No Sweet Without Brine: Poems – A Soulful Poetry Collection on Black Womanhood and Self-Love

by Cynthia Manick

Cynthia Manick’s poetry collection personifies love of self and culture through fresh observations and bitter truths voiced with breathtaking lyricism.

No Sweet Without Brine is both a soulful and celebratory collection that summons sticky sweet memories with an acrid aftertaste of deep thought. Satisfying moments are captured in odes to Idris Elba’s dulcet tones on a meditation app and the satisfaction of half-priced Entenmann’s poundcake; in childlike observations of parental Black love, the coveted female form on Jet Magazine covers, and the desire for Zamunda to be a real place full of Black joy. The sour taps into an analysis of reclusiveness, silencing catcalls from men on the street, and detailed recipes and advice to the Black girls forced to endow themselves with armor against the world.

Cynthia Manick’s latest is a playlist of everyday life, introverted thoughts, familial bonds, and social commentary. In piercing language, she traces the circle of life for a narrator who dares to exist between youthful remembrances and adulthood realities. Each poem in No Sweet Without Brine is a reminder that a hint of sorrow makes the celebration and recognition of the glory of Blackness in all ways, and through all people, that much sweeter.

Genres: Poetry, Audiobook, Fiction, Literature, Contemporary

144 pages, Paperback

First published April 4, 2023

About the author

Cynthia Manick is the author of No Sweet Without Brine (Amistad, 2023) which received 5 stars from Roxane Gay and was selected as a New York Public Library Best Book of 2023; editor of The Future of Black: Afrofuturism, Black Comics, and Superhero Poetry; winner of the Lascaux Prize in Collected Poetry; and author of Blue Hallelujahs. She has received fellowships from Cave Canem, Hedgebrook, MacDowell Colony, and Château de la Napoule among other foundations. For 10 years she curated Soul Sister Revue, a quarterly reading series that promoted poetry as storytelling and featured emerging poets, poet laureates, and Pulitzer prize winners. Her poem "Things I Carry Into the World" was made into a film by Motionpoems, an organization dedicated to video poetry, and has debuted on Tidal for National Poetry Month. A storyteller and performer at literary festivals, libraries, universities, and museums, Manick’s work has also featured in VOICES, an audio play by Aja Monet and Eve Ensler’s V-Day, the Academy of American Poets Poem-A-Day Series, Brooklyn Rail, the Rumpus and other outlets. She currently serves on the editorial board of Alice James Books. She lives in New York, but travels widely for poetry

Reviews

[Roxane · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are exuberant, engaging poems composed with confidence and flair. I loved this book from beginning to end. Some real standouts include Rx for little black girls, We make sin a good hymn, and Ode to JET magazine but really it’s all outstanding, intelligent, referential in interesting ways.

[Adrienne Blaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

While reading this collection of poems I exclaimed aloud, “Now that’s a poet!” I was enraptured by Cynthia Manick. I felt particularly glad to have learned about the Eintou poem format from my favorite poem in the book, titled “Eintou for Possibility.”

“I think / the gap between / my teeth is actually / a portal. A world where all / the gaps meet -gossip about / peas, whistling, / and stars.”

According to Shakespearnoir.com, “The term Eintou is West African for ‘pearl’ as in pearls of wisdom, and often the Eintou imparts these pearls in heightened language.” This African American poet also explains that the form mimics the circular shape of a pearl with syllables that follow a gradual increase and decrease (for example: 2-4-6-8-6-4-2). And that’s why you must read this book to see the poem written on the page.

I was particularly struck by poems titled as numbered self portraits. In an age of throwaway selfies, Manick’s lyrical vulnerability was much appreciated.

I received an uncorrected digital advance reader copy from NetGalley and HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.

[Ebony (EKG) · Rating 5 out of 5]

i’ve never felt so intimately seen by a poetry collection before. poems of black girl hood and everything it means. i love how this collection emphasizes the “no sweet without brine” aspects of life. i smiled and laughed and held my breath while reading this!

[Raymond · Rating 3 out of 5]

Favorite poem from the collection: "What Answers Can I Give to the Thing That I Am"

[Lit_Vibrations · Rating 5 out of 5]

Haven’t read poetry in a minute so this was a great pick to get back in my groove for it. This collection is broken into 4 sections and was raw, honest, deep, and beautifully written. The author found such a creatively poetic way to connect with all of the readers. Her work translates into relatable personal experiences that surround the fragility of love, family, blackness, culture, beauty, body image, and a testament to hardship and how we must thrive through it all.

