took a bit to adjust to the writing style as there were no capitalizations at the start of statement, no periods at the end of sentences - just new text on the following line. it's been proposed the style is to mimic texting, or tweets and if that is the case - i'm going to hate reading in the future. Also, with so many characters and no central pivot point, I did getting confused about who was who. One last negative comment: some sections were more like philosophical treatises on feminism and gender ideology - they stuck out like a sore thumb

so most of the stories are about black women. and even when I thought it was a white woman, I was wrong and it made me question why I need to have a race specified in order to not see the character as white. So I held my imagination at bay after that mistake but then I erred in the other direction: I came across a white women, but I didn't believe she was white until her chapter was half done. turns out it's really difficult to hold your imagination at bay - it's probably why authors DO describe their characters. it's a entry point to the story

the only other thing I want to add is that I was satisfied that a wide variety of issues were covered in the stories - yes, female empowerment but also the existence of abuse in the lesbian community. the girl who rises above her limited childhood (and gang rape) but also the ignored sacrifices and lives of parents. the romanticism of marriage and also the fallout of sexism. classism as a spectrum of race, money, culture, language patterns and anything else someone deigns to judge you on as other. the young (uniquely) able to talk about race and religion effortlessly, without guile