{"product_id":"funeral-diva-9780872868113","title":"Funeral Diva","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA poetic memoir about coming-of-age in the AIDS era, and its effects on life and art.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"She is a writer for the future, in that she defies genre.\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Hilton Als\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Pamela Sneed's \u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e charts the 'grieving patterns' informing a life with unflinching honesty and clarity. \u003cstrong\u003eThis notable achievement\u003c\/strong\u003e, traveling from youth to adulthood, is \u003cstrong\u003ea harrowing account of how Sneed transforms violence and pain into an artist's life\u003c\/strong\u003e.\"--\u003cstrong\u003eClaudia Rankine\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003eCitizen: An American Lyric\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this collection of personal essays and poetry, acclaimed poet and performer Pamela Sneed details her coming of age in New York City during the late 1980s. \u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e captures the impact of AIDS on Black Queer life, and highlights the enduring bonds between the living, the dying, and the dead. Sneed's poems not only converse with lovers past and present, but also with her literary forebears--like James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Audre Lorde--whose aesthetic and thematic investments she renews for a contemporary American landscape.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOffering critical focus on matters from police brutality to LGBTQ+ rights, \u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e confronts today's most pressing issues with acerbic wit and audacity. The collection closes with Sneed's reflections on the two pandemics of her time, AIDS and COVID-19, and the disproportionate impact of each on African American communities.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cstrong\u003eRiveting, personal, open-hearted, risky and wise\u003c\/strong\u003e. This is Pamela Sneed at the top of her gifts, firmly grounding her history into our history, enriching both, acknowledging all the legacies and losses, influences gold and ash.\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Sarah Schulman\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003eConflict Is Not Abuse\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\" . . . \u003cstrong\u003ea tour de force\u003c\/strong\u003e about the collision between a coalescing 1980s 'Black lesbian and gay literary and poetic movement' in New York and the onslaught of AIDS.\"--\u003cstrong\u003eDonna Seaman, \u003cem\u003e Booklist\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Pamela Sneed's \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e is deft, defiant, and devastating\u003c\/strong\u003e. Nothing exists in her work without history, without teaching me, as she writes, 'the power of what words can do.' Through her brilliant mind it's evident that everything is truly connected. You just have to find the string.\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Tommy Pico\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003eFeed\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e is urgent and necessary reading to live by. This is writing at its finest.\u003c\/strong\u003e Sneed poetically processes individuation, life's journey of becoming, a visionary elegy that transforms trauma and abandonment to recognition and virtuosity. \u003cstrong\u003eKeep this book close to your heart and soul.\u003c\/strong\u003e\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Karen Finley\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003eShock Treatment\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cstrong\u003eReminiscent of Audre Lorde's \u003cem\u003eZami\u003c\/em\u003e, Pamela Sneed's memoir is, in itself, a healing balm, affirming in its truths and honesty\u003c\/strong\u003e. I cannot remember ever reading a book that illustrates the impact of the AIDS epidemic on our community more poignantly than \u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e.\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Nicole Dennis-Benn\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003ePatsy\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cstrong\u003ePamela Sneed takes enormous risks in this book.\u003c\/strong\u003e She tells the truth with fierce concentration and an abiding sense of purpose.\"--\u003cstrong\u003eDorothy Allison\u003c\/strong\u003e, author of \u003cem\u003eBastard Out of Carolina\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"In Sneed's distinctive style of prophetic foreshadowing, \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eFuneral Diva\u003c\/em\u003e is the tome for our awakening and for our survival\u003c\/strong\u003e.\"\u003cstrong\u003e--Erica Cardwell\u003c\/strong\u003e, writer, critic, and educator\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Sneed, Pamela\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/27\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e City Lights Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780872868113\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 160\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.45lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.20h x 5.40w x 0.60d","brand":"Pamela Sneed","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":32962866413643,"sku":"9780872868113","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0021\/1697\/6715\/products\/img_7dc39539-6619-425e-bfd1-446f666b5794.jpg?v=1605739607","url":"https:\/\/blackbookstore.com\/products\/funeral-diva-9780872868113","provider":"Black Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}