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Mama Black Widow
"One of the most exciting literary revival series since the rediscovery of Jim Thompson's novels" (Playboy), Old School Books "is subtly transforming the landscape of post-war black fiction" (Bomb).
"Mama Black Widow" is the nickname of Otis Tilson, a comely and tragic black queen adrift with his brothers and sisters in the dark ghetto world of pimpdom and violent crime. His story is told in the gut-level language of the homosexual underworld-an unforgettable testament of life lived on the margins of a racist and predatory urban hell.
"Mama Black Widow" is the nickname of Otis Tilson, a comely and tragic black queen adrift with his brothers and sisters in the dark ghetto world of pimpdom and violent crime. His story is told in the gut-level language of the homosexual underworld-an unforgettable testament of life lived on the margins of a racist and predatory urban hell.
312 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1969
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November 27, 2021
BLACK LIVES MATTER
Ecco Iceberg Slim, aka Robert Beck, aka Robert Lee Maupin, in tutto il suo splendore di sfruttatore, aka protettore, aka pappa, aka magnaccia
Si dice che Iceberg Slim avesse un carattere di ghiaccio, da cui deriva il nick Iceberg – e si sa che era alto 188 cm per meno di 82 kg, da cui Slim.
All’anagrafe era invece registrato come Robert Lee Maupin, poi diventato Robert Beck.
Ma è sotto lo pseudonimo Iceberg Slim che divenne famoso, per molti rapper una vera leggenda, al punto che Ice T., Ice Cube, Iceberg Slimm e Pittsburg Slim si chiamano così in suo riferimento e onore.
Prima di diventare un celebre scrittore, omaggiato anche dal cinema, è stato a lungo un magnaccia (la sua autobiografia è per l’appunto intitolata Pimp).
Tra i 18 e i 42 anni si è ampiamente mantenuto come protettore di più di 400 prostitute, nere e bianche, che, per quanto calmo e freddo, ogni tanto rimproverava a colpi di appendini di metallo (quelli usati nelle lavanderie).
A 43 anni, dopo l’ennesimo arresto, l’ultimo, con dieci mesi di isolamento, decise di essere troppo vecchio per quella vita, lasciò la nativa Chicago e si trasferì a Los Angeles.
Pimp fu primo libro che scrisse, e in poco tempo ne furono vendute due milioni di copie.
Seguirono altri titoli, le trasposizioni cinematografiche, le interviste, i dischi (forse uno solo).
Visse gli ultimi trent’anni della sua vita accanto alla stessa donna, la madre delle sue tre figlie, ma senza essere legalmente sposati.
Il primo film tratto da una sua opera, Trick Baby incassò venti volte il suo costo.
Ciò nonostante Iceberg morì di diabete in condizioni economiche non prospere.
Chiaro che tutto questo si trova nelle sue pagine.
Chiaro che fosse l’uomo giusto nel momento giusto: gli anni Sessanta, Martin Luther King e Malcom X, il Black Power e le Black Panthers, la carriera di magnaccia abbandonata subito prima che esplodesse il movimento di liberazione femminile, la blaxploitation…
Chiaro che la sua è un’esperienza letteraria che ricorda quella di Edward Bunker: raccontare la strada per conoscenza diretta, restituendone la violenza attraverso un linguaggio crudo, ma scoppiettante e vulcanico, a momenti anche poetico (però, devo proprio dirlo, pure un po’ corny, seppure immerso in un bel bagno di sense of humour).
Chiaro che questo libro non è solo una storia di lati B profanati o mandati in estasi da mandingo superdotati, liquidi seminali sparsi su pelle nera e rotondità varie, accoppiamenti omo-bi-eterosessuali di coppia, trio o partouze, istinti femminili intrappolati in corpi maschili, riduzione di transessuale a puro oggetto erotico, violenza devastante dietro le sbarre, stupri di gruppo.
No, chiaro che questo libro è prima di tutto sulla sopraffazione, sul razzismo, sull’ingiustizia, sulla violenza, sulla vita di merda che ti aspettava se nascevi con la pelle di colore nero nel paese che ha inventato la dichiarazione dei diritti dell’uomo e si autodefinisce la più antica democrazia del mondo.
Ma anche no.
