About the book
This National Book Award-winning debut poetry collection is a \"powerfully evocative\" (The New York Review of Books) meditation on the black female figure through time.
Robin Coste Lewis's electrifying collection is a triptych that begins and ends with lyric poems meditating on the roles desire and race play in the construction of the self.
In the center of the collection is the title poem, \"Voyage of the Sable Venus,\" an amazing narrative made up entirely of titles of artworks from ancient times to the present—titles that feature or in some way comment on the black female figure in Western art. Bracketed by Lewis's own autobiographical poems, \"Voyage\" is a tender and shocking meditation on the fragmentary mysteries of stereotype, juxtaposing our names for things with what we actually see and know.
A new understanding of biography and the self, this collection questions just where, historically, do ideas about the black female figure truly begin—five hundred years ago, five thousand, or even longer? And what role did art play in this ancient, often heinous story? Here we meet a poet who adores her culture and the beauty to be found within it. Yet she is also a cultural critic alert to the nuances of race and desire—how they define us all, including her own sometimes painful history.
Lewis's book is a thrilling aesthetic anthem to the complexity of race—a full embrace of its pleasure and horror, in equal parts.
Editions of Voyage of the Sable Venus
- Hardcover
- ISBN 9781101875438
- Paperback
- ISBN 9781101911204
- EBook
- ISBN 9781101875445
- AudioStreaming
- ISBN 9780593461044
- AudioStreaming
- ISBN 9780593461051
Read an Excerpt
This National Book Award-winning debut poetry collection is a \"powerfully evocative\" (The New York Review of Books) meditation on the black female figure through time.
Robin Coste Lewis's electrifying collection is a triptych that begins and ends with lyric poems meditating on the roles desire and race play in the construction of the self.
In the center of the collection is the title poem, \"Voyage of the Sable Venus,\" an amazing narrative made up entirely of titles of artworks from ancient times to the present—titles that feature or in some way comment on the black female figure in Western art. Bracketed by Lewis's own autobiographical poems, \"Voyage\" is a tender and shocking meditation on the fragmentary mysteries of stereotype, juxtaposing our names for things with what we actually see and know.
A new understanding of biography and the self, this collection questions just where, historically, do ideas about the black female figure truly begin—five hundred years ago, five thousand, or even longer? And what role did art play in this ancient, often heinous story? Here we meet a poet who adores her culture and the beauty to be found within it. Yet she is also a cultural critic alert to the nuances of race and desire—how they define us all, including her own sometimes painful history.
Lewis's book is a thrilling aesthetic anthem to the complexity of race—a full embrace of its pleasure and horror, in equal parts.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Voyage of the Sable Venus about?
This National Book Award-winning debut poetry collection is a \"powerfully evocative\" (The New York Review of Books) meditation on the black female figure through time.
Robin Coste Lewis's electrifying collection is a triptych that begins and ends with lyric poems meditating on the roles desire and race play in the construction of the self.
In the center of the collection is the title poem, \"Voyage of the Sable Venus,\" an amazing narrative made up entirely of titles of artworks from ancient times to the present—titles that feature or in some way comment on the black female figure in Western art. Bracketed by Lewis's own autobiographical poems, \"Voyage\" is a tender and shocking meditation on the fragmentary mysteries of stereotype, juxtaposing our names for things with what we actually see and know.
A new understanding of biography and the self, this collection questions just where, historically, do ideas about the black female figure truly begin—five hundred years ago, five thousand, or even longer? And what role did art play in this ancient, often heinous story? Here we meet a poet who adores her culture and the beauty to be found within it. Yet she is also a cultural critic alert to the nuances of race and desire—how they define us all, including her own sometimes painful history.
Lewis's book is a thrilling aesthetic anthem to the complexity of race—a full embrace of its pleasure and horror, in equal parts.
What core themes, tropes, or subjects are explored in Voyage of the Sable Venus?
Biography, Literature and Literary studies > Poetry / Poems
Where can I read a sample of Voyage of the Sable Venus?
You can read an official preview of the few pages here https://www.book2look.com/book/9781101875438
Who is/are the Author/s of the book Voyage of the Sable Venus?
Robin Coste Lewis
What are the ISBN numbers for the physical and digital editions?
Voyage of the Sable Venus is available as hardcover(ISBN 9781101875438) and paperback(ISBN 9781101911204) and ebook(ISBN 9781101875445) and audiostreaming(ISBN 9780593461044) and audiostreaming(ISBN 9780593461051)
Where can I buy Voyage of the Sable Venus online or support local independent bookshops?
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Where can I buy Voyage of the Sable Venus?