Presenting the essential writings of black lesbian poet and feminist writer Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider celebrates an influential voice in twentieth-century literature.
“[Lorde’s] works will be important to those truly interested in growing up sensitive, intelligent, and aware.”—The New York Times
In this charged collection of fifteen essays and speeches, Lorde takes on sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, and class, and propounds social difference as a vehicle for action and change. Her prose is incisive, unflinching, and lyrical, reflecting struggle but ultimately offering messages of hope. This commemorative edition includes a new foreword by Lorde-scholar and poet Cheryl Clarke, who celebrates the ways in which Lorde’s philosophies resonate more than twenty years after they were first published.
These landmark writings are, in Lorde’s own words, a call to “never close our eyes to the terror, to the chaos which is Black which is creative which is female which is dark which is rejected which is messy which is . . . ”
Adrian Wittenberg –
I cannot offer high enough praise for this work. It is an amazing collection. The pieces are thought-provoking, deeply moving, inspiring and so well written. The insights it offers are not to missed. I couldn’t stop talking about the book and the author and the important things she has to say. The impact is formed and heightened by the beautiful poetic composition and the direct and fearless way Lorde speaks. This book is beautiful, but it is also important, and worthwhile.
Amazon Customer –
arrived so quickly. a truly beautiful book that is crucial for any anti-racist intersectional feministor mother, or lover, or lesbian, or poet, or activisti have passed it along to so many people in my circles
Grethel Parkins –
I have searched long and hard for a book that reflects my search for myself that was hidden beneath half century of self hate and fear of being the outsider. Audre’s book spoke to and from my heart.I recommend this book to women of color who know there is a deeper, more eternal power within them that must be tapped into for our survival as women.
Kelci –
Wonderful!
LoveLoveLove –
What not to love about it? Don’t we all wish she was still alive? She is the Mother of all Mothers. I love every inch, corner, of it. It’s a book that you refer to numerous times, again and again. Because it’s just one of those books and everyone who loves Audre or wants to learn more about civil rights or whatever, I recommend it highly! it was one of my first books as i was coming to understand my self and identity, power and Black Feminism is really all about, tenderness with each other, i fail at these at times, to many times then i would like to admit but i am quite happy to that is always my reference. Reading her works gives me the vibes of love. I am young with feminist, who still has a lot to learn but has learn so much and grown so much already. Audre is my to go to, if and only if white women would stop taking her work out of context..kmt… anyhow!
AuthorAnnaBella –
ReviewSister Outsider by Audre LordeAudre Lorde was a fierce feminist poet. Not fitting neatly into any minority group, she is a force to reckon with. She leaves behind a legacy, priceless but valuable lessons in her essays and poetry. Sister Outsider proved she stood her ground and fought with eloquence, addressing sexism, racism, ageism, homophobia, social differences and classism. She left us hopeful, that we can achieve what she and others before her fought and even died for. We are our sisters keeper.
Susan E. Conner –
its a really good book!!!!
J. OBrien –
I wish I’d read this book 30 years ago when it came out. It’s still as relevant today as it was then–and in many ways just as revolutionary. I’m not black, but it applies to anyone who does not run with the crowd and has a strong desire to look at things honestly in spite of the personal discomfort involved. Things need to change in the US–we need to see ourselves as in this thing together(life, the “American experiment”),and this book drives that home.
Daniela Moravec –
Important read for Black feminist thought and theory
Cyd –
Great writing – speaks to everyone – no matter who or what or where your community is. Andre is a voice for all generations and times.
Abeer Y. Hoque –
Sister, Outsider is a collection of 15 essays, speeches, and journal entries by the prophet, philosopher, and poet Audre Lorde. I was laid out by this book, so full of urgent yet generous poetic wisdom, and so much of it ahead of its time. Here is a short list of lessons learned:1. Differences (in race, sexuality, class, etc) should be welcomed and harnessed for individual power and communal growth, energy and creative insight2. Feel your feelings because 1) this is what makes you free, 2) lets you be who you wish 3) makes life meaningful3. Transform silence into language and action (=> your silence will not save you)4. The art of poetry and the erotic kernel of self are deep, real, vital powers available to all5. Revolution is a process, not an event, and it requires constant vigilance for the possibility of change6. There is no single-issue struggle (=> everything is intersectional)7. Use your anger (rather than hatred or guilt) to mindfully catalyze change, and always listen for the substance underneath (versus fragility + tone-policing)8. Capitalism needs outsiders (surplus) to function (=> the vilification of difference)9. The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House (revolution over reform)10. Black feminism is necessary (for survival, empowerment, and growth)11. Interdependence, mutuality, and systems of shared support are sources of power12. Rape can only be stopped if women revolt and men become conscious of their responsibility to fight sexism and misogyny13. Learn from our past fractures, and acknowledge when we are complicit in subjugation14. Self-love (tenderness, sweetness, self-acceptance) is the key to empowerment and undoing the long and dark legacy of self-hate within Black women15. No one is free until everyone is free.
