Speak, So You Can Speak Again : The Life of Zora Neale Hurston

Rating:
Summary: Both a sympathetic summary and scrapbook of Hurson't life
Review: In 2003, fans and scholars of Zora Neale Hurston's work were given the invaluable opportunity to rediscover this writer's life and authorial genius through a much-awaited collection of her letters. This year, that same audience is treated to another book of admittedly different purpose and scope. Comprising only 39 pages of text, Lucy Anne Hurston's SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN offers a concise and compassionate portrait of Zora Neale Hurston as a gifted writer, a dedicated anthropologist, an impetuous lover, a reticent maid and, perhaps most of all, a fierce and uncompromising individual. Therefore, this book provides the novice with a clear and accessible digest of Hurston that will then, ideally, enable one to conduct further, more in-depth investigation.

But what really distinguishes SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN from a run-of-the-mill digest are its many valuable reproductions of photographs, contemporary reviews, and handwritten manuscripts. All of these cherished documents are either laid out clearly on every over-sized page, or are folded carefully into a sewn envelope attached to the page. Whether one examines a duplication of the author's handwritten chapter "Love" from DUST TRACKS ON A ROAD, or studies the hand-penned poem of the same title, or thrills to see "John Redding Goes to Sea" as it looked in the May 1921 issue of The Stylus magazine, SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN provides all readers of all levels with a fascinating glimpse of the material evidence of a by-gone era.

If, as an armchair historian of Hurston's life and work, I discovered little in the text that I didn't already know and occasionally (as in the case of Zora's artist-patron relationship with Charlotte Osgood Mason), noted a need for development, I was nonetheless graced with so many precious artifacts from the Hurston estate. There is even a CD attached to the inside cover where one can hear the author being interviewed, reading from various excerpts of her work and performing her legendary "crow dance."

In its dimensions and design, then, Lucy Hurston's literary biography of her Aunt Zora is as much a scrapbook/photo album as it is a sympathetic summary of one of America's most cherished writers.

--- Reviewed by Tony Leuzzi, Monroe Community College


Rating:
Summary: A fascinating keepsake
Review: Lucy Anne Hurston, the neice of Zora Neale Hurston, in a collaborative effort with the Estate of the great writer, has produced a beautiful tribute to her aunt and also a collector's item for fans of Zora Neale Hurston. Not only does it include biographical sketches of the famous author, but also live interviews, as well as a CD of folk songs sung by Hurston.

The pages of this book are rich in heritage, painting a kaleidoscope of her life. Touching on her childhood, her days attending Howard University, and of course her writing, the reader is able to see that even though Zora Neale Hurston wrote about memorable characters, she too could have been one of the characters she wrote about. Because of the replications of original letters, maps, photos and writings, the reader is given a more detailed account of her life, told by someone who knew and loved her. Each of these are in pull-out sleeves and envelopes, easily removed from the book to allow closer inspection upon, or displayed vividly on the full color and black and white pages of the book.

SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN is a fascinating keepsake of a writer who means so much to not only the Harlem Renaissance and to African-American readers and writers, but also to literature as we know it. Through this collection, readers are offered an intimate portrait of a literary legend.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers


Rating:
Summary: Zora Talks! (and sings too)
Review: Lucy Hurston (Zora's neice) produces a fascinating multimedia item for fans of the grand dame of Afrian-American folklore and literature. A short family bio of her life include removable items such as facsimilies of her letters and actual writings (including surviving notes from her lost book on Herod the Great). But the real gem here is the CD. Zora speaks in a 1943 radio interview and her down-home folksy speaking style truly compliments the stories she tells (especially about her being a "fat little baby"). Then we have a 1939 recording of her singing some Florida folksongs that would have probably been lost had this not been recorded. A most fascinating listen.

Just waiting now for a documentary with some of the films she made in the 20s, 30s, and 40s while recording folklore. What a joy for Zora fans.