
LONGING TO TELL
Black Women Talk About Sexuality and Intimacy | The Sexual Lives of Black Women, In Their Own Words
In a culture driven by sexual and racial imagery, very few honest conversations about race, gender, and sexuality actually take place. In their absence, commonly held perceptions of black women as teenage mothers, welfare recipients, mammies, or exotic sexual playthings remain unchanged. for fear that telling their stories will fulfill society's implicit expectations about their sexuality, most black women have retreated into silences. Tricia Rose seeks to break this silence and jump-start a dialogue by presenting, for the first time, the sexual testimonies of black women. Spanning a broad range of ages, levels of education, and socioeconomic backgrounds, twenty women, in their own words, talk with starling honesty about sex, love, family, relationships, and intimacy. Their stories dispel prevailing myths and provide revealing insights into how black women navigate the complex terrain of sexuality. Nuanced, rich, and powerful, Longing to Tell will be required reading for anyone interested in issues of race and gender.

REVIEWS for Longing to Tell
“Heartbreaking, inspiring, and brutally honest...as compelling as it is sorely needed."
— PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY
“A powerful and pioneering work. For the first time we hear the painful and poignant voices of black women in all their humanity and complexity. Do not miss this path-blazing book!"
— CORNEL WEST, University Professor, Princeton University
“Like a great conversation, [this] book is provocative and inspiring...The integration of scholarship and accessible conversation rests largely in Rose's curiosity, her delight in discovery."
— ADRIAN NICOLE LeBLANC, Newsweek