Every poem flowed naturally with passion and were all easy to read. Her poem “Livin Flush” took me out with those 4 little lines. When ppl get paid everything all good but soon as the money gone they back struggling. Her perspectives are interchangeable and can be viewed as humorous in certain aspects but also real and overly honest.

Favorite poems:
* Is This Your Sky or Mine?
* Self-Portrait No. 5 (Phoenix and Lullabies)
* RX for Little Black Girls
* Introvert Confessions
* Recipe for Keeping a Man
* The Way the World Holds You

Overall, I found this collection to be very enjoyable it was uniquely formatted and I loved the clarity and relatability. I felt with each poem we get a feel of who the author is and her own personal experiences. If you’re into poetry I definitely recommend checking out this author’s work. Special thanks to the author & @amistadbooks for my gifted copy!!!!

[emma charlton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is exactly the kind of poetry I love! Manick writes beautiful, purposeful, personal poems filled with detail. It’s hard to pick favorites but I especially loved the “Self-Portrait” series poems. I’ll definitely be loaning this out to people when I get my physical copy. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

[Kelly Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A joy to read, a joy to recommend. This collection has incredible breadth, simultaneously playful, mournful, and joyous with consistent clarity of voice.

[Novi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 will continue to pick up random books in the new and noteworthy section of the library

[AChui · Rating 5 out of 5]

#14: Read a book with under 500 Goodreads ratings.
#20: Read a book of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author.

I came upon this book from one of Roxanne Gay's book recommendations. I loved this book of poetry from Cynthia Manick. Her perspective is so unique and different than my own; and yet, I saw similarities as well being a women of colour. Highly recommend!

[Sacha · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

I so enjoyed this collection and am already looking forward to teaching it.

This is my first experience with Manick’s work, and what I’m taking away most clearly is how fresh it feels. The perspectives are clear, unified, and vivid, and there is so much richness packed into relatively small spaces. Shifting tones - especially glimpses of humor, connections to cultural touchstones, and incisive notes about speakers’ selves - make this a quick but meaningful read.

I can’t wait to share several of these works with students and to now have this writer on the radar for extensive future reading.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Amistad for this arc, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

edit:

4.5

It had slipped my mind by the time I had reviewed this book because the epub I'd bought was so difficult to highlight in Calibre but there was one stanza that felt unnecessary and ableist against blind people so just a content warning.

[Em · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a fan of Cynthia Manick since reading her debut collection of poetry, Blue Hallelujahs, where she writes about her experience of Black womanhood and the fear of extinction that becomes possible when we are forced to live through performance and not authentic, embodied being. She continues this examination of Black womanhood in No Sweet Without Brine.

No Sweet Without Brine is divided into four sections: Self-Portraits and Other Skies; I Want Us Living, Not Just Alive; Sin Is A Good Hymn; and If We Should, Who Will Fly After Us. If her first collection was about her own personal experience then this next collection is where she engages her reader in a dialogue about our own reflections on Black womanhood and journey towards becoming.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the e-arc copy!

[Misse Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible!

This was just the collection of poetry that I needed in this particular time and space. A confirmation so to speak. Thank you to NetGalley for an electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.

There is something to be said about intentionality here. No Sweet Without Brine is a poetry collection that delves into the sticky sweet, soft caresses that we are able to observe, recognize, and celebrate as humans. Like a pound cake slice or the desire for Zamunda to be a real place. And on the other side of that, those sour, prickly moments that place us as women specifically in a disheartening position. From the way we're told to govern ourselves from catcalling to having to put on armor everyday to merely survive. Unfortunately, sometimes never taking it off.

Each poem I found to be distinctly relatable and forces you to think about how we can all better appreciate and celebrate our Blackness. It is a call to teach ourselves to stop allowing the bitterness, the low moments, the things we wish we didn't have to deal with to steal our joy.

I highly recommend this collection and this author's work. Simply amazing!

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this title curtesy of the publisher.

Ranging from poems about a tumultuous childhood to navigating the world as a plus-sized black women, Manick takes us on a lyrical journey full of words that sometimes flow like honey and sometimes punch you right in the face.

I particularly loved her open, honest words regarding finding love and how messy and complicated it can be. She attacks societal shortcomings head on while simultaneously admitting she doesn't have all the answers, and there are well-placed threads of humor and hope woven through even the darkest of her poems.