Città del Messico, 17 ottobre 1968, premiazione dei 200 metri maschili: il vincitore Tommie Smith ha stabilito il nuovo primato del mondo della distanza in 19″83, vincendo a braccia alzate (il record resisterà 11 anni fino al 19″72 di Pietro Mennea, proprio sulla stessa pista). Secondo l’australiano bianco Peter Norman, terzo l’altro statunitense John Carlos. Alla premiazione i due atleti di colore hanno calze nere ma niente scarpe ed entrambi un guanto nero: siccome Carlos aveva dimenticato il suo paio, si dividono quelli di Smith. Anche l’australiano solidarizza mostrando sul petto il distintivo del Progetto Olimpico per i Diritti Umani. Alle note dell’inno nazionale Star-Spangled Banner, i due chinano la testa e alzano il pugno guantato di nero, un’immagine di protesta rimasta nella storia. Per capire se la segregazione razziale in US è leggenda basta sapere cosa successe ai due al rientro a casa.
Ecco Iceberg Slim, aka Robert Beck, aka Robert Lee Maupin, in tutto il suo splendore di sfruttatore, aka protettore, aka pappa, aka magnaccia
Si dice che Iceberg Slim avesse un carattere di ghiaccio, da cui deriva il nick Iceberg – e si sa che era alto 188 cm per meno di 82 kg, da cui Slim.
All’anagrafe era invece registrato come Robert Lee Maupin, poi diventato Robert Beck.
Ma è sotto lo pseudonimo Iceberg Slim che divenne famoso, per molti rapper una vera leggenda, al punto che Ice T., Ice Cube, Iceberg Slimm e Pittsburg Slim si chiamano così in suo riferimento e onore.
Prima di diventare un celebre scrittore, omaggiato anche dal cinema, è stato a lungo un magnaccia (la sua autobiografia è per l’appunto intitolata Pimp).
Tra i 18 e i 42 anni si è ampiamente mantenuto come protettore di più di 400 prostitute, nere e bianche, che, per quanto calmo e freddo, ogni tanto rimproverava a colpi di appendini di metallo (quelli usati nelle lavanderie).
A 43 anni, dopo l’ennesimo arresto, l’ultimo, con dieci mesi di isolamento, decise di essere troppo vecchio per quella vita, lasciò la nativa Chicago e si trasferì a Los Angeles.
Pimp fu primo libro che scrisse, e in poco tempo ne furono vendute due milioni di copie.
Seguirono altri titoli, le trasposizioni cinematografiche, le interviste, i dischi (forse uno solo).
Visse gli ultimi trent’anni della sua vita accanto alla stessa donna, la madre delle sue tre figlie, ma senza essere legalmente sposati.
Il primo film tratto da una sua opera, Trick Baby incassò venti volte il suo costo.
Ciò nonostante Iceberg morì di diabete in condizioni economiche non prospere.
Chiaro che tutto questo si trova nelle sue pagine.
Chiaro che fosse l’uomo giusto nel momento giusto: gli anni Sessanta, Martin Luther King e Malcom X, il Black Power e le Black Panthers, la carriera di magnaccia abbandonata subito prima che esplodesse il movimento di liberazione femminile, la blaxploitation…
Chiaro che la sua è un’esperienza letteraria che ricorda quella di Edward Bunker: raccontare la strada per conoscenza diretta, restituendone la violenza attraverso un linguaggio crudo, ma scoppiettante e vulcanico, a momenti anche poetico (però, devo proprio dirlo, pure un po’ corny, seppure immerso in un bel bagno di sense of humour).
Chiaro che questo libro non è solo una storia di lati B profanati o mandati in estasi da mandingo superdotati, liquidi seminali sparsi su pelle nera e rotondità varie, accoppiamenti omo-bi-eterosessuali di coppia, trio o partouze, istinti femminili intrappolati in corpi maschili, riduzione di transessuale a puro oggetto erotico, violenza devastante dietro le sbarre, stupri di gruppo.
No, chiaro che questo libro è prima di tutto sulla sopraffazione, sul razzismo, sull’ingiustizia, sulla violenza, sulla vita di merda che ti aspettava se nascevi con la pelle di colore nero nel paese che ha inventato la dichiarazione dei diritti dell’uomo e si autodefinisce la più antica democrazia del mondo.
Ma anche no.
Città del Messico, 17 ottobre 1968, premiazione dei 200 metri maschili: il vincitore Tommie Smith ha stabilito il nuovo primato del mondo della distanza in 19″83, vincendo a braccia alzate (il record resisterà 11 anni fino al 19″72 di Pietro Mennea, proprio sulla stessa pista). Secondo l’australiano bianco Peter Norman, terzo l’altro statunitense John Carlos. Alla premiazione i due atleti di colore hanno calze nere ma niente scarpe ed entrambi un guanto nero: siccome Carlos aveva dimenticato il suo paio, si dividono quelli di Smith. Anche l’australiano solidarizza mostrando sul petto il distintivo del Progetto Olimpico per i Diritti Umani. Alle note dell’inno nazionale Star-Spangled Banner, i due chinano la testa e alzano il pugno guantato di nero, un’immagine di protesta rimasta nella storia. Per capire se la segregazione razziale in US è leggenda basta sapere cosa successe ai due al rientro a casa.
July 31, 2013
This is a tough book to read but once you get through the first chapter and enter Otis' life you will find this a hard book to put down. Iceberg Slim provides a window into the life of a Black family that like so many others at that time joined the migration to the 'promised land', the North. They struggled to survive in the most difficult of circumstances. It is a tragedy but a real portrayal of the inhumane suffering that one family and others in their time in history in the Chicago ghetto sought to overcome.
April 3, 2016
I'm going through my old list of ten favorite novels, and this was near the top. It's actually the first one I loved as much now as I did 15-20 years ago, but I'm only giving it four stars. There are a few stretches that drag, such as Otis' transformation into a queen, and others that go by a bit too quickly, such as the final chapter, which doesn't call back enough to the first chapter to put the pieces together in the timeline. Basically, the final third needs the help of an editor.
HOWEVER, I still maintain that this novel is the towering achievement of its genre and era. I do consider it literature, whereas much of Iceberg Slim's work is closer to pulp. Even though I love old novels with trans people as subjects, that is secondary to me (and if that is what drew you to the book, you'll feel let down by the grim epilogue). I see "Mama Black Widow" as a story of exile felt by many who participated in the Great Migration. The novel also does a good job of showing their precarious situation as sharecroppers in Mississippi, particularly the details about the slave whipping area which was still in use, though slightly ravaged by time (though just a few generations, really). The greatest interest for me was the shifting power between Mama and Daddy as he became useless and she became even harder. I remembered Mama being an absolute monster the first time I read it, but this time I got a better sense that she was a very damaged person who did monstrous things which even she could not deal with.
HOWEVER, I still maintain that this novel is the towering achievement of its genre and era. I do consider it literature, whereas much of Iceberg Slim's work is closer to pulp. Even though I love old novels with trans people as subjects, that is secondary to me (and if that is what drew you to the book, you'll feel let down by the grim epilogue). I see "Mama Black Widow" as a story of exile felt by many who participated in the Great Migration. The novel also does a good job of showing their precarious situation as sharecroppers in Mississippi, particularly the details about the slave whipping area which was still in use, though slightly ravaged by time (though just a few generations, really). The greatest interest for me was the shifting power between Mama and Daddy as he became useless and she became even harder. I remembered Mama being an absolute monster the first time I read it, but this time I got a better sense that she was a very damaged person who did monstrous things which even she could not deal with.
October 19, 2013
I'm coming down the home stretch of reading everything Iceberg Slim wrote, and I'm glad this one was saved for the endgame. I think I have one or two more left, and then I'm done.
Like most of Slim's work, very few punches are pulled. As a matter of fact, I can't think of a single instance of Slim pulling a punch. He tells it like it is. I found PIMP to be one of the bleakest, most depressing books I've ever read, and MAMA BLACK WIDOW is cut from this cloth.
One word that I've never heard used to describe Slim's writing, however, is: humane. I would like to suggest we start using this word for his work. Never once does he pass judgement on Otis in this book, never condemning his friend's lifestyle choices. Keep in mind this book was written in the 1960's and that fact becomes even more astounding.
Highly recommended!
Like most of Slim's work, very few punches are pulled. As a matter of fact, I can't think of a single instance of Slim pulling a punch. He tells it like it is. I found PIMP to be one of the bleakest, most depressing books I've ever read, and MAMA BLACK WIDOW is cut from this cloth.
One word that I've never heard used to describe Slim's writing, however, is: humane. I would like to suggest we start using this word for his work. Never once does he pass judgement on Otis in this book, never condemning his friend's lifestyle choices. Keep in mind this book was written in the 1960's and that fact becomes even more astounding.
Highly recommended!
September 9, 2007
It is amazing to me that Iceberg Slim is not more well known in the American mainstream press or even in schools. "Mama Black Widow" is probably one of the great American novels of the 20th Century. If this was going to be a film, only someone like Fassbinder could have filmed it. Also his "Pimp" should be required reading as well.
