Black Queer Hoe

BreakBeat Poets

by Britteney Black Rose Kapri, Danez Smith (Introduction)

A refreshing, unapologetic intervention into ongoing conversations about the line between sexual freedom and sexual exploitation.

Black Queer Hoe is a refreshing, unapologetic intervention into ongoing conversations about the line between sexual freedom and sexual exploitation.

Women’s sexuality is often used as a weapon against them. In this powerful debut, Britteney Black Rose Kapri lends her unmistakable voice to fraught questions of identity, sexuality, reclamation, and power, in a world that refuses Black Queer women permission to define their own lives and boundaries.

Genres: Poetry, Queer, LGBT, Feminism, Race, Nonfiction, Sexuality

72 pages, Hardcover

First published September 4, 2018

About the author

Britteney Black Rose Kapri is a Chicago performance poet and playwright. Currently she is an alumna turned Teaching Artist Fellow at Young Chicago Authors. Her work has been featured in Poetry Magazine, Button Poetry, Seven Scribes, and many other outlets, and anthologized in The BreakBeat Poets and The BreakBeat Poets Vol. 2: Black Girl Magic. She is a contributor to Black Nerd Problems, a Pink Door Retreat Fellow, and a 2015 Rona Jaffe Writers Award Recipient.

Reviews

[Read By RodKelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A celebration, a cuss out, a fuck you and a prayer is what this collection is. Black Rose forces you to stare and then asks what the fuck you looking at. This book is for YOU not for you, so don't trip on not being invited, just enjoy your moment gazing in from the outside. Yeah. She queer, and she a hoe, and she black and you can rearrange those identities and it wouldn't make a difference because they add up to one person who is vulnerable, mad, exultant, loyal, ruthless, and regal in the fullness of her being. Excellent collection!

[Tori (InToriLex) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Content Warning: Racism, Feminism, Sexually Explicit Language

From the introduction to the last page this collection of poems entertained, enlightened, and challenged me. The topics of the poems ranged from serious explorations on race, body image, hoeness, and queerness. I related to this book in a multitude of ways because of the honesty and humor. I have already reread poems and keep thinking about certain lines. The ability of this author to compelling be herself and own her full identity without compromise, challenged me to take a closer look at myself. It is easy to forget to practice self love and ignore the many ways society wants to limit who women are.

i'm not your black friend. not your hero. this book isn't for you. its a celebration of my Blackness, my Queerness, my Hoeness, none of which exists without the other

The tragic cost of being black, poor and male is deftly explored in the poem for Colored boys who considered gangbanging when being Black was too much. The title alone speaks volumes about the reality's and choices people face because of racism. There are far too many people who treat racism like a series of isolated incidents instead of a systematic problem. This book challenges readers to reexamine how they overlook and confront oppression in all of its forms. It also explores sexuality in a unflinching celebratory way, which I cheered on loudly. I would recommend this book to everyone who enjoys modern poetry.

but we don't talk about it. because its ugly. and we are taught to bury our ugly in lovers who have already seen us

Recommended for Readers who
- readers who want to think more deeply about racism, sexuality and womenhood
- enjoy well crafted poetry from own voice authors
- want to consider changing the way they approach allyship

[Dannii Elle · Rating 4 out of 5]

"reasons imma Hoe
i fucked someone else. i was walking. he asked a question
he didn’t want the answer to. her man finds me attractive.
she doesn’t find herself attractive. the internet. a woman
in church didn’t like that i walked like a grown woman. i
was switching. i grew hips too young. my friends. i got on
the wrong train car. i grew breasts too young. i distracted
the boys from their schoolwork by showing my shoulders.
by showing my thighs. by showing up. i loved a woman. i
touched a woman. i left a woman. i fucked more people
than him. he didn’t teach me that thing he liked. i didn’t
like that thing he likes. i didn’t wait for him. i didn’t smile
for him. i smiled at another him. i carried condoms. i let
him fuck me without a condom. i said no. i said yes. i
spoke. i didn’t bleed. i did exactly what he asked me to. i
told him that shit was weird. i blocked him. i fucked her
man. i was breathing."

This was confrontational and unapologetic poetry at its finest. As for the forward states, "the title tells us the body, in all its shapes and ways, would take center stage" and I found power provided to the reader's own in each and every poem collected here. My identity is not the same as Britteney Black Rose Kapri's, or those she published this collection for, but I still found much to appreciate, much to learn, and much to empower me. Pro Black. Pro queer. Pro hoe.

"real women
¹ have
curves
flat asses
dicks
voter registration cards
lace fronts
guns
criminal records
girlfriends
door knocker earrings
children
adam’s apples
power suits
a-cups
hormone replacement therapy
dirt under their nails
tucks
only a high school degree
testosterone
infertility
bald heads
breast reductions
names"

[Sasha Elise · Rating 5 out of 5]

all these poets is my sons. i create space for marginalized youth to counter the narrative being forced upon them.


finally! experimental poetry i understand! everyone i know irl - every black person anyway - talks just like it. it's so refreshing to see in a poetry book. sometimes - most of the time - i don't reread poetry books unless i'm upping my reading goal or an extended edition has been released but i will 10000000% read this one over and over and over again. this is so real, so raw, so authentic! this was one of few books lately i've sat down and enjoyed as opposed to looking at the location number wondering when it's going to be over. (even had a poem about the parkers! i love that show). 100/100 recommend

[Tyler Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This poetry hits hard! I know it wasn't made with me in mind, but certain things I did relate to (being queer, afab, deformed and feeling ugly) but even though I didn't personally relate to a lot of it, it still hit hard and made me stop. Stop and think, take the poems in. I also appreciated that it remembers trans women are women! I'm a nonbinary trans guy but of course i'm still going to appreciate anytime trans people are remembered and seen as who they are.

I highly recommend this book, and don't read it too fast.

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the many fun things about reading this in public is when an old white dude insists on knowing what you're reading, so you tell him and watch the horror-confusion wash over him, slowly, from his New Balance sneakers all the way to his balding pate.

I would read a granola recipe called Black Queer Hoe, so why wouldn't you want to read a whole book with that title? Do it.

[Jolene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buy this book. Anything I could say about it would be inadequate.

[Kazen · Rating 5 out of 5]

they offer me bleach
and name it peace. they teach my children to hate me in a
tongue i don't know. they tell me to never look back while
calling their history law.

These are great poems - written for Kapri to perform, to proclaim, to yell and whisper and cry. Gut punches, rants, thankfulness, the absence and pain in loss, it's all here and beautiful. Not a dud in the bunch.

you deserved more
than a finale.
a finally.

[Yvonne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This obviously wasn't written for me (a cis white woman,) which both the author and Danez Smith in the introduction make clear, nor do I read a lot of poetry generally (this is the first collection I've read in years, maybe since I was in high school?) so I don't feel at all qualified to rate/review this but this is Goodreads and I've seen way less thoughtful reviews of like every book ever to exist on this website so, here we are. And overall I do think this is worth reading.

There are a few poems in here that I'll probably come back to revisit and that people like me (cis white women) should pay attention to (I'm referring to 'hariettes' and 'micro') as well as some that I will revisit just because something about them pulled me in. That said there were some tweets of the author's sprinkled throughout the book, and some shorter instapoetry-esque poems which just generally speaking don't do anything for me, but I don't think the ones in this particular collection lacked merit or meaning the way I feel about some others I've read.

4 stars is what I'm going with. That said, there are some poems in here that deserve a full 5-stars on their own, so just know that this is a very soft rating and I'm only giving it a rating at all because leaving it blank feels like not giving it enough credit? Maybe I'm just overthinking it. Regardless, I'm glad I picked this up from Haymarket's last sale.

[Meagan]

Yes! Please and thank you 😊😊

[Ayala Levinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

many strong poems. my most favorites were Queer enough, micro, a reading guid for white people reading my book, white daddy, and the heart breaking one "of wanting" 💔💔💔😭,

[Kimberley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Edelweiss+ and Haymarket Books for this advanced eGalley of "Black Queer Hoe".



embarrassing white folks and f*ckboys is my american pastime. this book isn't an invitation. i am not your therapist or here to validate that one time you stood up to your grandpa by telling him colored was outdated. don't applaud yourselves. instead show a Black woman you appreciate them. all we want is reparations and to be left the f*ck alone.


If ever there was a summary, then Britteney Black Rose Kapri provides it, in her own words.

This book isn't meant to be accessible (or acceptable)to everyone, Kapri makes that very clear. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't read it. In fact, because of its raw honesty, you should pick it up immediately!

Kapri takes on multiple topics: toxic masculinity, sexual freedom, misogyny, cultural appropriation, street harassment, multiracial identity, sexual politics, etc.

No topic goes untouched, and each one receives the unapologetic attention it deserves.

I was forced to check my level of "wokeness" at the door a few times because, even as a Black woman, I know I have work to do in order to be a better advocate for those within my personal reach.

"Black Queer Hoe" is a fresh take, on old and new topics of conversation, and is offered as part of Haymarket Book's Breakbeat Poets series--which is described as "committed to work that brings the aesthetic of hip-hop practice to the page. These books are a cipher for the fresh, with an eye always to the next".

I thoroughly enjoyed being introduced to such an enlightened, fresh, and straight-forward voice, as a result of this venture, and I look forward to seeing what Kapri does next.


[Stuart Fraser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know I am not the intended audience for this book, but I enjoyed it. It deserves to be read by the people who see themselves in the poems and the people who don't share those experiences (and who, like me, shouldn't say half the words in the book). Britteney Black Rose Kapri knows when to take a moment, thought, or word (especially the three words in the title) and tease out its implications for days, but also how to cut through wordiness to get an the underlying truth in a more direct way (such as in her series of cross-out poems).

Despite or because of its brazenness, it is an inviting and often joyous book. These poems straddle a difficult line between unapologetic and vulnerable; they are unafraid of playfulness or honesty, of confession or performance. This collection should be celebrated at a time during which both vulnerability and brazenness, in poetry and in Black femmes, is scrutinized and dismissed. Though short and full of life, this collection is not trivial. If the title turns you off because you think it's not respectable, then this collection is worth reading to meditate on and to unpack the codes, baggage, and assumptions that inform your perceptions of those words and identities.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and wow, this book. Preorder it now because it deserves to be read all over by everyone. That said, I feel very aware in writing this review that Black Queer Hoe isn't written *for me*. It's very clear that Black Rose Kapri writes for Black Femmes specifically and unapologetically - and I appreciate that so much about her work. The line "Spent the past twenty-nine years working on being the best version of myself, which means loving the worst versions of myself" was a complete paradigm shift for me. The poem "Queer Enough" is one I want to shout from the mountaintops & put in everyone's hands. These are poems I'll be returning to & learning more from each time.

[Mirko Czentovic · Rating 1 out of 5]

it's bad. honest to God. I don't regret reading it. and I think people can relate to it. but it is bad. some powerful lines mellowed by the pure cliché of much of it. "loving the worst version of myself" as much as it is a good advice, it is a bad line. idk. just read it. it's pretty short and it's called black queer hoe. if you find something, great. I didn't.

[Jayshree · Rating 5 out of 5]

pretty incredible book of poetry full of very distinct emotion and where every third line gives you one of those little punches that in some other works takes three or four poems to deliver. loved looking into britteney black rose kapri's mind.

[Seymone · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some poems that were impactful. Others left much to be desired.

[Dr. Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great collection of poetry!

CWs: Sexual content. Moderate: Infertility, racism, cursing, fatphobia, infidelity, misogyny, racial slurs, sexual assault, sexual violence. Minor: Miscarriage, self harm.

[Hana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read my full review here!

Seriously, this book is so well written, so angry, so proud.
Every poem, Kapri's personality shone through, and I found myself going through a range of emotions.
I would highly highly highly recommend this to anybody who enjoys poetry.


