but also sexual freedom and tangentially the second wave of feminism. It is also very honest about the issues with the Black Panthers; drugs, the split over gun ownership, the chauvinism and misogynoir. I can only name one other historical fiction book set during the 60s/70s and about the Black Panthers, we need more of these stories told. However I wish the tone had been less didactic and that Geniece's experience more singular and specific. Along with a better ending.
This is one of those rare books I stumbled upon, not physically in a library (because covid) but via Twitter when Kaitlyn Greenidge recommended it in response to her Twitter thread asking for books about Black women forming a political consciousness. I immediately bookmarked the thread and in that one regard in particular this book more than delivers, we witness Geniece gradually become more and more radical and it's a delightful journey. What I didn't love is how much of her radicalization comes from men, especially the men she's interested in, "I wanted to say intelligent but Allwood was an intellectual. I was neither" (32). I really wanted her growing political consciousness to come from female friends as well or even a professor or two so it felt slightly less condescending. And what makes it harder to stomach is that Geniece rarely interacts with the famous real life women in the Black Panther Party, we learn more about Huey Newton and Bobby Seale than we do Kathleen Cleaver. The author makes it clear that the BPP is sexist but she also reinforces their habit of ignoring women by not giving them equal or close to equal attention in her own novel. In addition to discussing the sexism of the Panthers Juanita also discusses colorism within the Black community writ large but also more specifically within the Black Panther Party. Geniece is dark skinned and treated even worse than other women who are light skinned. The other issue I had is the overly ambitious tone of the book, Geniece comes to embody the experience of every Black woman. SO MUCH happens to her and those she knows that it reads like the author tried to cram as many experiences as possible into a select few characters and the sole main character.
The book structure is somewhat confusing, each section is divided by school year but she bounces around a lot in the stories she tells and it's hard to keep the characters and chronology straight. There's also lot of slang specific to the time which is often funny but can be tough to follow even with context clues. The ending was also very disappointing, it felt predictable and too neat. I wanted to see Geniece learn how to be radical even outside of college and that's not the ending we get. Geniece herself is very naive which leads to some hilarious encounters and her voice is also quite distinctive and amusing. At the same time she is also refreshingly clear eyed about what she does and doesn't know which helps make the book feel more accurate and real as she goes from being a sheltered middle class child to a working class student enamored with the Black Panthers. The author doesn't shy away from the controversy around the Black Panthers either, aside from the sexism some of the characters do hard drugs and some own guns. Gun ownership as self defense and militant civil disobedience are topics the author unflinchingly addresses but she also talks about the breakfast program and newspaper and how they were run and really revolutionary in their very existence. FBI surveillance of Black militants is also matter of factly discussed although more could have been done with that storyline.
VIRGIN SOUL is a much needed new spin on historical fiction that is set in the Bay Area during the height of counterculture and Black liberation that explores the nuances of the Black Panther Party that is thoughtfully paired with an offbeat coming of awareness and shedding of naïveté. It is about Black identity and the many themes/movements during this specific point in time; Black is Beautiful, Black Power and Black Love but also sexual freedom and tangentially the second wave of feminism. It is also very honest about the issues with the Black Panthers; drugs, the split over gun ownership, the chauvinism and misogynoir. I can only name one other historical fiction book set during the 60s/70s and about the Black Panthers, we need more of these stories told. However I wish the tone had been less didactic and that Geniece's experience more singular and specific. Along with a better ending.
September 2, 2013
from kalireads.com:
Call it the sunny side of the Bay, call it the town. Whatever name you give it, Oakland has the rich and revolutionary history expected from a city bridging to San Francisco and bundled up against Berkeley. Oakland is also uniquely its own city, with its own successes and struggles.
Originally a port city built up with the business of railroads, folks called Oakland the “Detroit of the West” by the 1920′s for its automotive factories and booming economy. During World War II, Oakland built ships and canned foods, and the exodus of Southern workers to the area created a melting pot of cultures and belief systems. Post-WWII, Oakland (and the rest of America) witnessed white flight, as wealthier citizens fled further East to the suburbs. Once a shining star of productivity, post-WWII Oakland began to feel its economy slow and its racial tensions rise.
