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I Am Nobody's Nigger
Revolutionary, reflective, and romantic, I Am Nobody's Nigger is the powerful debut collection by one of the United Kingdom's finest emerging poets.
Exploring race, identity, and sexuality, Dean Atta shares his perspective on family, friendship, relationships, and London life, from riots to one-night stands.
Dean Atta is a writer and performance poet. He has been commissioned to write poems for the Damilola Taylor Trust, Keats House Museum, National Portrait Gallery, Tate Britain and Tate Modern. Atta won the 2012 London Poetry Award and was named as one of the most influential LGBT people by the The Independent on Sunday Pink List 2012. An ambassador for the Spirit of London Awards, he lives in London and teaches writing workshops across the UK.
www.deanatta.co.uk
@DeanAtta
Exploring race, identity, and sexuality, Dean Atta shares his perspective on family, friendship, relationships, and London life, from riots to one-night stands.
Dean Atta is a writer and performance poet. He has been commissioned to write poems for the Damilola Taylor Trust, Keats House Museum, National Portrait Gallery, Tate Britain and Tate Modern. Atta won the 2012 London Poetry Award and was named as one of the most influential LGBT people by the The Independent on Sunday Pink List 2012. An ambassador for the Spirit of London Awards, he lives in London and teaches writing workshops across the UK.
www.deanatta.co.uk
@DeanAtta
112 pages, Paperback
First published February 22, 2013
About the author
Dean Atta
19 books685 followersDean was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize for his debut poetry collection, I Am Nobody’s Nigger. His poems have been anthologised by Bad Betty Press, Emma Press, Stripes Publishing, Team Angelica and have appeared on BBC One, BBC Radio 4, BBC World Service and Channel 4. Dean was named as one of the most influential LGBT people in the UK by the Independent on Sunday. He regularly performs across the UK and internationally. Dean is a member of Keats House Poets Forum and Malika’s Poetry Kitchen. He has a Philosophy and English BA from the University of Sussex and a Writer/Teacher MA from Goldsmiths, University of London. Dean is a Tutor for Arvon and Poetry School and a Writer in Residence for First Story. His debut novel, The Black Flamingo, will be published in August 2019 by Hodder Children’s Books.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
May 25, 2018
I got to know Dean Attan through this collection of poetry about race, identity but mostly sexuality and romance.
Some poems were relatable , thoughtful , eloquent and so meaningful , whereas others were bland and repetitive.
I loved how he honestly depicted the lives of men of colour these days , poverty , racism and criminality .
His poems are honest , raw and painful and we get to see a glimpse of what is really like to be a men of colour , who is also gay.
However , there are a couple of things that I can't help but mention in my review :
1. In one of his poems ' Key To The City ' where we follow John's miserable journey , by the end of the poem John attacked a young women . But instead of stressing on the fact that what he did is absolutely wrong and unacceptable , he made up excuses for him .
2. I hated how there is no clear transition between the poems about Race and Racism and the poems where he shares with us his sexual desires & love life . I was captivated throughout his first poems and i was even feeling his anger and frustration when all of the sudden , he stops talking about it and moves on to a complete different theme . WHICH I DON'T MIND , but i needed a transition lol .
3. Is it just me or whenever Dean talks about university degrees and being successful he only mentions himself , whereas when he talks about other men of colour they are either drug addicts , criminals or rappers ? There are LOADS of successful men of colour all over the world and especially in the UK .
Over all , I enjoyed it a lot for it really opened my eyes on a lot of matters and I think I might give it a re-read some other time.
Some poems were relatable , thoughtful , eloquent and so meaningful , whereas others were bland and repetitive.
I loved how he honestly depicted the lives of men of colour these days , poverty , racism and criminality .
His poems are honest , raw and painful and we get to see a glimpse of what is really like to be a men of colour , who is also gay.
However , there are a couple of things that I can't help but mention in my review :
1. In one of his poems ' Key To The City ' where we follow John's miserable journey , by the end of the poem John attacked a young women . But instead of stressing on the fact that what he did is absolutely wrong and unacceptable , he made up excuses for him .
2. I hated how there is no clear transition between the poems about Race and Racism and the poems where he shares with us his sexual desires & love life . I was captivated throughout his first poems and i was even feeling his anger and frustration when all of the sudden , he stops talking about it and moves on to a complete different theme . WHICH I DON'T MIND , but i needed a transition lol .
