Review
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Praise for Bert Ashe's Twisted: My Dreadlock Chronicles:
"An exhilarating heartfelt memoir about a black man and his dreds
and all the world in between." —Junot Díaz, author of The Brief
Wondrous Life of O Wao
"A hilarious, erudite, obsessive compulsive rant through black
bohemia and black style." —Trey Ellis, author of Platitudes and
Right Here, Right Now
"It’s really just hair, but it also represents something much
deeper for people who are marginalized. And Twisted offers a
complete and satisfying explanation of why that is so." —Danielle
Douglas-Gabriel, The Washington Post
"Beneath the sometimes outré humor and self-deprecating tone of
Twisted are serious and poignant questions about the nature of
black identity, who shapes it and why and how black folks might
finally seize control of that identity themselves." —Erin Aubry
Kan, Los Angeles Times
". . . An anthem and a love song to dreadlocks. Ashe's story is
one of yearning written with poetic frankness." —Shelf Awareness,
starred review
". . . Twisted is incredibly witty and entertaining. Here is a
voice fresh with enthusiasm, both defiant and strong." —Hope
Wabuke, The Root
"In this delightfully written, amusing, well-researched, and
often scholarly chronicle, Ashe reveals the landscape of race,
politics, sociology, and even the economics of hairstyles."
—Booklist starred review
"Twisted is equal parts amusing as it is enlightening for
readers, regardless of their hair textures, and a necessary read
that finally gives dreadlocks the praise they deserve." —Nylon
"Twisted will inspire you to look in the mirror and investigate
what messages are conveyed by your clothes, your demeanor and,
most importantly, your hair." —Danielle Deavens, Essence
"Ashe refuses to be stifled by typical academic strictures, and
his attitude throughout seems playfully serious (or seriously
playful), as he details more about dreads—their origin, their
rise to popularity, their co-option, their care and upkeep—than
most readers will think they would want to know." —Kirkus Reviews
". . . An eye-opening read, but one that will keep you smiling
from cover to cover." —Emily Laurence, Brit + Co
"I really do admire it. Bert Ashe is amazingly willing to
acknowledge all of the ways in which underneath the dreads is
just a guy with a mixture of identities, and that the dreads
might appear to resolve such issues, but actually do nothing of
the kind. I found Twisted deeply satisfying. By the end of the
book, I felt as if I had been taken on a quite serious emotional
and intellectual journey." —David Shields, author of Reality
Hunger: A Manifesto and Black Planet: Facing Race During an NBA
Season
"As his mane grows and twists, Ashe does likewise with his tales,
with his thoughts, and, delightfully, with the process of the
style, the reasons why he waited to grow his dreads, and why . .
. he's kept them." —The Times Weekly
"I like the style, the moves, the sense of rhythm and riff and
the seeming ease with which [Twisted]. . . pulls off some
extraordinary effects. The plot is about dreadlocks, but at its
heart Twisted is the narrative of the emerging and expanding
self." —John Callahan, literary executor for Ralph Ellison and
editor of Ellison’s Juneteenth
"[Ashe's] is a welcome fresh voice, starting a conversation about
black culture from a quirky, fun angle." —Metro
"I enjoyed Twisted! It’s obsessive and weird and funny in all the
right ways." —Danzy Senna, bestselling author of Caucasia and You
Are Free
"Bert [Ashe] keeps you intrigued and delighted throughout the
book’s various strands. . . . Twisted, at bottom, is an unusual
expose of the African American male: whereas machismo, sexual
exploits, or political issues are usually at the forefront, Bert
convinces us that his hairstyle is the central issue in his
attempt to express himself and discover himself. You'll be
surprised how much we learn about American culture through Bert's
fascinating wrestling match with his locks." —Daryl Cumber Dance,
author of Honey, Hush!: An Anthology of African American Women’s
Humor and From My People: 400 Years of African American Folklore
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