And this brings us to Virgin Soul, a novel by Judy Juanita based on Juanita’s own experiences growing up in Oakland. Geniece Hightower, the novel’s star, is a snappy and smart African American woman on the cusp of revolution. She enrolls at Oakland City College in 1964 and is surrounded by activists and intellectuals. Geniece soon learns about the black power movement, and her activism eventually leads her to the Black Panther Party. The novel is broken into four parts: Freshman, Sophmore, Junior, Senior. We follow Geniece as she gets an education, but classes are rarely mentioned – confronted with inequality from all sides, meeting men and women both inspirational and heartbreaking, navigating a world not yet equipped to handle an empowered black women – Geniece’s education is of a different sort.
Virgin Soul reads lyrical and very much like poetry – it doesn’t surprise me that Juanita is also a successful poet. On going to Oakland City College: ”But we called it City, a raggedy, in-the-flatlands, couldn’t-pass-the-earthquake-code, stimulating, politically popping repository of blacks who couldn’t get to college any other way, whites who had flunked out of University of California, and anybody else shrewd enough to go free for two years and transfer to Berkeley, prereqs zapped (3).” Juanita creates a perfect voice for her protagonist, a balance of the questions running through Geniece’s mind, funky lingo of sixties, and moments of brilliant clarity.
I imagine Juanita has captured the tone of the time perfectly – I wasn’t there, but she was, and she’s built a magical, mad world around Oakland’s past.
Call it the sunny side of the Bay, call it the town. Whatever name you give it, Oakland has the rich and revolutionary history expected from a city bridging to San Francisco and bundled up against Berkeley. Oakland is also uniquely its own city, with its own successes and struggles.
Originally a port city built up with the business of railroads, folks called Oakland the “Detroit of the West” by the 1920′s for its automotive factories and booming economy. During World War II, Oakland built ships and canned foods, and the exodus of Southern workers to the area created a melting pot of cultures and belief systems. Post-WWII, Oakland (and the rest of America) witnessed white flight, as wealthier citizens fled further East to the suburbs. Once a shining star of productivity, post-WWII Oakland began to feel its economy slow and its racial tensions rise.
And this brings us to Virgin Soul, a novel by Judy Juanita based on Juanita’s own experiences growing up in Oakland. Geniece Hightower, the novel’s star, is a snappy and smart African American woman on the cusp of revolution. She enrolls at Oakland City College in 1964 and is surrounded by activists and intellectuals. Geniece soon learns about the black power movement, and her activism eventually leads her to the Black Panther Party. The novel is broken into four parts: Freshman, Sophmore, Junior, Senior. We follow Geniece as she gets an education, but classes are rarely mentioned – confronted with inequality from all sides, meeting men and women both inspirational and heartbreaking, navigating a world not yet equipped to handle an empowered black women – Geniece’s education is of a different sort.
Virgin Soul reads lyrical and very much like poetry – it doesn’t surprise me that Juanita is also a successful poet. On going to Oakland City College: ”But we called it City, a raggedy, in-the-flatlands, couldn’t-pass-the-earthquake-code, stimulating, politically popping repository of blacks who couldn’t get to college any other way, whites who had flunked out of University of California, and anybody else shrewd enough to go free for two years and transfer to Berkeley, prereqs zapped (3).” Juanita creates a perfect voice for her protagonist, a balance of the questions running through Geniece’s mind, funky lingo of sixties, and moments of brilliant clarity.
I imagine Juanita has captured the tone of the time perfectly – I wasn’t there, but she was, and she’s built a magical, mad world around Oakland’s past.
November 28, 2013
Geneice Hightower, a young black woman who grew up in Oakland, CA, learned one very important thing from her family: get an education.
Determined to do just that, she begins by attending community college in Oakland, works part-time for the Welfare Department, and commences to learn some new ideas from her boyfriend and a group of friends surrounding him.
It is the 1960s, and things are heating up all over the US, even in the world around Geneice. By the time she transfers to San Francisco State in the mid-sixties, her ideas have become radical, and she finds herself immersed in the Black Panther party and all that comes with that membership. Guns, shoplifting, and more...all unimaginable to the girl she once was, but life has changed for her.
How does a spirited young woman with goals become such a different person? Is it simply peer pressure, or is there more involved? How does she change so radically? Could it be the glow of power she feels when she meets people like Stokely Carmichael, Huey P. Newton, and Bobby Seale? Or is it her need to take back some personal power that has been squashed out of her by the culture? Maybe it was about social change for her, but she got in over her head. And how does she find out who she is, without the movement, after following the revolution to the last rung of the ladder?