I am always on the hunt for contemporary poetry for my students. And while this collection was powerful and beautiful, it is definitely better suited to adults.

[Layne Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

goodreads giveaway <3

im not a poetry gal by any means - i rarely read it and when i do im usually really confused by it.

that being said, this book might have converted me. unlike the poetry ive experienced before, the writing felt so accessible in terms of actually being able to glean meaning from the writing. it honestly feels like ive finally found poetry written in a language that im actually able to comprehend. basically my main point here is that these poems are just so so pretty and honest and i really like them. it also single handedly broke me out of a particularly stubborn reading rut. prob best giveaway win so far. yay!

[Andy Oram · Rating 5 out of 5]

These poems are a potent swirl mixing Black history, the author's family, and contemorary culture and commercialism. Manick regrets incomplete relationships with family and lovers. But the poems are not all negative: For instance, "What Can Grow in the Dark" seems to be an appealing love poem.

Still, I get the sense when Manick is talking about happy things that she is being ironic, hinting that the life of Black people is not as good as she seems to portray it. Maybe that's why she claims to love "poetry when pain is its default setting."

Essentially, I loved the language and was amazed at the author's honesty. There's humor too, if you look for it.

[Hales · Rating 5 out of 5]

Girl, you better clean those dirty feet so the devil don’t know your name.

I want us living, not just alive.

I have thickened grits with butter in winter after realizing I want to make love to a body built for war - but has no need for war.

A friend said humans are made out of dead stars. So technically we’re not here all the time. Part of us is always searching, always elsewhere, using muscle memory to take us home.

- Uno when a bitch to my left puts down draw 4
- myself when I’m tired
- myself every day

All your stories sit in trees and in credit scores. The high will be a southern oscillation - knowledge that you can be wind too wild for taming if you choose.

5 🌟

[Haerlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember the movie "Brown Sugar" and its title track "Love of My Life: An Ode to Hip Hop" by Erykah Badu and Common? That is what this collection of poetry reminds me of. There are references to Black culture of yesteryear: Tootie, Redd Foxx, Jett Magazine and references to things more current or timeless: Superman and Idris Elba-yet all focused on how things resonated through the lens of a Black girl/adolescent/woman. The lyricism is also there calling the reader to remember, mourn and rock to the loves of our lives.

[Susie Dumond · Rating 5 out of 5]

This poetry collection does exactly what I want a poetry collection to do: it makes me pause in wonder at beautiful word combinations, it evokes a wide array of emotions, and it pulls me into the past and the future. Cynthia Manick's poetry is joyful, bold, nostalgic, and full of life. I loved this book and hope to read many more of her poems in the future.

[Chantelle Vancooten · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was captivated by this collection! It immerses you in the vibrant tapestry of African American culture, as if these pages hold the memories that shaped generations. The familiarity deepens my connection, like finding an old friend. The writing is exquisite, crafting vivid pictures and stirring emotions. This collection is a masterpiece to be celebrated and cherished.

[Emily Perkovich · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adored this. Everything was so raw yet simultaneously tender. There is such a perfect balance of rage and willfulness interspersed with moments of self love. Thank you to Amistad & NetGalley for the ARC

[Jeff Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the last books in my modern poetry experiment. I don’t have many feelings toward the collection as a whole, but I do appreciate a few witty lines.

Topics range from womanhood, blackness, food, nature, childhood, JET magazine, Coming to America, and Idris Elba.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to take my time with these. So much was said with such few words I needed to sit with it. Beautiful collection of poetry.

[Elvis Alves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cynthia does not disappoint with her second poetry collection. I continue to be in awe of how well she uses words to make small moments big.

[Julia Bonadies · Rating 5 out of 5]

By far one of the best poetry collections I’ve read this year. Excellent imagery & gorgeous sound-play. It’s a shiny sucker-punch.

[Hailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 - favorites: What Answers Can I Give to the Thing That I Am
Is This Your Sky or Mine?
No Graveside Flowers

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

We dark wonders we blooming nightshades

I love poetry, and I really enjoyed this collection.

[Valerie Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved all her self-portraits; recurring themes were shadows, self-love, and ribs. A lovely read. I'm not reading poetry all the time, but I picked it up after Roxane Gay's 5-star review.

[Shannon (That's So Poe) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great poetry collection about identity as a Black woman. Really enjoyed reading it, although definitely some of it went over my head.

[Ashley T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very solid collection