---

I really really enjoyed this.
//rtc

[Leah Rachel von Essen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Britteney Black Rose Kapri has written a stunning collection in Black Queer Hoe. Her poems reveal her as she honestly, unapologetically is, both demanding and refusing your gaze. Kapri writes: “i’m not your Black friend. not your hero. this book isn’t for you. it’s a celebration of my Blackness, my Queerness, my Hoeness, none of which exists without the other.” In another poem: “but i can’t trust folks who can only find empathy when facing a mirror.” This book isn’t for you. This book is about Kapri, her body, her femininity, her queerness, her sexuality, her fatness, her blackness. It is brazen and vulnerable all at once.

In “bad feminist” she writes about being turned on by rough sex and tough words, and then the poem blends into consent: “when she still said no. when he waited until i was sober.” In “Queer enough” she articulates a feeling too many bi/pan/queer women have struggled with (“sometimes i think i haven’t loved enough women to call myself Queer.” and in another line “haven’t ate enough pussy. haven’t gone to enough gay spaces. haven’t needed enough gay spaces.”) Her poem “pansexual” (“yes, i do like pans. and pots. and slow cookers. and woks. and crock-pots. and rice makers. and panini presses. and waffle irons. and blenders when i am feeling dangerous.”) made me want to cry at the feeling of being seen.

She shuts down women appropriating black culture in “hariettes” (“just get you some nike slides and you too can be a trap queen. we could make a trade i’ll give you the hot sauce in my bag if you give me low-interest rates and lead-free water? you know i’m kidding. i know you don’t like hot sauce.”) She parodizes the classic line (I don’t care if you’re black/white/green/purple): “i hear them say plum plague, plum magic, plum list, plum mail and i know that is not an accident. they offer me bleach and name it peace.”

No poem was wasted in this superb collection with its excellent forward from Danez Smith. I highly recommend it.

[Shelah · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't for me. Some of the poems are really nice but 👀 lol. I don't think getting angry with men you're sleeping with who cancelled their appointments because their girlfriends miscarriaged is powerful.

It kinda reeks so much of insecurity and a need for validation especially if you keep going after the ones in relationships, the ones who treat women like object. A feminist sees through misogyny not sleep with those who perpetuate patriachy and misogyny. Sexual liberation yes! But this isn't it tbh.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

“who told you Black folks lived to 25? giiiiirl, you ain’t know...you a star.

a light that’s been dead since the moment we saw you.”

Each poem is a bracing brilliant slap—they had me wanting to scream them out loud to whomever was in the room with me.

[rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Required reading for middle school children and women with New Yorker tote bags.

[Eros Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I try to only sit by Black women, they’re the only people I trust besides myself.”

Give me Black poetry but make it queer.
This was unapologetic and I loved every page of it.
It laughed, I cheered, I related & I was thoroughly entertained. The authors poetic writing style is so blunt, I could picture myself at an open mic snapping along to their words.

This is a book that I would recommend. This is a book that I would buy and reread. It was a short collection of poems that deserve the attention.

[Faith Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

So brilliant and embodied and awake - I couldn't read it before bed because it got me too riled up to sleep easy. Powerful and vulnerable, tender and angry, you can hear her voice and it's huge.

Here's a tiny sample poem called "haiku for reparations" which, if you dig, read the whole book now for sure: both these armrests mine / now. set laid all the way back. / your comfort mine too.

[Zora Satchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! it made me want to be write more poetry. a feeling that I struggle to hold onto. I called my homie and read poems out loud to her on the phone. I normally hoard poetry like a dragon hoards gold but I called my homie and read her these poems cause I knew she needed them as much as I did. It reminded me of how much sharing fills my cup.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

Britteney Black Rose Kapri is an oracle. Combining tweets, missives, and poems Kapri spells out what it means to be a black queer hoe. So many good poems in this small collection. Highly recommend!

[Luke Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

An invigorating and eye-opening collection that paints a portrait of what it means to be a black queer woman in Chicago amidst racism, micro-aggressions, self-doubt, and self-love.

[sheena d! · Rating 5 out of 5]

carla hayden,
if you're reading, please name britteney black rose kapri the next poet laureate of this dear nation.

[Sara (onourshelves) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. These poems were tough, unapologetic, and vulnerable. My favorites were brenda's got three babies and hidradentis suppurativa pt. 2