God Themselves

Name: God Themselves
Brand: Simon & Schuster Audio
Availability: InStock
Author: Jae Nichelle
ISBN: 9781524885878

Author: Jae Nichelle

Narrator: Jae Nichelle

Unabridged: 1 hr 38 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing

Published: 03/14/2023

Categories: Fiction, Poetry, African American & Black Poetry, Women Authors

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included

Synopsis

Jae Nichelle’s debut poetry collection powerfully reflects her experience of growing up in the South as a queer Black woman, courageously confronting the effects of a forced religion, and the inherent dangers of living life in a female body.

Let this book be a celebration of queerness, Blackness, and love. Let these words be a modern church, these poems a holy space.

Rising star and spoken word poet Jae Nichelle debuts with God Themselves, her first collection of stirring poetry divided into three equally moving sections:
Everything, Everywhere, Love.
Nichelle braids her wisdom––as seen in the poem “What to Do When There’s Nothing You Can Do”––and witty generational humor––as in “Sanctity: An Exposé”––into every one of her luminous poems. If you’ve ever contemplated who, what, and where God is, find comfort in her empathetic words.

About The Author

Jae Nichelle is the author of the poetry chapbook The Porch (As Sanctuary); the inaugural poetry winner of the John Lewis Writing Award from the Georgia Writers Association, and one of few people from Lafayette, Louisiana who has never met the singer Cupid. A slam poetry champion, her spoken word has been featured by Write About Now, Speak Up Poetry Series, and Button Poetry.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany)

This is a stunning poetry collection! I don't read a ton of poetry and when I do, it's not often that I find myself moved and re-listening to pieces. Honestly I'm tempted to buy a physical copy of God Themselves because I loved it so much. The writing is beautiful, evocative, and clever. It deals wi......more

Goodreads review by Rachel | All the RAD Reads

listening to this one on audio was the MOVE (why am i not listening to all of my poetry on audio?!?) -- powerfully written AND powerfully spoken, this collection was relevant and moving, striking and fresh. i especially loved the prayers through predictive text poems, as they felt both endearing and......more

Goodreads review by Katie

4 stars......more

Goodreads review by Stephanie

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review. I really liked this collection of poetry! The narrator does an amazing job and I love how they have music and different sound effects when the poetry calls for it. This collection shows life and struggles through the eyes of a black woman comin......more

Goodreads review by HunterSYoung

This collection was quite stunning. As someone who doesn’t read much poetry, this collection was quite accessible. Her use of form is incredible. Some pages were solid blocks of text, others were staccato ‘d on the page—showing the various ways of thinking: the abstract and the calculated. The inter......more

Quotes

Fans of fresh, accessible poetry in the lineage of Staceyann Chin and Black Girl, Call Home will love spoken word poet Nichelle’s newest collection. It’s a loud, exuberant celebration of Black womanhood, queer love, and lives stitched into wholeness despite legacies of violence, trauma, and religious anti-gay bias. Wise, tender, and funny, these conversational poems create a joyful, holy space for anyone who has felt othered and alienated by traditional religious practices.

“Nichelle’s experience of growing up in the South as a queer Black woman is relayed to luminous effect in this collection, which dives deep into the effects of religious trauma and suggests a less-fraught, more individual relationship with the divine.”