Suzanne Brooks

Escape is Not an Option: Poems, Stories and an Essay from the 1980's-1990's Suzanne Brooks

A collection of poems, storiesand essay presents issues affecting women writers and all women.¿ The poems address a gamut of emotions andexperiences that go beyond the experiences of women to universal roles and relationships.¿ In the story, "Homeboy," the author weavestogether seemingly unrelated lives into the connection we all have with eachother. This collection of poems andstories draws the reader's sensibility close to the hurting point.¿ In "Da Man Thing"the heroine moves from a breathtaking rendezvous to marriage.¿ There are no sentimental sayings or vows fromher lover, just the bone bare facts the he "Da Man."¿ She moves from being a lover to wife andmother, loving him all the time as he acts less and less like an honorableman.¿ Eventually, she begins to loveherself enough to realize that only she can set herself free and that in truelove there is reciprocity. Throughout the book, SuzanneBrooks savors many kinds of love.¿ Thepoems contain the bitter sting that accompanies the sweet taste of love.¿ She succinctly describes the love of a motherand daughter in "inheritance."¿ A motherloves her daughter, but has to contain fierce feelings of jealousy as thedaughter absorbs the father's affection.¿"Lines for the Lonely" tells of the sibling love the writer has for ayounger brother who was a musician.¿ Heis a good musician who brings happiness to others but never finds it forhimself.¿ In the poem, "Who" Brooks exploresself love and the demands our culture makes on women at various ages. ¿The collection is though provoking, poignant,and beautiful.