3. Is it just me or whenever Dean talks about university degrees and being successful he only mentions himself , whereas when he talks about other men of colour they are either drug addicts , criminals or rappers ? There are LOADS of successful men of colour all over the world and especially in the UK .
Over all , I enjoyed it a lot for it really opened my eyes on a lot of matters and I think I might give it a re-read some other time.
July 31, 2020
I enjoyed this poetry collection, but nothing more really. I appreciated the fact that while reading I found some of the elements I previously loved in Dean Atta's novel in verse The Black Flamingo. This collection here is entirely written through Dean Atta's perspective and because of that it offers very honest poems.
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August 16, 2020
Thanks, I hate it. 🙃
I knew I wasn't going to like this collection because the title poem, "I Am Nobody's Nigger," essentially takes rappers to task for using the reclaimed version of the N-word in their songs, because it's the last thing many Black people heard before they were lynched or brutally murdered. While this is a fact and I understand his stance against it, I don't think it respects the multiplicity of the Black experience. All Black people have the right to choose whether they want to use the word or not, and just because Atta doesn't want to use it doesn't give him the right to lecture others on what's right or wrong. That's where he oversteps the line, in my opinion.
On the N-word debate, I probably stand somewhere in the middle. It's not a word I say often, grew up using, or really have in my vocabulary; however, I have no problem with others using it, in song lyrics or otherwise, as long as it's the reclaimed version (NOT the hard "r") and not being said by white people.
In the very same poem, he goes on to bemoan the state of hip-hop - which, eye roll. Lots of these poems were very "Boomerish" in nature, and sounded like an old head talking down to young people. (Picture the "Pants on the Ground" guy.) The thing I don't get about this type of bitching and moaning is that old-school hip-hop is STILL THERE for you to listen to. The existence of new things doesn't erase it! So if you love it so much, go listen to it and shut up and - oh, I dunno, maybe just LET PEOPLE ENJOY THINGS?! Young people are going to like different music than you. So what?! I'm willing to bet cold, hard cash you like different music than your parents, too. 🙄
Also, victim blaming people for poverty is just the lowest of the low. Most crime is a result of poverty, which itself is a result of the machinations of systemic racism. It's a complex discussion that's a lot more nuanced than simply blaming people for "loving violence." A lot of his poetry smacks of internalized racism and Black conservatism, even though he is a gay Christian man (which in and of itself confuses me). It feels like he subscribes to the politics of respectability and enjoys lecturing down to other Black people from a place of imagined superiority. Personally, I found it very repugnant.
Content aside, I didn't feel like the language was even poetic at all. The rhyme schemes were simplistic and the subjects were pretty much just race and heartbreak. If there's one poem in here I can say was even halfway good, it would be "Mother Tongue," where he talks about questioning why his mother didn't teach him and his siblings her native tongue so they could communicate with their extended family members. In one of his poems, he also mentions an age gap romance that I was unclear as to whether was inappropriate or not and I was just like, "yikes." 😬
I knew I wasn't going to like this collection because the title poem, "I Am Nobody's Nigger," essentially takes rappers to task for using the reclaimed version of the N-word in their songs, because it's the last thing many Black people heard before they were lynched or brutally murdered. While this is a fact and I understand his stance against it, I don't think it respects the multiplicity of the Black experience. All Black people have the right to choose whether they want to use the word or not, and just because Atta doesn't want to use it doesn't give him the right to lecture others on what's right or wrong. That's where he oversteps the line, in my opinion.
On the N-word debate, I probably stand somewhere in the middle. It's not a word I say often, grew up using, or really have in my vocabulary; however, I have no problem with others using it, in song lyrics or otherwise, as long as it's the reclaimed version (NOT the hard "r") and not being said by white people.
In the very same poem, he goes on to bemoan the state of hip-hop - which, eye roll. Lots of these poems were very "Boomerish" in nature, and sounded like an old head talking down to young people. (Picture the "Pants on the Ground" guy.) The thing I don't get about this type of bitching and moaning is that old-school hip-hop is STILL THERE for you to listen to. The existence of new things doesn't erase it! So if you love it so much, go listen to it and shut up and - oh, I dunno, maybe just LET PEOPLE ENJOY THINGS?! Young people are going to like different music than you. So what?! I'm willing to bet cold, hard cash you like different music than your parents, too. 🙄
Also, victim blaming people for poverty is just the lowest of the low. Most crime is a result of poverty, which itself is a result of the machinations of systemic racism. It's a complex discussion that's a lot more nuanced than simply blaming people for "loving violence." A lot of his poetry smacks of internalized racism and Black conservatism, even though he is a gay Christian man (which in and of itself confuses me). It feels like he subscribes to the politics of respectability and enjoys lecturing down to other Black people from a place of imagined superiority. Personally, I found it very repugnant.
