Black Writers Matter

by Whitney French (Editor)

An anthology of African-Canadian writing, Black Writing Matters offers a cross-section of established writers and newcomers to the literary world who tackle contemporary and pressing issues with beautiful, sometimes raw, prose. As Whitney French says in her introduction, Black Writing Matters “injects new meaning into the word diversity [and] harbours a sacredness and an everydayness that offers Black people dignity.” An “invitation to read, share, and tell stories of Black narratives that are close to the bone,” this collection feels particular to the Black Canadian experience.

Genres: Nonfiction, Canada, Essays, Anthologies, Literature, Race, Black Literature

208 pages, Paperback

First published February 2, 2019

About the author

Whitney French is a writer based in the Toronto area although she does most of her eating, sleeping and actual writing in her hide-out north of the city. Her writing interests include character-driven fiction, children’s literature, screenwriting, poetry, speculative fiction and essaying. She recently graduated from Concordia University for Creative Writing and Child Psychology and works as a freelance writer.

But if you really want to know what Whitney is like…

She loves anime

She ties her shoes sitting down, always

She talks smack on the basketball courts but she’s really no good

She has an irrational fear of metal jewelry touching her skin

She hates chocolate

She taught herself how to play the guitar

She writes in trees often

Reviews

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm surprised by how few ratings this book has.

It's a very strong anthology that challenges the boundaries of the term nonfiction in the best possible way. If you're a fan of literary fiction and nonfiction this is an absolute must-read.

A couple of entries reminded me a little of Frying Plantain by Zalika Reid-Benta so if you liked that one I think you're also going to like this one.

[Mridula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, brilliant book! Whitney French has gathered a range of stories that speak to multiple experiences of claiming space and resisting oppression. The diverse voices she includes (professor, taxi driver, authors, artists etc.) share their experiences without sugar-coating them. French respects each and every one of her contributors and lets the authors voices speak their truths of racism, discrimination, and resistance.

French writes: 'I turn my attention to multiple truths that surface from these tellings and try to expand the very container that we argue, disrupt, challenge, and recreate. This practice generates boundless room to parse out our own personal myths and our centralized truths.'

Read this, open your head and heart to other's experiences, and become an ally where/when you can.

[Alexis · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent collection by Canadian black writers. My favourite pieces were the pieces that were more personal. The middle section was a little too academic for my taste. There was some wonderful writing in this anthology, and some really gutsy pieces. I definitely learned a lot. Brava!

[Ben Truong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Writers Matter is an anthology of personal essays collected and edited by Whitney French. It is an anthology of African-Canadian writing about their experiences with being Black in Canada.

For the most part, I really like these contributions. Twenty-three stories touched on every emotion of being an African-Canadian in the current racial climate. It is an eye-opening read of the experiences and issues that Black Canadians face – the joys and sorrows. There is an underlying tone of anger in many of the stories, helping to convey the angst and frustration all of the writers have to live with. While all the stories have a similar foundation, the subject matters run a wide gamut and told in the first-person perspective.

Like most anthologies there are weaker contributions and Black Writers Matter may have been the exception. It is far from perfect, but it conveys the thesis rather well and with multiple points of view and a wide range of stories from African-Canadians of all walks of life.

All in all, Black Writers Matter is a wonderful collection of personal essays that captures the experiences of African-Canadians in the current racial climate in Canada.

[Toby Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of 23 stories touched on every emotion I am capable of feeling. And that is a good thing! It’s a refreshing change when a book can take you far out of your comfort zone.

As a Caucasian woman, it was eye-opening to read about experiences and issues that Black Canadians face. It’s hard to miss the Black Lives Matter movement or the ongoing worldwide racial struggles if you spend five minutes watching the news but this anthology takes us to a new awareness level. With this book in hand, you are able to experience the pain as well as the joys that Black Canadians go through. There is an underlying tone of rage in many of the stories, helping to convey the angst and frustration some of the writers live with.