monica –
Incredible. She’s a Brilliant writer and thinker.
c.mess –
Although I do feel a bit guilty buying it off Amazon hah
Heather Number 1 –
All those half-formed conversations and debates you’ve been having about intersectionality, feminism, activism? Check in with her first. She’s laid it all out, perfectly and beautifully and from a place of both strength and care. Essential reading for everyone.
Matthew Riemer –
One of the most important collections ever assembled from one of the most visionary human beings to have ever blessed this earth.
Anynomous –
One of the most amazing books ever written. Book was in Excellent condition.
Candice –
This book opens the heart and the mind.
Stephen Ewing –
Giving this book 5 stars makes me want to go back and lower the rating of books i have 5 stars to in the past. The goosebumps per hour were the highest I’ve experienced in years. Truly unbelievable that this was written when it was
robert quashie –
Essential reading. Essential.
Melissa T. –
So much of this book written when I was a child is still valid (truly all of it). So many times had to stop and mediate on the knowledge being dropped. An act of love and courage performed in each word.
E –
Uses of The Erotic – The Erotic As Power is one of the greatest essays of all time. Period. The rest of the book is also excellent. Highly recommend.
erna –
These are beautiful, empowering, and thoughtful essays. Love them.
Fabi –
This made a perfect gift for my girlfriend. Beautiful and powerful poetry.
Shantae Porteous –
This book came at a time when I wanted to experience womanhood and this book was perfect for it honestly
georgiaphobia –
4.5 A work I’m glad to have read in its entirety, after only having read selected essays. “The Uses of Anger”, “Uses of the Erotic”, “Poetry is Not a Luxury” (esp for me, so alienated from poetry) in particular will stay with me for a long time. Sad to see how so many of these issues, especially regarding the relationship between white women and black women, have seemingly not progressed one bit.
Kindle Customer –
Excellent collection of her critical essays and theory. Though she considers herself a poet, her non-fiction should be required reading for all americans.
Dee –
This is a great read, at time I had to reread sections. But I find her thought process very interesting, this is her truth in writing very open and honest.
AA Dude –
This is much more than a book, a collection of writings. It’s an experience more like surviving a traumatic event, seeing a deep and distressing movie or having a long and difficult talk with someone who has been oppressed from all sides. It accomplishes that which no other book I have ever read has done. Aside from the profound personal impact it has had on me, it details a horror story of a life lived with incomparable insight into humanity as well as with courage which faces that horror every day. I bought and read the book based on the other reviews above. They are all correct, but the praise this book deserves is understated. It may well be the greatest book of psychological insight and advice ever written. Only Dostoevsky’s works compare. Lorde defies all the labels she and others use to describe her. This is the most human of all books because it stares the weaknesses we all share right in the face and finds ways to fight if not conquer them as well as pointing out strategies that are counterproductive. Lorde allows the reader to get inside her skin like no other writer, and for the first time ever, made me feel the anger, terror, fear, helplessness I have sensed in many if not all black people. And yet her greatest criticisms are not of whites, but especially of her black sisters and then her brothers. She clearly does not set herself apart because she knows she has had “my boot on a sister’s face”. Richard Adams wrote a story called “The Hole in the Sky”. Most people never see it, but this book describes best of all what makes up that hole and what it feels like to see it.
Tosha @bigbuttandabook –
Audre Lorde is the voice I want to always hear whispering to me. Encouraging me, supporting me, reassuring me. It had been to long since I had heard her voice, I won’t let it happen again. Reading these works felt like a spiritual rebirth.
Danica –
This is a staple read if you are interested in learning about intersectional feminism and you may even learn a little more about yourself in the process.
LC –
This is an excellent collection of essays!
Mathilde –
Un livre à lire, il nous fait nous interroger, entrer en discussion avec nous-mêmes et avec l’auteur à travers ses écrits.