Content aside, I didn't feel like the language was even poetic at all. The rhyme schemes were simplistic and the subjects were pretty much just race and heartbreak. If there's one poem in here I can say was even halfway good, it would be "Mother Tongue," where he talks about questioning why his mother didn't teach him and his siblings her native tongue so they could communicate with their extended family members. In one of his poems, he also mentions an age gap romance that I was unclear as to whether was inappropriate or not and I was just like, "yikes." 😬
March 1, 2018
I Am Nobody's Nigger is not all politics, it a collection of poems which allows you to see the world through Atta's eyes. This collection includes something for everyone, a few are funny, touching but overall all speak truths.
I'm looking forward to Atta's upcoming book "The Black Flamingo".
I'm looking forward to Atta's upcoming book "The Black Flamingo".
February 16, 2022
"Money over self-respect or self-esteem
Or empowering the youth to follow their dreams
Stacking paper cos it's greater than love it seems
Call me 'nigger' cos you're scared of what 'brother' means"
I guess my 2022 will be full of poetry.
Dean Atta's I am Nobody's Nigger reads like passionate poetry slam; while reading I could almost hear his voice. I enjoyed this collection of poems, but it was nothing extraordinary, sadly it couldn't really move me. The topics the author writes about are highly relevant, though: racism, trauma, heartbreak, being a gay black man, mixed-race identity, growing up without a father etc.
Still worth a read, if these topics speak to your heart.
Or empowering the youth to follow their dreams
Stacking paper cos it's greater than love it seems
Call me 'nigger' cos you're scared of what 'brother' means"
I guess my 2022 will be full of poetry.
Dean Atta's I am Nobody's Nigger reads like passionate poetry slam; while reading I could almost hear his voice. I enjoyed this collection of poems, but it was nothing extraordinary, sadly it couldn't really move me. The topics the author writes about are highly relevant, though: racism, trauma, heartbreak, being a gay black man, mixed-race identity, growing up without a father etc.
Still worth a read, if these topics speak to your heart.
June 9, 2020
As much as I love love LOVE Dean Atta's debut verse novel, The Black Flamingo, this debut poetry collection was hit-or-miss. Some of the poems could have used more nuance, and most of them rely on rhyming couplets, which gave the collection a repetitive feel.
The best poems were the ones about relationships and untangling attachments, rather than the ones about race. Many of these would benefit if heard as performance poems rather than splayed out on the page.
I appreciated the insight into Atta's process and how this perhaps led him to write Flamingo. A few of these poems can be found as videos online, and that maybe is where they shine best.
The best poems were the ones about relationships and untangling attachments, rather than the ones about race. Many of these would benefit if heard as performance poems rather than splayed out on the page.
I appreciated the insight into Atta's process and how this perhaps led him to write Flamingo. A few of these poems can be found as videos online, and that maybe is where they shine best.
May 27, 2013
Truthful poems that are witty and creative, and quite a few of us can relate to.
Read
July 20, 2020I really liked the first half of the book. The poems tackled race and standing up in front of injustice which is very actual, also ways of expression and the importance and pain of writing. The writing style was also nice – saying that as someone who isn’t really into modern poetry – but the messages were the ones that hit me.
Some of my favorite poems were: Revolution, Therapy, Paper Cuts, Key to the City, Ego Extensions.
Then the second half was love poems. Which are not my favorites to begin with. But there were poems about one night stands and a lot of relationship toxicity, which kinda bothered me. I mean, if you realize your toxic and you only get into relationships with people to make yourself feel better and then dispose of them, don’t make it grand through poetry. If you’re going to talk about your flaws in poems, make me feel the wrongness of it, make it ugly. Don’t sugar-coat it and dress it in beautiful words, because there’s nothing beautiful or endearing about it. (Here I sound much more frustrated than I actually am on this matter, I don’t know why it came out this way.)
Of course, this is a personal thing since I’m very picky when it comes to love poems. This is how I interpreted some of them, which doesn’t mean I’m right. This is what I love most about poetry, everyone can understand what they want and no side is wrong.
In conclusion, this is a good choice if you want to pick up some poetry and it fits pretty well with current events. I’m just not really into love poems. That’s who I am as a person.
