Chapters (31)
- Cover
- Title Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Room in the Dark I
- Fawns of the Diaspora Court Liliane in Paris, While Tabou Combo Whispers “Coq Qualité” in Her Ears
- Room in the Dark II
- “I Usedta Drink, Smoke and Do the Hoochie-Koo,” or What’s a Girl to Do When Her Mother Looks Like Ruth Brown
- Room in the Dark III
- “El Bochinche” es que only Fe Cortijo Knows or All the LeBron Brothers Know If Victor-Jésus María Sang Lili to Her Freedom
- Room in the Dark IV
- And Where Is Garnett Mimms?
- Room in the Dark V
- I Know Where Kansas City Is, But Did Wilbert Harrison Ever Get There?
- Room in the Dark VI
- Zoom Went the Strings of Liliane’s Heart, But Arsenio Rodriguez Could Have Told Her the Music Sounds Just as Sweet When We’re Blind and Still We See
- Room in the Dark VII
- I Know Where the E Train Stops But I’m “Sendin’ Out an S.O.S.” and I’m Not Edwin Starr Either
- Room in the Dark VIII
- “Happy, Happy Birthday, Baby” or Wouldn’t It Be Great If the Lead Singer of The Crests Wasn’t a White Boy and I Could Be My Mother?
- Room in the Dark IX
- Every Time My Lil World Seems Blue, I Just Haveta Look at You and Learn Eye-Hand Coordination
- Room in the Dark X
- “That’s Why I Love Her So and Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, I Want to Know” or Why Jackie Wilson Died in Silence
- Room in the Dark XI
- There’s No Use Cryin’ “Forever” or Hyacinthe Returns from a Very Blue Holiday for Real B(l)ack at Ya
- Room in the Dark XII
- Lollie Struts Her Stuff Thru “The Sea of Love” or the Brides of Frankenstein Catch the Bouquet
- By Ntozake Shange
- Acknowledgments
- Copyright
——— Did she discontinue her counseling?
——— Yes, but you don’t understand. You don’t understand. She was killed. He killed her. Said he heard God. Said the Lord was displeased with her painting and her friends. Her art and her friends were smut, the Devil’s handiwork. That cocksucker no more heard God than I have a million dollars in the bank. The lyin’ muthafuckah. Oh, my God. Roxie. Roxie. Why didn’t you listen to me? Why didn’t you listen to me?
———
——— He told her she couldn’t do anything right. Nothing. He even told her she couldn’t paint. Told her she couldn’t paint. It was only cause she was a woman that she got so many breaks. Breaks, Roxie. Roxie. Why didn’t you run away from him like the antelopes you carved could run. You know, Roxie had a piece from this last show. It’s still hanging right now at the gallery. Her pieces are in the room next to mine. These antelopes are so delicate, two, three inches at the most, a fine misty gray flat stone she painted wildflowers all around them, glorious rose, yellows, and lavender flowers all around the antelopes. And over the antelopes, boughs of magnolia trees carved just as finely. Roxie used to say these were Southern antelopes, probably, resting near Lake Pontchatrain lapping murky brown swamp water of French roast and chicory. It’s sold already. Somebody bought it, going to take it home, look at it, see the beauty of it, the odd humor and sweetness of it. Roxie, why didn’t you listen to me. Why didn’t you listen….
——— Liliane, what’s happening?
——— Sierra is crying that she wants to stay with Aunt Lili, cause I wasn’t ready to leave the opening yet. We’d only been there bout an hour. People were still comin’, but that jackass, Tony, pulled his junked-up car out front, wouldn’t stop honking for Roxie to come outside. He refused to come see the show, said a bunch of bitches weren’t worth lookin’ at less we were sucking his dick. Jesus. So Roxie smiled and waved good-bye, but it wasn’t right. It wasn’t right…. Butch, Sierra’s father, offered to keep her, but that seemed to terrify Roxie. She said that Tony wouldn’t like that. He thought Sierra should only see her father on the days arranged as always, no exceptions. Butch got furious. He was the father. He’d see Sierra when he wanted. Then Roxie pleaded with him not to make so much of it. Then, she ran outside with Sierra. Butch went after them. Tony jumped out of the car. They had words. Butch came back in, real subdued. Butch told me there was nothing we could do but let her go.
——— He was right, you know.