Drew –
essential reading for feminists and gender studies majors. this book has a lot of writings to learn from
davichon –
Audre Lorde was an extrordinary poet and essayist, who looked deeply into both herself and society. Because she was black, lesbian, and a woman, she gives us a lens – both ferocious and loving – to see how we see the Other.Her insight and honesty are a challenge to anyone reading this book. For example, she knows from herself and her experience, how anger that originates in oppression and brutality, can be transmuted into the nastiness that black women may show for each other. Likewise, as a mother of a boy, she anatomizes the “letting go” that any parent must do as as a child grows, along with the particular challenges of a lesbian woman in relation to a male child.Most powerful are the last two essays. “Eye to Eye” is an extended meditation on how we see each other, but through the eyes of a black woman, seeing first of all other black women. Although most of the collection is in this vein, the last essay is a no-holds-barred treatment of American imperialism, as she revisits Grenada, her mother’s birthplace, in the aftermath of the American invasion in 1983.Lorde died of cancer in 1992. She was our Sister Outsider then, was a touchstone for Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, and is today for activists such as Angela Davis and Valarie Kaur.
LinC –
A must-read for everyone. Beautiful words and insight, and eerily relevant today, although written mostly in the 60s-70s.
Jennifer Beech –
Everyone should buy and read this collection. Very profound.
kikiT –
Amazing book!
Nudi –
Read everything you possibly can by Audre Lorde. This collection is essential reading. Her autobiography Zami is another good one.
Carol J. Stahl –
Even more pertinent today than when Ms Lorde put her thoughts to paper. There is — or should be — more outrage over income inequality now than earlier when we did not see this coming. It affects everyone except the billionaires. The point of the essays and speeches apply regardless of race, gender, age, health or any other condition. Income inequality requires strong words and resolve to overcome. This is fuel for the rebellion.
KIKI –
Great
Jo Ann Peitzmeier –
Hugely influential book in my life. Deeply personal and powerful. I return to the essays frequently and always find they offer fresh insights and solace. Highly, highly recommended!
Erica Riker –
A beautiful, real, and eloquent collection of feminist writings from the experience of a Black, Lesbian woman and poet. I purchased this book as a white woman looking to educate myself on the experiences of Women of Color, and the only and best way to do this is by listening, reading, and supporting Women of Color as they tell their experiences, joys, oppression, fears, resiliency, and the like. Audre Lorde is a beautiful human and writer with the ability to rip your heart out and then rub honey on it; she will help you grow. I highly recommend this book to everyone everywhere. Thank you Audre.
Kindle Customer –
For so many years this book, and others from Audre Lorde have been on my “To Read” list. I’m so glad I finally have.I learned history, and found myself thinking, “How is this still happening?” And I learned a lot about myself and how I (and others) express myself, or don’t. Every Black woman should read this book.
Bibiana Ortiz –
Absolutely wonderful. Audre Lorde writes from her experience, spirit, and life with such captivating and enthralling reflection. She is honest — that in it of itself is a feat few have accomplished in all of humankind. She acknowledges the growth of herself and her work to come with time, and yet, Sister Outsider is a confirmed classic. Audre Lorde is a confirmed classic. And as a confirmed classic, this book should be a required reading for everyone.I’m gonna gift this book to people.
Timothy Caffrey –
another amazing read
Kaya Massey –
Incredible book, highly recommended for everyone to read.
Mustafaa El-Scari –
This is a great book from a master writer.
Ms. La-Tica –
I love this author and her writing style! This is an easy light reading book whether you love to read or not.
EB J. –
I’m ashamed that this was never presented to me as a growing woman. Nonetheless, I’ve found it on my own and can say that the writings of Audre Lorde are truly transformative. Every woman, regardless of their orientation or color, should read this collection of essays and thoughts from this talented feminist and poet.
Frederik Nielsen –
Just buy it and read it, you won’t regret it!
T.L.B. –
It was a very detailed well written book. I had this on my list for so long to read glad I did. Audre is one of the great black woman writers who would never be forgotten.
Panama Jill –
Audre Lorde is a heroine of mine so this collection was a necessary addition to my library! Well put together with her iconic works. Shipment was fast and easy.
Azin –
My favorite book of ALL TIME.
sara linares –
excited to read it all looks great to me no scratches or marks!
thoughtful thoughts –
Ultimate real talk from the ultimate feminist luminary.
Emme Sokol –
Since Amazon has removed Zami: A New Spelling of My Name from the sales rankings, I’m surprised to see this one has slipped through the censor’s “adult content” filter.
Oceaneyes1 –
Audre Lorde was timeless… She wrote about the things we rarely talk about but should. The things we try to smother with fake smiles and conversation void of substance. I applaud her bravery, because she’s paved the way for other women in her very shoes to write about what they fear, and what makes them angry. Her words reverberate and nudge you out of your comfort zone. Great, great book.
JEB –
What a voice this woman had. 50 years ahead of her time. I enjoy all of her work and cannot recommend her more highly.
Bajan4life –
Great book. Very interesting.