Having grown up in those times, even living in the Bay Area during the sixties, I can understand it completely, even though my perspective was more of the white anti-war protestor. College experiences, the times in which we lived, and the ability to open one's mind to new things can have a big impact on a young person. Geneice's story is emotional, charged with adventure, energy, fear and loss, and as the consequences unfold, we will completely understand another meaning of the title "Virgin Soul: A Novel."
A mind that is pure and open and accessible to new experiences.
I felt as though I had been transported back to those times. A book I recommend for those who lived those times and want a nostalgic trip back...and for those who did not, but want to understand, from the point of view of a character living it. 4.5 stars.
Determined to do just that, she begins by attending community college in Oakland, works part-time for the Welfare Department, and commences to learn some new ideas from her boyfriend and a group of friends surrounding him.
It is the 1960s, and things are heating up all over the US, even in the world around Geneice. By the time she transfers to San Francisco State in the mid-sixties, her ideas have become radical, and she finds herself immersed in the Black Panther party and all that comes with that membership. Guns, shoplifting, and more...all unimaginable to the girl she once was, but life has changed for her.
How does a spirited young woman with goals become such a different person? Is it simply peer pressure, or is there more involved? How does she change so radically? Could it be the glow of power she feels when she meets people like Stokely Carmichael, Huey P. Newton, and Bobby Seale? Or is it her need to take back some personal power that has been squashed out of her by the culture? Maybe it was about social change for her, but she got in over her head. And how does she find out who she is, without the movement, after following the revolution to the last rung of the ladder?
Having grown up in those times, even living in the Bay Area during the sixties, I can understand it completely, even though my perspective was more of the white anti-war protestor. College experiences, the times in which we lived, and the ability to open one's mind to new things can have a big impact on a young person. Geneice's story is emotional, charged with adventure, energy, fear and loss, and as the consequences unfold, we will completely understand another meaning of the title "Virgin Soul: A Novel."
A mind that is pure and open and accessible to new experiences.
I felt as though I had been transported back to those times. A book I recommend for those who lived those times and want a nostalgic trip back...and for those who did not, but want to understand, from the point of view of a character living it. 4.5 stars.
June 12, 2013
Eighteen year old Geniece didn't know what she wanted, except that she wanted out. Out of Oakland, California, where she had known up with extended family when her parents weren't around. Out of being ignorant and not having a future. Out of being a virgin, and not being in the groove of the Sixties sexual revolution.
So, Geniece heads across the bridge to San Francisco where she starts pursuing her education. She does two years at a community college, then transfers to a four year college, just in time to be in at the beginning of the Black Pride movement. She makes friends with those in the movement, and the speeches she hears about black empowerment starts to radicalize her. Her friends and she begin to live as the movement wanted, black friends, black lovers, black literature, helping other black families to make it through life.
Geniece and her friends end up joining the Black Panther Party. They know the party leaders such as Bobby Seale, Stokely Carmichael, Huey P. Newton, and Bobby Ethridge. Geniece becomes the editor of the BPP newspaper, while continuing her education. She also becomes involved in tutoring and programs such as feeding breakfast to young children. As the movement becomes more radical, she must decide if this is still the place for her to make her dreams come true.
Judy Juanita has written a stirring novel that transports the reader back to the Sixties. San Francisco was the hub of much of the social turmoil that ended up changing the country; the Black Power movement, the hippie movement, and others. She effectively outlines the impetus that drove young people to join the movements and how this decision affected their lives. This book is recommended for readers who are interested in the time period or in black history.
So, Geniece heads across the bridge to San Francisco where she starts pursuing her education. She does two years at a community college, then transfers to a four year college, just in time to be in at the beginning of the Black Pride movement. She makes friends with those in the movement, and the speeches she hears about black empowerment starts to radicalize her. Her friends and she begin to live as the movement wanted, black friends, black lovers, black literature, helping other black families to make it through life.
Geniece and her friends end up joining the Black Panther Party. They know the party leaders such as Bobby Seale, Stokely Carmichael, Huey P. Newton, and Bobby Ethridge. Geniece becomes the editor of the BPP newspaper, while continuing her education. She also becomes involved in tutoring and programs such as feeding breakfast to young children. As the movement becomes more radical, she must decide if this is still the place for her to make her dreams come true.
Judy Juanita has written a stirring novel that transports the reader back to the Sixties. San Francisco was the hub of much of the social turmoil that ended up changing the country; the Black Power movement, the hippie movement, and others. She effectively outlines the impetus that drove young people to join the movements and how this decision affected their lives. This book is recommended for readers who are interested in the time period or in black history.
August 22, 2013
Virgin Soul is set in the San Francisco of the 1960s, a tumultuous time and place in American history and, unfortunately, not one I know much about. I procrastinated on this review a bit because what can I possibly say about its accuracy or its authenticity? I have a feeling I wasn’t as emotionally connected to the actual people and events in the books as I should have been, because I couldn’t tell what was real and what was fiction until I looked it up later. But I can tell you the driving force of this novel for me is the heroine’s frank, simple appeal. I was on her side as soon as she peed in the elevator of a decadent clothing boutique. I can tell you the book made San Francisco seem like a hungry living thing and the narrator’s voice gives the whole story an electric feeling like something big is always about to happen. And I can say I found common ground with Geniece’s big ideas, the same I think any progressive kid from college would even if they came from a different background.
Although I don’t have much of a context to fit this story into, I appreciated the issues Geniece faces and the chance to read about the beginning of the black power movement.
Although I don’t have much of a context to fit this story into, I appreciated the issues Geniece faces and the chance to read about the beginning of the black power movement.
June 18, 2013
The rhythm of Virgin Soul by Judy Juanita’s narrative is reminiscent of scat singing, but with a street-based undertone, jumping from moment to moment creating an atmosphere that resembles the turbulent nature of the 1960s. In this way, she captures the atmosphere, especially among African-Americans in California at that time, really well. The protagonist Geniece Hightower has always felt like an outsider since her mother died and her father skipped out, but when she heads off to college, she thinks that she’s finally found a place to fit in. She meets some people engaged in the civil rights movement, and falls in love with Allwood, who becomes her lover and teacher. She falls in and out of relationships, but at her heart Allwood is her first love.
Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2013/06/v...
Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2013/06/v...
May 13, 2014
Virgin Soul lacked strong character development and zero emotion in the writing. Judy Juanita did a great job noting historical points specifically of the Black Panther Party and its major players. The setting, 1960's was a controversial as well as explosive time in American life both politically and socially, touched upon well but, Juanita had many opportunities to explore and expand this time frame further both in characterization and overall tone. The main protagonist was lovable, the plot a great premise and the ending clever but the book as a whole could have been great if Juanita put more soul and energy into Virgin Soul as a whole.
March 3, 2015
Geniece is growing up, moving out, dating, going to college and trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life. The backdrop for her life is San Francisco in the 1960s. It's a tumultuous, racially charged time of self exploration and she finds herself in the midst of the Black Panthers. Her passion for writing is blossoming but she feels restrained by rules and expectations that outside forces put on her. Although the story was interesting I never really liked Geniece or felt like I got to know her character. She is a lens through which we see the world and not much more.
September 15, 2013
2.5 stars. Didn't hate this, but for some reason just didn't like it when I finished it. Story about an 18 year old girl growing into early adulthood during the rise of the Black Power movement in northern California. I actually though the first quarter of the book contained a bit of character development, but the rest of the book felt like a shallow way to hang historical events on the framework of a girl's life rather than the actual progress of her life.
July 29, 2013
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I felt was a true coming of age story told from a chocolate girl's perspective. I felt like I was riding shotgun with Geniece and experiencing everything she did from being lectured at the dinner table to writing for the BPP. This is how a debut novel should be written. Can't wait to read her next work.
August 18, 2013
A young woman from Oakland goes to Oakland City College, then SF State, and gets involved in the Black Panthers. The story is broken into 4 parts, corresponding to her 4 years of college. Interesting historical tidbits here. I liked the book overall, but I felt like it was missing something. Maybe character development, as one reviewer suggested. Some good writing in here, though.
August 21, 2013
I found this book interesting and mostly well written. The main characters journey through college and as a member of the Black Panthers is intriguing. It's certainly a book I'll think about a lot. There was something a bit off about the ending, I think, but would love to talk to others who have read the book to see what they think.
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