Some of my favorite poems were: Revolution, Therapy, Paper Cuts, Key to the City, Ego Extensions.
Then the second half was love poems. Which are not my favorites to begin with. But there were poems about one night stands and a lot of relationship toxicity, which kinda bothered me. I mean, if you realize your toxic and you only get into relationships with people to make yourself feel better and then dispose of them, don’t make it grand through poetry. If you’re going to talk about your flaws in poems, make me feel the wrongness of it, make it ugly. Don’t sugar-coat it and dress it in beautiful words, because there’s nothing beautiful or endearing about it. (Here I sound much more frustrated than I actually am on this matter, I don’t know why it came out this way.)
Of course, this is a personal thing since I’m very picky when it comes to love poems. This is how I interpreted some of them, which doesn’t mean I’m right. This is what I love most about poetry, everyone can understand what they want and no side is wrong.
In conclusion, this is a good choice if you want to pick up some poetry and it fits pretty well with current events. I’m just not really into love poems. That’s who I am as a person.
December 9, 2020
The first half of this poetry collection was phenomenal. It was probably some of the best poetry I've ever read. However, I found the second half less strong, so that is why it is a 3 star for me. I would still highly recommend this collection, as I think the poetry was great.
May 1, 2021
Poetry with Boldness
I enjoyed the poems offered in this book, the beauty of the imagery, and the words that tell stories. I have read his novel as well and can definitely say that this writer has a great voice.
I enjoyed the poems offered in this book, the beauty of the imagery, and the words that tell stories. I have read his novel as well and can definitely say that this writer has a great voice.
October 29, 2020
A mixed bag.
August 19, 2021
poemas muito inteligentes e, ao mesmo tempo, emotivos
eu adorei a leitura! já li "the black flamingo" do autor e essa coleção foi uma ótima surpresa
"with my tongue i lick my wounds" !!!!!!!!!
eu adorei a leitura! já li "the black flamingo" do autor e essa coleção foi uma ótima surpresa
"with my tongue i lick my wounds" !!!!!!!!!
January 29, 2015
Rhythmic, fantastic and truly mesmerising. I could go on and on about just how great this poetry book is but I don't want to babble so I'll just tell you to just give it a chance. Admittedly I enjoyed Atta's poetry more when he stuck to social commentaries and he lost me a little with the forlorn personal stuff near the end but there is no doubt that Atta is a truly talented writer and I would adore to see him read some of his work as I can only imagine how much better that would be.
Definitely take a chance on this one!
Definitely take a chance on this one!
June 20, 2017
I found Dean Atta's poems to be so unique because he's unafraid to include his personal flaws in his poetry. He writes about how he's sometimes judgmental, sometimes unkind, sometimes selfish, and sometimes wrong. He mixes this into his writing alongside other pieces of himself, and it's his honesty that makes his poetry so alluring. I recognized my own humanity in his work.
Favourite poems: Paper Cuts, Off the Wall, Matters of the Heart, Ghostwriter, Second Hand, Lost in Time.
Favourite poems: Paper Cuts, Off the Wall, Matters of the Heart, Ghostwriter, Second Hand, Lost in Time.
April 20, 2014
It hit me like a slap in the face,
It stood up like a mirror to my face.
It sounded like the things I was trying to hear,
And brought along truths, I'd least expected would rear.
I dither turning the pages lest I encounter,
An unsaid wish or another accusation I'd be unable to counter.
It stood up like a mirror to my face.
It sounded like the things I was trying to hear,
And brought along truths, I'd least expected would rear.
I dither turning the pages lest I encounter,
An unsaid wish or another accusation I'd be unable to counter.
June 5, 2018
This collection of poems are beautifully crafted; Dean Atta has a way of string the words together elegantly to create a wonderful pace and rhythm. My personal favourites are "Fatherless Nation" (I have personal experience of an absent father) and "Freedom of Love"
May 14, 2018
Amazingly powerful, moving, insightful and inspiring poetry. Go buy it.
May 10, 2013
I loved this. My review is at http://www.chocolatescotch.com/2013/0...
October 30, 2014
Excellent social and politically aware poetry
May 25, 2016
honest love stories
May 26, 2016
Very enjoyable to read, insightful and rhythmic.
February 7, 2021
Many, many moons ago - as a teenager - what appeared to be the final nail was hammered into the literary coffin where I consigned poetry for burial. I didn't get it, I didn't like it and, after being subjected to the old-English prologue of Geoffrey Chaucer's General Prologue to the Canterbury Tales and John Donne's metaphysical poetry for my A-levels (little wonder I achieved a dizzying D for that) I had no desire ever to be subjected to poetry again.