Scarlett102 –
It’s become one of my favourite books already, it’s so beautifully written. This book is for everyone, not just women, not just blacks, and not just lesbians. Its a definite must read
Robyn –
Audre Lorde’s words are powerful and poigniant. Her perspective on race and gender are sadly still as relevant today as they were 30-40 yrs ago when she first wrote these essays and speeches. Every word she writes is genius and profound as it cuts to the roots of racism, sexism, and heterosexism and calls us all to action.
Amazon Customer –
We have an Access and Diversity group and safe space at school where there are DVDs and books available for viewing and sharing. This was a great addition to the library. Thank you!
Savvy Shopper –
I really don’t like the term feminist. We are all female.Our level of getting proactive about own lives and those ofother women are effective the same measure that chooseread, indulge our curiosity and ask questions. All the womenin this book do that. I am female, feminine and yes, I can nowembrace feminist. But I still remain un-smitten by pet labels and terms.I wish we could all just simply be people first…change is slow, execptfor when it’s not. 🙂
wtji –
Lorde is a be-all-end-all intellectual. Her insights are invaluable, and her language is potent and necessary.
Chris Blark –
A thoughtful, well-written book of beautiful essays. Worth your time.
Cyb –
Very good book!
Dr. Sam –
Excellent book. Gives voice to the complexity of understanding oppression from the intersection existences of being a person of color, a woman, and homoromantic.
laikabearlaikabear –
I was surprised and pleased that this book came with a different cover than the green one with the line drawing – mine has a portrait of Lorde which is beautiful. Regarding the content, these essays slapped me in the face. I have read very little feminist thought and this was a wake up call that I need to educate myself more on that front. I loved Lorde’s writing style, her astute observations, and I plan to read more from her in the future.
Amazon Customer –
Audre Lorde was brilliant and wrote beautifully. I highly recommend this collection of essays and speeches for everyone.
Naz –
(This review is for an older edition)Everyone should read this book. Lorde’s words are like fire; they expose & strip away in order to create new growth. It’s beyond disheartening that her essays still ring true today, but just maybe if all of us, including us whites, were to read her work, & thus begin to actually listen to the anger & pain of Black people & other PoC (without us whites feeling defensive & centering ourselves & our feelings, for once*), & LGBTQ+ people, & the poor, & the disabled, & other disenfranchised people (& all the intersections therein), & from there work to dismantle, with new tools, the racism & sexism & queerphobia & classism & ableism etc etc in our society– just maybe then we would be able to bring into being a world that Lorde would be proud of. Maybe then we would one day be able to read this book & say, “I’m glad we’re working to make things better now.”Maybe if, as Lorde brings up over & over in essay after essay, we actually legitimately honored & acknowledged our differences, & those differences as ways to creativity, we might actually create a kinder world, a world worth living in. A world where Black mothers will no longer “fear [their] children will be dragged from a car and shot down in the street,” while we whites “turn [our] backs upon the reasons they are dying” (pg 119 of the 1984 paperback).Everyone should read this book, but that’s only the first step.(*Because, as Lorde says in “The Uses of Anger”: “My fear of anger taught me nothing. Your fear of that anger will teach you nothing, also” [pg 124].)
Tony the Tiger –
She always speaks truth to power!
S. C. –
This is honestly a book I will return to again and again for advice, encouragement or if I need a little tough love from Mother Audre Lorde. She is laying down the wisdom and she does not sugar coat the truth. We need to hear it and I am here to be educated. I am grateful to have found this book as well as her poetry. It’s all worth reading, truly. You will not regret picking up anything this woman has written.
Bianca Del Rio –
Love this collection and would say this is a must have for your library, Audre Lorde speaks volumes of truth that will resonate to just about anyone who picks up her material.
AT –
Excellent.
T –
Outstanding! Everyone should read and hear about Poet Lorde.
Lady Hooper –
This book was in really great shape. I was [pleased that it was just as it was described. Great book.
JMR –
Audre Lorde es una brutal autora de teoría feminista. Definitivamente, si te interesa esta parte teórica, cualquier libro de ella es recomendable. La edición está linda, fácil de leer, es un libro ligero (de peso.. lo que lo hace fácil para llevarlo en la bolsa o mochila).
Happy –
I am glad that I purchased this book, I am still reading it and I am really enjoying the writing.C.
Placeholder –
I bought this book for a class and now I am totally smitten with the brilliance of the wonderful woman!
Joanie Hieger Zosike –
Audre Lorde’s Sister Outsider, perhaps her most seminal work, contains essays and speeches recorded at the height of her powers.As a Black Lesbian feminist poet, mother, and person in a biracial relationship, she had a lot to say about a lot of things. Her honesty and eloquence were unparalleled. Her poetry was fearless. She served as a spokesperson on behalf of oppressed people, and was much beloved—and often feared. She held herself up to the same high standards of scrutiny that she did her contemporaries. Her untimely death to breast cancer (which she chronicled in her book «Cancel Journals ») created torrential grief in her communities and far beyond. A street near Hunter college in New York City now bears her name.Sister Outsider, however, is not an easy book to read. Aside from being intellectually brilliant and unassailable in terms of the airtight arguments Lorde presents, Sister Outsider is somewhat harsh and relentless. It is easier read piecemeal in small portions because it is presented at such a pitch that the reader can quickly be overwhelmed.Of course, her essay « Poetry is Not a Luxury » first published in 1977 in Chrysalis, despite its seriousness, is a joy to read.It is surprisingly fresh and completely relevant. This could be one of those timeless essays that will never become passé. As art is always on the chopping block, its efficacy perpetually debated, it would be a great text to memorize and quote at will when needed. It is often needed.Another highlight for me in this book is her « Open Letter to Mary Daly, » criticizing the radical feminist’s book, Gyn/Ecology for its treatment of female circumcision, which did not recognize or consult the black feminist perspective. This microaggressive erasure was further aggravated by the fact that Daly never replied to Lorde’s letter voicing her objections, before it even became an open letter. Despite the letter’s friendly tone and patina of graciousness, Lorde basically « tore Daly a new one. »The classic interview between Audre and her good friend Adrienne Rich is a total gem. Their repartee rings authentic and neither of them skirt around uncomfortable issues, but rather face them head on in a noncombatant, pacific manner.Equally brilliant are the essays on the erotic in poetry, citing the creation of poetry as a primal force; and « The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House, » of which title speaks for itself.The final essay involves the US invasion of Grenada, the birthplace and home of Audrey Lord’s mother. This essay is so moving probably because of personal connection to it. However, her analysis of historical precedents and her willingness to expose the rotten teeth of the US technomilitary complex as it relates to a history rife with racist, is stunningly courageous. In this last essay, she never misses a beat, connecting the dots between the US’s paternalistic involvement (and financial entanglements) in South America and its island possessions. Grenada, prior to the invasion of American and British forces, was an independent entity, governed by an all black leadership. The carnage left behind after said invasion was brutal, unnecessary and totally racist.And that’s what makes Audre Lorde’s work, so hard to take at times because of its blatant and unrelenting insistence on telling the truth, a blueprint for students of the peace and justice movement, scholars, and revolutionaries to this day.
Sarah –
delicious prose. rich words. a lot of anger and pain evident in her writings, but for valid reasons. my copy has a lot of penciled-in hearts and underlines…”and it is never without fear–of visibility, of the harsh light of scrutiny and perhaps judgement, of pain, of death. but we have lived through all of those already, in silence, except death. and i remind myself all the time now that if i were to have been born mute, or had maintained an oath of silence my whole life long for safety, i would still have suffered, and i would still die. it is very good for establishing perspective.” (transformation of silence).not a book you can quickly skim through cover to cover. i took each chapter in slowly, sometimes re-read it, and put the book down for a while.
Jeannie –
Excellent book from a gifted writer!
Helen G –
An extraordinarily educational experience. In fact, that is an understatement. This is a book that needs to be on continuous reread.
MzCheryl –
I love to read books that broaden my perspectives
Gamal –
A deep, disquieting, and multilayered exploration of the personal, political, and social impact of the American response to The Other.Her raw exposure of our racist, misogynistic, sex negative, and ageist foundations inspire both empathy and misanthropy. Her complex understanding of difference holds up a mirror to our guilt and failure.
DrzataFam –
Required for a class. Great material if you want to learn more about intersectionality, womanism, and Lorde in general. Requires you to think critically and constantly question what you think you know. Will be referring to this book again and again. Highly recommend.
violetcherry –
Classic Audre Lorde essays that get at the heart of race and gender. A must read!
K. Lee –
Audre Lorde. Fabulous writer/thinker/feminist.
Ryan Mease –
Lorde is an excellent essayist. Her prose is powerful and personal, and contains a unique mixture of intellect and anger. What’s wonderful about Lorde’s rhetorical style is that she’s intensely personal, and refrains from attacks on individuals beyond those in her immediate experience. She describes and decries the features of life that makes it painful to be a black, lesbian feminist, but does so in a way that makes her experience seem deeply ordinary. I recommend this work to anyone interested in gaining greater perspective on what it means to a woman, a black woman, or a black lesbian. The essays are old, but they are not dated. -Ryan Mease
Alison –
Audre Lorde at her best!