The level of creativity in this book is mind-blowing. I was presented with phrases and thoughts that will linger with me because of their sheer uniqueness. Even the titles are ingenious - “Glass Lasagna” and “A Picture of Words” immediately come to mind. Words like “bludgeon”, “diaspora”, and “self-reckoning” are powerful and evocative. ”Glass Lasagna” deeply resonated with me as Cason Sharpe wrote about feeling expendable: “I want to quit my job without giving any notice. I want to blow my life up and just walk away. I want to declare bankruptcy because it feels like a bottom to hit, from which I could rebuild.” Powerful stuff. Who hasn’t had such thoughts at some point? And in “The Place That Is Supposed To Be Safe”, we are introduced to the idea that Canada isn’t just a place, it was also a time. Cool concept to ponder.

While all the stories have a similar foundation, the subject matters run a wide gamut. The topics include eating disorders, life as a taxi driver, slavery, bullying, living with a disability, sexual violence, and Afro-Indigenous youth, just to name a few. In “On Haunted Places”, we learn about residence time, which is the amount of time it takes for something to enter the ocean and then fully leave it. (The human body, for example, has a residence time of 260 million years. Fascinating!) Each story is told in the first-person point of view, lending an immediacy and intimacy not easily attained with other writing styles.

At the back of Black Writers Matter, you will find a brief biography on each of the writers who contributed to this collection. The list in an impressive Who’s Who of Canadian writers, artists, and all-around awesome people. Every one of them, without exception, gave a piece of their heart to this not-to-be-missed roundup of dynamic stories.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM

[Phoenix · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a super rare thing; a flawless and absolutely essential collection of essays. I consider this a primer for helping allies of BLM understand what being Black in Canada is like and all the intersections.

Give this book to anyone who thinks racism has already been dealt with in Canada. Give this to someone who wants to learn more of the wider community they’re a part of in the Black diaspora. Give this to someone who needs to think of Canada and writing in Canada in broader terms.

This book is also just full of amazing essays and short stories. All these pieces are so well-written, so well-curated. I wanted to look up all the authors when I was done.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with any anthology that I have read, there are some pieces that I enjoyed more than others, but as a whole this was good. I particularly like the personal writings, and my favorite was "Black/Disabled/Artist" by Brandon Wint. I liked that this was about the experiences of African-Canadians.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whitney French has compiled profound and engaging perspectives that feel personal and momentous in their togetherness. I am grateful for an anthology like this - we don't have enough of them.

[Nadia L. Hohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delightful book! It’s an amazing collection of work by African-Canadian authors, mostly women, and a lot of new voices. I was excited to only recognize a few of the writers in this collection and personally know two—Angela Walcott and editor Whitney French. Each work gave a different flavour of the African-Canadian gaze. The work was more on the first generation Black community but there were Afro-indigenous stories, one from New Brunswick, and even one that took us to the Northern Territories. What an amazing body of work. Fun fact: I submitted a Romantic story, maybe it blended too much on the storytelling side. It didn’t make the final cut and I didn’t have the time or energy to create something new, at the time. I see now what Whitney was going for in terms of keeping with a theme and common thread. The work shows how diverse the African-Canadian community truly is, our resilience, and identity. I know now what I could have written and how it might fit in this work. Alas, perhaps, I will be ready for contributing to volume 2. Whitney?

[Carie Gall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very thought provoking. Definitely worth the read. I particularly appreciated "As long as they think they are white" which discussed the creation of the concept of race being something whites need to create hierarchy, " A family complication" which articulated the challenges of being biracial and the perceptions of your non-Black side of the family and "Demand space" looking at how people feel you may be lesser than you are.

[Roya · Rating 5 out of 5]

this expansive anthology of writings from Black Canadian Storytellers was necessary for me as a Black Canadian woman. these stories capture a wide variety of moods & experiences; each beautifully written and seamlessly flowing into each other. Read this book, your spirit will be more enriched for it.

[Bookwormsince81 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely feeling deep gratitude for the honestly and generosity of the writers in this anthology. It helped me to better understand how to be less shitty as a white person.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a beautiful, well curated book. It’s a highly satisfying read featuring brilliant Black Canadian authors.

[kim v · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a nonfiction collection of experiences of Black people, queer and straight, from artists to dancers, writers and poets, mothers, fathers, professors, throughout Canada.
Some of the stories are inspirational, some are sad, but all are eye opening and enlightening.
I recommend this for anyone interested in learning and widening their scope of knowledge of people who have had a different Canadian experience!