I wrote an essay on Iceberg Slim on my TamTam Books Blog:
http://tamtambooks-tosh.blogspot.com/
I wrote an essay on Iceberg Slim on my TamTam Books Blog:
http://tamtambooks-tosh.blogspot.com/
January 7, 2020
Tense and gorgeous. Definitely a product of its time but still an interesting read for those interested in black literature and in how queer folks are portrayed in literature.
November 24, 2007
This is a very graphic and gritty novel but not for the squeamish, faint of heart or those who want a happy ending because a happy ending you're not going to get. I must say it was probably one of the most nailbiting page turning protrayals of inner city 1930s black urban life. I seriously could not put it down as much as I wanted to at some points.
The story is about Otis Tilson, otherwise known as Sally or Tilly by his cross dressing pals or Sweet Pea by the arachnoid mother of the title.
The Tilsons, a cotton picking family living on a plantation in the South, come into a windfall from a family member "up North" and pack up their bags and move to a 1930s Chicago ghetto where racism, drugs, prostitution, violence and police brutality run rampant and unchecked.
Told from the perspective of Otis at the age of ten we watch as the once happy and moderately successful family slowly unravel and fall into ruin because of Mama's obsession with money. As a result, Papa becomes a broken shell of a man, sister Carol falls in love with the wrong suitor with tragic results, sister Bessie turns to prostitution with a bleak outcome, brother Junior turns to a life of crime and murder and even Otis, grappling with his homosexuality,comes to his own unfortunate end.
Definitely on the order of Hubert Selby Jr's novels, Mama Black Widow tells a story of down and out people living in a private hell with no where to go but down. Like Selby's Requiem for A Dream, Mama Black Widow would make a compelling, gritty and heart wrenching movie.
The story is about Otis Tilson, otherwise known as Sally or Tilly by his cross dressing pals or Sweet Pea by the arachnoid mother of the title.
The Tilsons, a cotton picking family living on a plantation in the South, come into a windfall from a family member "up North" and pack up their bags and move to a 1930s Chicago ghetto where racism, drugs, prostitution, violence and police brutality run rampant and unchecked.
Told from the perspective of Otis at the age of ten we watch as the once happy and moderately successful family slowly unravel and fall into ruin because of Mama's obsession with money. As a result, Papa becomes a broken shell of a man, sister Carol falls in love with the wrong suitor with tragic results, sister Bessie turns to prostitution with a bleak outcome, brother Junior turns to a life of crime and murder and even Otis, grappling with his homosexuality,comes to his own unfortunate end.
Definitely on the order of Hubert Selby Jr's novels, Mama Black Widow tells a story of down and out people living in a private hell with no where to go but down. Like Selby's Requiem for A Dream, Mama Black Widow would make a compelling, gritty and heart wrenching movie.
January 13, 2019
Wow I've never read anything like this before. So electrifying... and deep there was times I couldn't believe what I was reading and had to put it down..... THEN PICK IT UP AGAIN..... After reading the story the title is fitting !!! Otis , his father, sisters, and brother stories sadden me deeply. Black people had it rough back then especially if you were diffrent like Otis. "Tilson family was doomed to have horrible things happen to it". Now that was a true haunting way to sum up the family. The book had EVERYTHING to keep a reader interested I kept googling names to see if this story was real.
October 6, 2024
4.5 stars. Gripping, brutal and depressingly real. A difficult but important read.
January 24, 2016
My first read of 2016.
Believe it or not, this popped up on Buzzfeed's "27 Seriously Underrated Books Every Book Lover Should Read" list last year. I'd never heard of this novel, but thought the synopsis was the complete opposite of anything Iceberg Slim would write about: a drag queen in the 1940s.
"Mama Black Widow" is the coming of age story of Otis Tilson, born in Mississippi, the youngest boy in a family of six that migrates to Chicago, unprepared for the harsh life that awaits. This novel chronicles years of abuse, grief, poverty, prostitution, drugs, broken hearts and death suffered by his family, much of it because his hardworking father can't find a job in the windy city, leaving the family dependent on the earnings of their mother, who soon becomes resentful, spiteful, and evil.
I wasn't prepared for all the anguish and sadness in this book. It was TEW much, and Iceberg seemed to have an ax to grind with women who have to step up and become breadwinners when institutionalized racism makes the men in their families economically powerless. The outcome was pretty outrageous, which I'm sure was his purpose behind much of the story, no matter how far fetched. I do think he laid blame in the wrong place though.
Despite this misstep, there is a lot of action in this novel, making Mama Black Widow perfect for the big screen. It would definitely appeal to a diverse audience. I picture it with a "Dead Presidents" aesthetic; highly entertaining. Where are the Hughes Brothers when you need 'em?
Believe it or not, this popped up on Buzzfeed's "27 Seriously Underrated Books Every Book Lover Should Read" list last year. I'd never heard of this novel, but thought the synopsis was the complete opposite of anything Iceberg Slim would write about: a drag queen in the 1940s.
"Mama Black Widow" is the coming of age story of Otis Tilson, born in Mississippi, the youngest boy in a family of six that migrates to Chicago, unprepared for the harsh life that awaits. This novel chronicles years of abuse, grief, poverty, prostitution, drugs, broken hearts and death suffered by his family, much of it because his hardworking father can't find a job in the windy city, leaving the family dependent on the earnings of their mother, who soon becomes resentful, spiteful, and evil.
I wasn't prepared for all the anguish and sadness in this book. It was TEW much, and Iceberg seemed to have an ax to grind with women who have to step up and become breadwinners when institutionalized racism makes the men in their families economically powerless. The outcome was pretty outrageous, which I'm sure was his purpose behind much of the story, no matter how far fetched. I do think he laid blame in the wrong place though.
Despite this misstep, there is a lot of action in this novel, making Mama Black Widow perfect for the big screen. It would definitely appeal to a diverse audience. I picture it with a "Dead Presidents" aesthetic; highly entertaining. Where are the Hughes Brothers when you need 'em?
January 26, 2018
A Harrowing and visceral tale embroiled in misery, death and violence. This story is a story i do not want to go into detail about. This is a book that must br read. But be warned: You will not find a happy ending here.
If i need to give one bit of critique is that the final few chapters of this book slow down on the very intense and horriffic tone which for some might be a bit off putting. But no matter what way you slice it from beginning to end this is an intense page turner that can be read in short successions or a sunday afternoon binge read. another thing you have to be careful for are The southern accents that riddle mostof the dialogue in the majority of this book.
Beyond that, i still feel it deserves the 5 stars. even with the last few chapter slowing down heavily the entire bundle is a gripping read from front to back
If i need to give one bit of critique is that the final few chapters of this book slow down on the very intense and horriffic tone which for some might be a bit off putting. But no matter what way you slice it from beginning to end this is an intense page turner that can be read in short successions or a sunday afternoon binge read. another thing you have to be careful for are The southern accents that riddle mostof the dialogue in the majority of this book.
Beyond that, i still feel it deserves the 5 stars. even with the last few chapter slowing down heavily the entire bundle is a gripping read from front to back
March 11, 2018
Loved this production and probably wouldn't have reread it if not for it being a book club selection. The narrator gives life to all the characters without confusing the reader. This is a sad story of the life of a drag queen from before RuPaul's era. It's very well written with good character and plot development.
Otis Tilson tells his life story to Iceberg Slim who captures it magnificently. This family, as many of the families during the Black Migration to the North were. Every single one meets a tragic end - so sad.
Otis Tilson tells his life story to Iceberg Slim who captures it magnificently. This family, as many of the families during the Black Migration to the North were. Every single one meets a tragic end - so sad.
December 9, 2018
I remember reading this book ten years ago and enjoying it, but only retaining certain from details. Now, revisiting the story and characters again, I fully digest how completely helpless every single character was. There’s nothing to cheer about. There’s nothing bopeful and there’s frequent moments of extreme discomfort for the reader. I think that’s the sole reason why the story sticks to me so heavily cause you always remember the characters that were constantly dealt a bad hand, and in particular to these people, it’s the worst hand possible.
August 3, 2016
I've re-read this novel after many years and continue to love Iceberg Slim's gritty, great, poetic writing/language. The subject matter is brutal, honest and really tragic, written by a man who experienced and saw enough to give a voice (in this case to Otis )to those caught up in the dark underbelly of family and life in Chicago in the early 20th century. It's a masterpiece for a reason. Not for the faint hearted.
April 10, 2018
This was an excruciatingly graphic novel. It’s a bit hard to digest the first couple of chapters. I found myself stopping to gather my thoughts and to process the bits I read.
Iceberg was a genius story teller. My heart ached for the entire family. Just when you think the tragedies have subsided you find there are even more waiting to occur.
Iceberg was a genius story teller. My heart ached for the entire family. Just when you think the tragedies have subsided you find there are even more waiting to occur.
April 5, 2007
Very, very sad.
January 4, 2020
An emotional and heartbreaking book that certainly misses the mark many times in terms of dealing with queerness but does its best for its time period. Absolutely touching and inspired.
June 6, 2019
The story of Otis Tilson is a heartbreaking eye opener to the truth of the torture experienced by two communities, the black and the LGBTQ+. It reveals the constant degradation and soul sucking tragedies these communities face everyday whether its by their own families, loved ones, neighboring peers, employers, strangers, or police officers. Though it is not told without flaw it is beautifully executed.
Iceberg Slim creates 2 frames to portray this story. It starts out with Otis as a grown man sharing a snippet of his life while he's living life as a straight man by day but a glorious queen by night. Slim then creates the second film by abruptly bringing the reader backwards in time to Otis' childhood as a sharecropper in Mississippi. Here we meet his family in a patriarchal dynamic containing: a father, a mother, two twin sisters, and a brother with Otis being the youngest child. The family doesn't remain in Mississippi long they eventually join the Great Migration and go to the urban midwest, Chicago. In Chicago the family dynamic begins to make a shift from patriarchal to matriarchal. As we observe the shift we see how the inner city crime world entices and corrupts the Tilson family all while traumatizing and creating Otis into who he is. When the novel nears its end Slim ends the second frame by having time catch up to the Otis we meet in the beginning.
At this point Slim has proven to be prone misjudging the importance or the lure of scenarios. Meaning that certain parts of the story that should have taken up more space in the book only took up about 2-3 pages and ones that should have been 2-3 pages were 6-7. This is exactly what he does again at the end of the novel where he basically brushes over whats happening in Otis' life. He is no longer deeply explaining this mans story and doesn't share enough of it to tie the novel back to where it began.
Iceberg Slim creates 2 frames to portray this story. It starts out with Otis as a grown man sharing a snippet of his life while he's living life as a straight man by day but a glorious queen by night. Slim then creates the second film by abruptly bringing the reader backwards in time to Otis' childhood as a sharecropper in Mississippi. Here we meet his family in a patriarchal dynamic containing: a father, a mother, two twin sisters, and a brother with Otis being the youngest child. The family doesn't remain in Mississippi long they eventually join the Great Migration and go to the urban midwest, Chicago. In Chicago the family dynamic begins to make a shift from patriarchal to matriarchal. As we observe the shift we see how the inner city crime world entices and corrupts the Tilson family all while traumatizing and creating Otis into who he is. When the novel nears its end Slim ends the second frame by having time catch up to the Otis we meet in the beginning.
At this point Slim has proven to be prone misjudging the importance or the lure of scenarios. Meaning that certain parts of the story that should have taken up more space in the book only took up about 2-3 pages and ones that should have been 2-3 pages were 6-7. This is exactly what he does again at the end of the novel where he basically brushes over whats happening in Otis' life. He is no longer deeply explaining this mans story and doesn't share enough of it to tie the novel back to where it began.
March 4, 2022
Mama Black Widow is framed as the life story of Otis Tilson, a gay black man and cross dresser living in the Chicago slums. The back calls it a masterpiece, which I assumed at first to be hyperbole, but it really might be a masterpiece at documenting the struggles of Black families moving from the rural south to northern cities. It’s bleak, but not without humor, and captures the reality of the characters’ lives with astute detail. It also features one of the most devious and maybe evil mother characters you’ll see in literature. Slim is a great writer and social commentator, and he really knows how to pull out the stops for a few truly shocking scenes. I was expecting this book to be pulp, but it’s literature, and if not for those aforementioned shocking scenes (within the early pages of the book, there is a brutal sexual assault, to say nothing of the tragedies that occur later in the book), I suspect this book would be a widely read/taught classic. Without spoiling anything, I can say that this is not an uplifting story, but it is one well worth reading. If I have one criticism of it, most of the book is dedicated to the Tilson family during Otis’ childhood; although these years are eventful and noteworthy, I wish it spent more time focusing on Tilson’s early adulthood and coming to terms with his sexuality. But this is a minor criticism; this book is a great, empathetic document of Black urban life in the mid 20th century.
July 28, 2017
A gritty and powerful story of Otis Tilson, a black drag queen trapped in a cruel queer ghetto underworld in the 1930's and 40's.
In hopes of escaping the racial bigotry and economic injustice of the South, Otis’ family journeys north from their plantation to an urban promised land. Once in Chicago Otis and his brother and sisters become prisoners to a wasteland of violence, crime, prostitution and rape. I would need a ledger to list all of the sadness and injustices in this book, but what struck me most was the hatred parents had for their own children. I don't know if it stems from shame or the need to belittle someone more than you have been belittled, but it was heartbreaking all the same.
One reviewer wrote "a gut-wrenching tale of the destruction of a family and the truest portrayal of homosexuality in the ghetto ever told. and I could not agree more.
In hopes of escaping the racial bigotry and economic injustice of the South, Otis’ family journeys north from their plantation to an urban promised land. Once in Chicago Otis and his brother and sisters become prisoners to a wasteland of violence, crime, prostitution and rape. I would need a ledger to list all of the sadness and injustices in this book, but what struck me most was the hatred parents had for their own children. I don't know if it stems from shame or the need to belittle someone more than you have been belittled, but it was heartbreaking all the same.
One reviewer wrote "a gut-wrenching tale of the destruction of a family and the truest portrayal of homosexuality in the ghetto ever told. and I could not agree more.
October 10, 2020
A story about a black drag queen/gay man and his many problems with family and society in the poor black underbelly in Chicago. His entire family suffers because of the environment and the pressures affecting the family.
All of this tragedy takes place, believe it or not after the family flees from the south for what they hope is better times. Instead, they just find a different kind of oppression and bigotry which ends up destroying the family and the individuals in it.
The writer shows a real insight into the situation of Otis, the main character, but then from other books, we know the author as a former pimp not unfamiliar with both female and cross-dressed prostitutes and the culture in which they existed in the earlier parts of the 20th century
I found the book very engaging to say the least..
All of this tragedy takes place, believe it or not after the family flees from the south for what they hope is better times. Instead, they just find a different kind of oppression and bigotry which ends up destroying the family and the individuals in it.
The writer shows a real insight into the situation of Otis, the main character, but then from other books, we know the author as a former pimp not unfamiliar with both female and cross-dressed prostitutes and the culture in which they existed in the earlier parts of the 20th century
I found the book very engaging to say the least..
June 12, 2023
I don’t know what I was expecting from an ex pimp turned author however I was not prepared for such an articulate and well descriptive account of what I can only imagine is partially or even possibly wholly true. An account of growing up black in the pre and post ww2 period in America with themes of race, gender and sexuality. A book before it’s time.
An intense and riveting start to the book had me gripped. Unfortunately I felt the middle lack an excitement and was a constant anticipation for something to happen. Purely because of the set up from that start. However I would say that it is the day to day account of a poor black family set up that shouldn’t be ignored for that time period. A strong and emotional ending.
An intense and riveting start to the book had me gripped. Unfortunately I felt the middle lack an excitement and was a constant anticipation for something to happen. Purely because of the set up from that start. However I would say that it is the day to day account of a poor black family set up that shouldn’t be ignored for that time period. A strong and emotional ending.
July 5, 2024
3.5 - Honest, revealing, violently raw and tragically educational view of the life of mid 20th Century life for a Black queer queen, Otis Tilson. What a hard and short life he lived. Those were very very hard times for the Black community, and most especially, the queer community. All he wanted was love, and there was so much hurt and betrayal.
His home life was no better. The youngest of 4. His father, elder brother and two sister reach horribly tragic ends and Otis blames his mercurial mother. When they're all gone, she only has Otis and never lets up her need to keep him dependent and close by her side.
I knew what to expect from and Iceberg Slim story and this is as dark and gritty as expected, told in Otis' voice.
His home life was no better. The youngest of 4. His father, elder brother and two sister reach horribly tragic ends and Otis blames his mercurial mother. When they're all gone, she only has Otis and never lets up her need to keep him dependent and close by her side.
I knew what to expect from and Iceberg Slim story and this is as dark and gritty as expected, told in Otis' voice.
May 2, 2019
A rib joint firing up it's ovens belched eye-stinging gouts of smoke into the sky.
The night people were crawling Madison Street like maggots on a corpse. Thickly painted queers and whores, white, black and high yellow jiggled corrupt behinds inside loud minidresses. They leered dirty smiles at the shabby tricks prowling for an orgy for five bucks. Black pimps with brutish faces stalked the turf in long flashy cars.
Gritty, grim story of a black drag queen growing up in 1930's Chicago, through to the 1960's. A harrowing life of a person already living on the edge of society, further alienated sexually, physically, verbally and psychologically. Challenging reading.
3.5*
The night people were crawling Madison Street like maggots on a corpse. Thickly painted queers and whores, white, black and high yellow jiggled corrupt behinds inside loud minidresses. They leered dirty smiles at the shabby tricks prowling for an orgy for five bucks. Black pimps with brutish faces stalked the turf in long flashy cars.
Gritty, grim story of a black drag queen growing up in 1930's Chicago, through to the 1960's. A harrowing life of a person already living on the edge of society, further alienated sexually, physically, verbally and psychologically. Challenging reading.
3.5*
March 2, 2020
Hard-hitting, tragic, poignant. While more or less sympathetically told, it's very much a story of its time, and bigotry, internalised and otherwise, takes a starring role. I feel like the author snuck in to the telling more than once, and I'm not sure how much I liked him. It's a very stark look into the racial and sexual politics of Chicago in the 30s-60s, at the homophobic, misogynistic and sexual violence that permeated. It's not a happy book and my heart hurts that even half of it is true.
Very much enjoyed Bobby Spears' narration. No affectation, no dressing up; just raw characterisation,and it was excellent. It really was.
Don't go into this without hella warnings.
Very much enjoyed Bobby Spears' narration. No affectation, no dressing up; just raw characterisation,and it was excellent. It really was.
Don't go into this without hella warnings.
September 18, 2020
I was trying to read a Virginia Woolf novel, really. I have never really finished one of them. And I read a few pages of it, and it was SOO boring.
I have read PIMP before. It was brutal, so when I picked up this book, I knew what to expect, somewhat. What I didn't expect was to find a book written in the 1970's that succinctly expressed the complaints of the Black Lives Matter movement of today, 2020!
That is exactly what I got, and it helped to open my already half-opened eyes a little farther. Thank you, Iceberg Slim.
And Yes, read this book. All of you. It's a page-turner and also has a message of truth about the reality of being Black in America.
I have read PIMP before. It was brutal, so when I picked up this book, I knew what to expect, somewhat. What I didn't expect was to find a book written in the 1970's that succinctly expressed the complaints of the Black Lives Matter movement of today, 2020!
That is exactly what I got, and it helped to open my already half-opened eyes a little farther. Thank you, Iceberg Slim.
And Yes, read this book. All of you. It's a page-turner and also has a message of truth about the reality of being Black in America.
March 5, 2019
I feel for "sweet pea"... he had it rough and tough..
what discrimination have done to bring our the worse and best in people.. what family was supposed to be and how society can influence and change anything and everything even if you were family... be it race, sexuality, society status etc
Its very real and sad.
it goes on to talk about every individual's perspective of what is important to them and how different they are in wanting such different things in their lives even though they are a family.
what discrimination have done to bring our the worse and best in people.. what family was supposed to be and how society can influence and change anything and everything even if you were family... be it race, sexuality, society status etc
Its very real and sad.
it goes on to talk about every individual's perspective of what is important to them and how different they are in wanting such different things in their lives even though they are a family.
August 19, 2024
Trigger warning: pretty much everything.
A coming-of-age family story where young Otis sees too much, hears too much, and bears too much. Just, all the ACEs as he grows up in Chicago, the youngest child of sharecroppers who migrate north in the latter Jim Crow days. Hard life, not made easier by the traumas experienced by (and resulting from) mama and papa.
I expected much more of the novel to be about Sally's adult life, but the vast majority of the novel takes place while he is growing up.
A coming-of-age family story where young Otis sees too much, hears too much, and bears too much. Just, all the ACEs as he grows up in Chicago, the youngest child of sharecroppers who migrate north in the latter Jim Crow days. Hard life, not made easier by the traumas experienced by (and resulting from) mama and papa.
I expected much more of the novel to be about Sally's adult life, but the vast majority of the novel takes place while he is growing up.
November 19, 2024
I liked this book! I read it almost two years ago, but I still remember it. This book definitely stuck with me. This isn't something I would typically pick up, but I like reading things outside of my comfort zone. I'm glad I did! There was a bit of smut and graphic moments, but the overall plot was good. I think it calls for great dialogue after reading it. I am personally considering if I want to bring it to my book club because there are great conversations to be had about the characters and the story as a whole. Just be prepared for some of the more graphic scenes in the book.
August 28, 2022
Epic, tragic proof that Iceberg Slim deserves wider respect as a writer. His first non-crime book, one that boldly shucks aside nearly all the societal taboos (and facades) of it's day to tell the true story of one man's unbelievably shattered life, as well as his hopes, dreams, loves and omnipresent fears. Brutal and compassionate, intimate and historical, painful and occasionally screamingly funny, this is literature at it's most vital.
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