Skip forward a few decades and, as a primary school teacher, I was called upon to subject the stuff to other innocent minds. The experience did not ignite any desire to properly reacquaint myself with poetry on a personal level: the relationship was remotely functional, sufficient to the task in hand but no more.
Skip forward again. The world is gripped by a pandemic, black lives matter and it's time to educate myself. Following an online recommendation (whether Waterstones or Amazon, I'm not sure), I invested in several suitable titles and one of them was I Am Nobody's Nigger.
I must admit, the title left me uncertain, the n-word is not one to be toyed with. It's vile and abusive. Used casually in my childhood, it was a common term - one amongst many to describe non-whites and its use here as the volume's title was more than an eyebrow-raiser. Given the author's Caribbean background I assumed it was an attempt to reclaim the term and I read on.
I must admit, when ordering this for my Kindle, I hadn't particularly explored the genre being presented and, realising it was poetry, I wasn't sure I would be able to get on with it and was fully prepared to leave it unfinished.
I'm glad I didn't.
Keeping to roughly a poem-a-day, I got to know, over its pages, poet Dean Atta. I found out about his Greek Cypriot and Caribbean heritage, what the titular poem is all about (a vigorous response to Stephen Lawrence's murderers) and his life as a young gay man (another surprise, it wasn't a theme I'd consciously sought out).
Here are thoughts big and small; indignation mixes with sadness and gladness; humour clashes with pain - broadly speaking, this poetry is often raw, always engrossing, always human, always engaging.
And was I educated? Yes. While not especially about black lives matter (they always have as far as I'm concerned), I realise that the connection here goes beyond ethnicity - it's about a connecting philosophy, the resonance of one human communicating with others.
And, yes, I also learned about poetry, about how it really speaks to you and how much I've missed out on over the decades - for which, I'd particularly like to thank Dean Atta for delivering a cure to my aversions.
Skip forward a few decades and, as a primary school teacher, I was called upon to subject the stuff to other innocent minds. The experience did not ignite any desire to properly reacquaint myself with poetry on a personal level: the relationship was remotely functional, sufficient to the task in hand but no more.
Skip forward again. The world is gripped by a pandemic, black lives matter and it's time to educate myself. Following an online recommendation (whether Waterstones or Amazon, I'm not sure), I invested in several suitable titles and one of them was I Am Nobody's Nigger.
I must admit, the title left me uncertain, the n-word is not one to be toyed with. It's vile and abusive. Used casually in my childhood, it was a common term - one amongst many to describe non-whites and its use here as the volume's title was more than an eyebrow-raiser. Given the author's Caribbean background I assumed it was an attempt to reclaim the term and I read on.
I must admit, when ordering this for my Kindle, I hadn't particularly explored the genre being presented and, realising it was poetry, I wasn't sure I would be able to get on with it and was fully prepared to leave it unfinished.
I'm glad I didn't.
Keeping to roughly a poem-a-day, I got to know, over its pages, poet Dean Atta. I found out about his Greek Cypriot and Caribbean heritage, what the titular poem is all about (a vigorous response to Stephen Lawrence's murderers) and his life as a young gay man (another surprise, it wasn't a theme I'd consciously sought out).
Here are thoughts big and small; indignation mixes with sadness and gladness; humour clashes with pain - broadly speaking, this poetry is often raw, always engrossing, always human, always engaging.
And was I educated? Yes. While not especially about black lives matter (they always have as far as I'm concerned), I realise that the connection here goes beyond ethnicity - it's about a connecting philosophy, the resonance of one human communicating with others.
And, yes, I also learned about poetry, about how it really speaks to you and how much I've missed out on over the decades - for which, I'd particularly like to thank Dean Atta for delivering a cure to my aversions.
August 15, 2021
I've been wanting to read this for some time. I listened to a lot of Atta's interviews and watched his performances on links sent by friends over the years.
What was surprising about his work is surprisingly not the powerful political works but the emotionally-charged l0ve stories that make up most of this work. Love lost, love found and the trepidations all round after woven together with such depth and poise that it feels like we are locked in his heart as he goes through these emotions. The works I like the most, and strongly recommend savouring are:
- Lost in time
- Tunnel Vision
- Key to the city (this is a remarkable fable and if his prose novel is anything like this, it is sure to be such a delight)
- I am red
- Revolution
The title poem, the one that brought me to his attention all those years ago, is just an insight into his mastery of rhythm, rhyme, emotion and insight.
