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
Liliane was holdin’ Rose Lynne’s head on her lap, caressin’ her hair and rockin’ her back and forth. I thought the boy must have been drafted or somethin’, like her mother was dyin’ or his mother was dyin’. Liliane looked up at me with a look I’d seen on the faces of the ladies of the house. What was I doin’ there. I pulled my breath back into my body so my hands wouldn’t embarrass me and asked them what was wrong. Liliane gritted her teeth. “That jerk, Ronnie, hurt her feelings, that’s all.” I looked real hard. Rose Lynne cried with more thrashin’ of her bosom. Then, she raised her head defiantlike and held her hand out suddenly: “Look at this. Look at this.” Rose Lynne bent over Liliane’s lap again, her arm danglin’ from her body and in her hand was a beautiful gold ring with a green stone and diamonds on each side. “Why that’s beautiful, Rose Lynne.”
Liliane shook her head silently like I should be quiet. Rose Lynne shouted, “No, no.” between gasps for air. What in the devil was wrong with these girls, I asked myself. Suddenly Rose Lynne jumped up, threw the ring across the floor, and took a deep breath: “It’s not real. The stupid nigger didn’t even get me real jewelry. Where in the fuckin’ hell am I supposed to wear shit like that?” I looked at Liliane who lowered her eyes slowly like I shouldn’t say nothin’. Rose Lynne started jumpin’ up and down screamin’ some more. I figured out exactly where that ring was, picked it up: “Rose Lynne, you gotta calm yourself. This here is beautiful.” Before I could go on, Liliane interrupted: “It’s glass and goldplate, Bernadette. That’s what’s upsettin’ her so.” Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. I left them two alone.
I put the ring in my pocket, shit, found Roy was hugged up on some yellah girl with a high behind. This was too much for me. I thought bout tryin’ to get back home, but I wasn’t quite sure how and I didn’t know where Danny was either. Eventually, Liliane came back to the party, gave Ronnie a stoneface for sure, went to Granville who put his arms around her, lips all over her, like she was gonna disappear. That’s when I knew where Danny was cause I saw him jump the roses, head just missin’ the hanging lanterns, shoutin’ for the world to know: “Whatchu doin’ with my girl, man?”