Honey, Hush!: An Anthology of African American Women's Humor

by Nikki Giovanni (Foreword), Daryl Cumber Dance (Editor)

The vibrant humor of African American women is celebrated in this bold and unique collection that the Miami Herald describes as "breathtakingly broad and deep." In this "dazzling anthology" ( Publishers Weekly ), Daryl Cumber Dance has collected the often hard-hitting, sometimes risqué, always dramatic humor that arises from the depth of black women's souls and the breadth of their lives. The eloquent wit and laughter of African American women are presented here in all their written and spoken manifestations: autobiographies, novels, essays, poems, speeches, comic routines, proverbial sayings, cartoons, mimeographed sheets, and folk tales. The chapters proceed thematically, covering the church, love, civil rights, motherly advice, and much more.

Genres: Humor, Feminism, African American Literature, Short Stories, African American

718 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Yolande Cornelia "Nikki" Giovanni Jr. was an American poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. One of the world's most well-known African-American poets, her work includes poetry anthologies, poetry recordings, and nonfiction essays, and covers topics ranging from race and social issues to children's literature. She won numerous awards, including the Langston Hughes Medal and the NAACP Image Award. She was nominated for a Grammy Award for her poetry album, The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection. Additionally, she was named as one of Oprah Winfrey's 25 "Living Legends". Giovanni was a member of The Wintergreen Women Writers Collective.
Giovanni gained initial fame in the late 1960s as one of the foremost authors of the Black Arts Movement. Influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement of the period, her early work provides a strong, militant African-American perspective, leading one writer to dub her the "Poet of the Black Revolution". During the 1970s, she began writing children's literature, and co-founded a publishing company, NikTom Ltd, to provide an outlet for other African-American women writers. Over subsequent decades, her works discussed social issues, human relationships, and hip hop. Poems such as "Knoxville, Tennessee" and "Nikki-Rosa" have been frequently re-published in anthologies and other collections.
Giovanni received numerous awards and holds 27 honorary degrees from various colleges and universities. She was also given the key to over two dozen cities. Giovanni was honored with the NAACP Image Award seven times. One of her more unique honors was having a South America bat species, Micronycteris giovanniae, named after her in 2007.
Giovanni was proud of her Appalachian roots and worked to change the way the world views Appalachians and Affrilachians.
Giovanni taught at Queens College, Rutgers, and Ohio State, and was a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech until September 1, 2022. After the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, she delivered a chant-poem at a memorial for the shooting victims.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

i gave this book to the important women in my life a few years ago, they enjoyed reading the various stories and tidbits of humor. a nice book club read will have you laughing out loud.

[Suninthetwelfthhouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book! will have you laughing all the way through it, this is one of those books you can read to your friends while you are out sitting on the patio, it has stories of fun, sex and all kinds of jokery in it. I really love this book, it is one to always stay on my shelf while other books go in the box.

[Melanee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must admit some of my favorite parts of the book were at the end of the themed chapters where the author listed sayings and superstitions many of us grew up hearing. It was as if I was hearing my grandmother's voice in my ear all over again. Fantastic to see that they were universal in our culture!

[Matt Sautman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent anthology of Black women’s oral and literary traditions into the 1990s, not everything in Honey Hush may have aged well, but this book is incredibly important as it preserves these traditions in writing thanks to Daryl Cumber Dance’s hard work, and it has genuine laugh inducing moments.

[Michelle HW]

Love Anthologies!

[BMR, LCSW · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this from my best friend for Christmas, off my Amazon wishlist. This anthology of essays, prose, drawing, and other art was an interesting look at how Black women in the US showed humor through the centuries. There was one anti-Semitic joke I did *not* expect or appreciate.

Except for that "joke," I enjoyed the volume. I also enjoyed discovering new books to read from many of the writers included in the anthology.

Recommended for geeks that like the anthology format.

[Creolecat]

Moms Mabley??

[Seven · Rating 4 out of 5]

funny as hell!

[Deborah Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a HOOT! Very funny!

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb anthology of African American literature. Poems, essays, short stories, letters, and even comics...it's all in there. It's a good one to keep handy on the bookshelf for a quick humorous read.