Essential reading.
Enjoy!
What was surprising about his work is surprisingly not the powerful political works but the emotionally-charged l0ve stories that make up most of this work. Love lost, love found and the trepidations all round after woven together with such depth and poise that it feels like we are locked in his heart as he goes through these emotions. The works I like the most, and strongly recommend savouring are:
- Lost in time
- Tunnel Vision
- Key to the city (this is a remarkable fable and if his prose novel is anything like this, it is sure to be such a delight)
- I am red
- Revolution
The title poem, the one that brought me to his attention all those years ago, is just an insight into his mastery of rhythm, rhyme, emotion and insight.
Essential reading.
Enjoy!
July 13, 2020
I saw Dean Atta perform his poetry at an LGBTQ+ event and was an immediate fan. This is his debut collection of poetry that is so raw, inspiring and truthful. His words are so strong and powerful that they knock the breath out of you. He writes about all the things that effects a person. He explores identity, race, sexuality, love, relationships, friendship, family and London. He is relevant and he has sass. I have read his poetry over and over again because I feel a true connection to what he has to say and I love the way he says it. He is blunt and he is unapologetic and he is amazing. Highly recommend!
June 3, 2022
I liked the themes he was engaging with and thought his ideas were often interesting, but the poems themselves weren’t very well executed I think - I don’t think they have much of a sense of rhythm or meter, and the rhymes I found to be often quite bland and uninspiring. Sometimes he rhymes words with the same word and it doesn’t feel purposeful - it feels like he couldn’t think of anything else to rhyme with it.
July 4, 2020
This collective works is a mixture of rhyming, free form and narrative poetry of varying themes. Each piece is exceptionally powerful, personal and vulnerable, reading in a lyrical manner regardless of whether rhyming is present or not. You really get a feel for how these poems might be performed by their individual structures (some of the poems can be found performed by Dean Atta on YouTube).
Atta eloquently discusses multiple facets of racism, what it is to be a gay Black male, growing up in a fatherless environment, romantic relationships, riots in London and the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Through this book, he uses his voice and truth to raise social and political awareness, in all of the above areas, from a point of personal experience.
His voice is distinct throughout; intellectual, introspective, meditative and often melancholic. Whether direct or metaphorical, Atta tells his story with simple and yet astounding wording that delivers a high impact and often gives you pause for thought.
“Rappers, when you use the word ‘nigger’, remember
That’s one of the last words Stephen Lawrence heard,
So don’t tell me it’s a reclaimed word
“I am nobody’s nigger”.”
Atta eloquently discusses multiple facets of racism, what it is to be a gay Black male, growing up in a fatherless environment, romantic relationships, riots in London and the murder of Stephen Lawrence. Through this book, he uses his voice and truth to raise social and political awareness, in all of the above areas, from a point of personal experience.
His voice is distinct throughout; intellectual, introspective, meditative and often melancholic. Whether direct or metaphorical, Atta tells his story with simple and yet astounding wording that delivers a high impact and often gives you pause for thought.
“Rappers, when you use the word ‘nigger’, remember
That’s one of the last words Stephen Lawrence heard,
So don’t tell me it’s a reclaimed word
“I am nobody’s nigger”.”
June 18, 2021
I enjoyed this collection, but not as much as Black Flamingo. The best way I can describe it is to say he feels very young in these poems. It’s the beginnings of the exploration of the self but it’s an exploration in its infancy. I’ll be keeping and eye on Dean Atta though because I think there is promise in these poems for great things to come.
January 7, 2022
Clever and wide-ranging; musical in parts. Feels at once youthful (captures first love and the perils of queer potential in a way that feels youthfully raw) yet also wise in others. The title poem is a standout.
February 18, 2023
“We were smoking a spliff and listening to Radiohead
Next thing we were kissing and I was giving him ___”
Dean Atta’s poetry debut was a powerful exploration of race and sexuality. Definitely one to watch.
Next thing we were kissing and I was giving him ___”
Dean Atta’s poetry debut was a powerful exploration of race and sexuality. Definitely one to watch.
April 13, 2019
Very good, 4 out of 5 - I particularly like: I Am Nobody's Nigger, Young Black and Gay, Revolution, Fatherless Nation, Paper Cuts, I Am Red, Mother Tongue and Key to the City.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews