black / Maybe: An Afro Lyric

by Roberto Carlos Garcia

Poetry collection by Roberto Carlos Garcia. Explores themes of blackness and Dominican culture.  "I’m American, but I don’t speak English because I’m from England and I’m a Latino that doesn’t speak Spanish because I’m from Spain. I speak these languages thanks to a long history of colonialism, to be more specific, the losing end of colonialism. The flight attendant who poured my whiskey is a Spaniard. Spanish has been his national language for centuries and his family’s language for generations. When he hears me, a mutt with African, Chinese, and Spanish blood (but who leans more towards the African), does he consider me a fraud? Does he see me as parroting Spanish? Now, this poor flight attendant is a fill in, of course, but you get the picture. What do most Spaniards think about the Spanish speakers in the colonies they lost all those years ago? Do they care? Why should I?" --from "Trapped in History," EnglishKillsReview.com 

Genres: Poetry

67 pages, Paperback

Published April 1, 2018

About the author

Poet, storyteller, and essayist Roberto Carlos Garcia is a self-described “sancocho […] of provisions from the Harlem Renaissance, the Spanish Poets of 1929, the Black Arts Movement, the Nuyorican School, and the Modernists.” Garcia is rigorously interrogative of himself and the world around him, conveying “nakedness of emotion, intent, and experience,” and he writes extensively about the Afro-Latinx and Afro-diasporic experience. Roberto's third collection, [Elegies], is published by Flower Song Press and his second poetry collection, black / Maybe: An Afro Lyric, is available from Willow Books. Roberto’s first collection, Melancolía, is available from Červená Barva Press.

His poems and prose have appeared or are forthcoming in POETRY Magazine, The BreakBeat Poets Vol 4: LatiNEXT, Bettering American Poetry Vol. 3, The Root, Those People, Rigorous, Academy of American Poets Poem-A-Day, Gawker, Barrelhouse, The Acentos Review, Lunch Ticket, and many others.

He is founder of the cooperative press Get Fresh Books Publishing, A NonProfit Corp.

A native New Yorker, Roberto holds an MFA in Poetry and Poetry in Translation from Drew University, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Garcia's second full collection, "black/Maybe" is a provocative and awakening lyrical struggle, a gauntlet thrown at the foot of misconceptions, societal homogenization, and cultural definitions. Effortless transitioning from the deeply introspective to profoundly global, Garcia poetry covers the full spectrum of identity politics, never once shying from the cognitive dissonance that naturally inflicts us when we begin to take the necessary steps of introspection. Garcia makes beauty out of conflict, humanizing the dehumanizing, and embracing the lack of resolution offered by cultural definitions and boundaries. Self-love can require a sense of the brutal as well as the compassionate, and poet here faultlessly navigates this seemingly unsolvable dichotomy with a wisdom we all could learn from. Ready or not, "black/Maybe: An Afro Lyric" is the book our country needs.

[Alida · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible! Simply beautiful, an exploration of blackness across its diasporas. I was moved by its narrative power and witty wordplay. Economic with its words, but deep with its message. Uno de mis favoritos.

[Inmagela Abreu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Le doblaba una esquinita a las páginas que quería releer, que me movieron, que quiero profundizar: el libro entero.

Lo personal es político.
"We're not black, we're tan Now callate!"

Multi-género, contada desde lo afrolatino, negro y la diáspora y, la conversación necesaria de este racismo sistémico, institucionalizado, en lo arquitectónico, urbanístico, el sistema de castas...sin hablar de ello de forma literal "(...)I remember the cracked and cooked sidewalks...". Cómo el sistema crea sus muros y formas de aislar en un solo espacio, físico e intangible, a quienes no entran en estos estándares blancos-coloniales y sus excepciones. Sus páginas habla de más temas que nadie se atreve a tocar, como la presencia de Mama Ana como la figura de crianza.

Recorrer sus páginas abría la puerta de pensar desde algún grupo oprimido, visto desde dos perspectiva: la persona y el sistema || el sistema y la persona. El libro y su narrativa no solo te lleva a entender y/o pensar el sistema desde sus diversas aristas, sino también a cuestionarlo, incluso a la mismas formas de resistencia.
¿Será que Mama Ana y su negación era un acto de resistencia?

Lo histórico de el sistema de opresión desde sus formas de operar, por ejemplo, la sentencia, el sistema político y social hegemónico...hasta los cánones de "belleza". Leerle, incluso me llevó a esta foto de una guagua anunciadora en una calle de Santo Domingo, con el mensaje escrito y en altos parlantes: "Se acabó el *problema* del pelo rizado!"

Agradezco a Ser Álida que conspiró y me recomendó este libro y a Roberto por sus líneas; con ganas de leerle más, demasiado.

[Kenning JP Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

black/Maybe is an Afro Lyric complete with choruses. This multi-genre work is both personal and political as the two can never be fully separated. In this book we hear call backs to other black/Afro-Latinx writers as well as old friends and family. Mama Ana figures prominently into the work and she is woven throughout the book. The poetry and essays here are poignant but also funny in a kind of not so funny way. The stories/history infused in the overall work speak to identity and all sorts of pride and problems that go with that.

[Paola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roberto’s collection is an old photograph that captures ancestry. This collection is intimate, raw, smart, and carefully pieced together telling a larger origin story. Roberto plays with historical context, language, identity, and structure.

For educators this is a the perfect collection to disrupt the status quo of curriculums and ‘required’ reading.

For POC, specifically those of the African diaspora, Roberto’s collection of artifacts help us piece together fragments even in our own stories. Representation matters and this collection is exactly that.

[Wanda Rivas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished this treasure! First, I did not expect the the different genres. It was a pleasant surprise and the mix was intriguing. The writing is profound and heartfelt and I felt like I knew Mama Ana intimately. She is every woman in my family. I just handed the book over to my son and will be purchasing / circulating amongst my family as this is a must read for all of our youth, especially urban afro caribbean young men. Go get this!

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Roberto give a fantastic Zoom reading not too long ago, and as soon as it ended I ordered this book. It didn't disappoint, and I look forward to exploring more of his work.

[Yaddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful body of work . Is personal and also the reader can connect to the writer’s experience.

[ari · Rating 5 out of 5]

"black/Maybe" is an afro lyric that explores Afro-Latinx identity complete with poems and essays conveying the complexities of the Afro-Latinx experience. This collection of beautifully written prose and essays convey so much about the Afro-Dominican experience specifically. What it means to be Black and also speak Spanish. What that means when it comes to how society views and treats you. These are words that I want to scream to all my problematic tias and tios. It is a literal call to action to all Dominicans, "we gonna get our shit together, coño" as he calls out the prevalent anti-Blackness in Dominican culture. Como una Dominicana que fue criada en 135st y Broadway, this collection felt like remnants of home. This collection captured a lot of my experiences and I was able to see bits and pieces of my family here too. From growing up walking around in a predominantly Latinx community, to PS 129, to summer trips to DR staying at Nana's house en el campo, to now living in a very suburban neighborhood. This collection felt very home-y, but was also brimming with history and politics.

[Elegies] and black/Maybe are fervent odes to Afro-Dominican culture and Blackness and identity politics and the important history of the Afro-Latinx diaspora that demands to be read and understood. This is what poetry should be like. This is what I read for.

[Meg Tuite · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful, deep waters, mesmerizing, where does one fit? Here are some quotes from this unforgettable collection:
"She chanted & pulsed
in time with drums & I drank rum, back she came,
eyes like handcuffs on my mind..."
"We're all pronouns and antecedents here. Every house is quiet, neat, and unassuming.
My grandmother taught me to fear what I can't see."
"Our faces began to resemble the bricks."

[Meredith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful words!

[P.C.Tavarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

wonderful read.