Overview

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2024 KIRKUS NON-FICTION PRIZE A transformative memoir that reimagines the conventions of love and posits a radical vision for healing. In Another Word for Love, Carvell Wallace excavates layers of his own history, situated in the struggles and beauty of growing up Black and queer in America. Wallace is an award-winning journalist who has built his career on writing unforgettable profiles, bringing a provocative and engaged sensitivity to his subjects. Now he turns the focus on himself, examining his own life and the circumstances that frame it--to make sense of seeking refuge from homelessness with a young single mother, living in a ghostly white Pennsylvania town, becoming a partner and parent, raising two teenagers in what feels like a collapsing world. With courage, vulnerability, and a remarkable expansiveness of spirit--not to mention a thrilling, and unrivaled, storytelling verve--Another Word for Love makes an irresistible case for life, healing, the fullness of our humanity, and, of course, love. It could be called a theory of life itself--a theory of being that will leave you open to the wonder of the world.

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9780374237820

Table of Contents

Reviews

"""Intricate and exhilarating . . . An exquisite, soulful must-read."" --Kirkus Reviews (starred review) ""Another Word for Love recounts a life marked by profound uncertainty--mother, home, self as ephemeral as fog. And yet out of this morass emerges Carvell Wallace's voice, clear and sharp as glass--and this book of uncommon brilliance and grace. A classic is born."" --Danzy Senna, author of Colored Television ""One of the most soulfully crafted memoirs I've ever read. I couldn't figure out how Carvell Wallace blurred time, region, care, and sexuality into something so different from anything I've read before"" --Kiese Laymon, author of Long Division ""This is a remarkable book by one of the finest young writers I've come across in many years. An insightful work by a young scribe of deep talent, whose courage and ingenuity is inspirational."" --James McBride, author of The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store ""Carvell Wallace's devastating book vibrates with a rare power--the kind of power that will help save lives. Because not only is it a brilliant evocation of the effects of marginalization on generation after generation, it is the story of how hope persists, and nourishes, despite what has come before. An unforgettable treatise on pain--and love. This book is a gift."" --Hilton Als, author of My Pinup ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love moves us symphonically, presenting an orchestra of moving parts, sounds, ideas, exquisite images to the reader as if to a beloved. It gives us a nearly unprecedented vision of life. It is one of the most beautiful memoirs I've ever read."" --Kaveh Akbar, author of Martyr! ""Wallace writes with specificity and generosity about his own particular life, but in cultivating love and generosity for himself and the people around him, he manages somehow to extend the same abundant generosity to his reader. In a book filled with stories--in language that is poetic, profane, philosophical, and funny--what I will remember most is the extraordinary tenderness Wallace brings forth from stony places. A beautiful, melancholy, cathartic anthem for these hard years."" --Lydia Kiesling, author of Mobility ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love is more than a memoir, it is a map of how to get free, a dare to be fully awake to the world, a receipt of a life lived in resistance, an invitation to recover wholly and bravely. An inspired and ferocious book from beginning to end."" --Jessica Hopper, author of The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic ""This book was like holding hands with a friend while they tell me everything I ever wanted to know in all the ways I never expected to find out. Every page was worth reading, and I'm sure I'll read them all again and again."" --Ashley C. Ford, author of Somebody's Daughter ""A gripping tour through one man's life and mind that is full of passion, humor, and heartbreak. Wallace's debut is no less than a guide for living, an inquiry into masculinity, fatherhood, and intimacy that brims with humility and insight."" --Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award ""Another Word for Love is brimming with insight, poetry, and care. Wallace is a staggeringly talented storyteller whose attention to both narrative and emotional detail is awe-inspiring. This is one to read and then reread."" --Morgan Parker, author of You Get What You Pay For"

"""[Another Word for Love] arrives with great beauty, teeth and vulnerability . . . [Carvell Wallace] has spent his late-blooming journalism career writing bold and intimate profiles . . . He now turns his pen to his own life with the same poetic sensitivity and complexity . . . This book is funny and heartbreaking, religiously vivid and lovingly open."" --James Ijames, The New York Times Book Review ""Intricate and exhilarating . . . An exquisite, soulful must-read."" --Kirkus Reviews, starred review ""Stunning...What elevates the narrative is Wallace's capacity for forgiveness and his virtuosic--but never indulgent--prose. This profoundly compassionate volume hugs the reader tightly and doesn't let go."" --Publishers Weekly, starred review ""Another Word For Love is generous in how genuine the journey, the offering feels. Walking alongside a writer who is attempting to come to terms with the enormity of their survival, its joys and aches. And through this genuine nature, through this striking and beautiful prose, rich with touchable imagery, Carvell Wallace has you by the hand, and never lets go."" --Hanif Abdurraqib, author of There's Always This Year ""Another Word for Love recounts a life marked by profound uncertainty--mother, home, self as ephemeral as fog. And yet out of this morass emerges Carvell Wallace's voice, clear and sharp as glass--and this book of uncommon brilliance and grace. A classic is born."" --Danzy Senna, author of Colored Television ""One of the most soulfully crafted memoirs I've ever read. I couldn't figure out how Carvell Wallace blurred time, region, care, and sexuality into something so different from anything I've read before"" --Kiese Laymon, author of Long Division ""This is a remarkable book by one of the finest young writers I've come across in many years. An insightful work by a young scribe of deep talent, whose courage and ingenuity is inspirational."" --James McBride, author of The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store ""Carvell Wallace's devastating book vibrates with a rare power--the kind of power that will help save lives. Because not only is it a brilliant evocation of the effects of marginalization on generation after generation, it is the story of how hope persists, and nourishes, despite what has come before. An unforgettable treatise on pain--and love. This book is a gift."" --Hilton Als, author of My Pinup ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love moves us symphonically, presenting an orchestra of moving parts, sounds, ideas, exquisite images to the reader as if to a beloved. It gives us a nearly unprecedented vision of life. It is one of the most beautiful memoirs I've ever read."" --Kaveh Akbar, author of Martyr! ""Wallace writes with specificity and generosity about his own particular life, but in cultivating love and generosity for himself and the people around him, he manages somehow to extend the same abundant generosity to his reader. In a book filled with stories--in language that is poetic, profane, philosophical, and funny--what I will remember most is the extraordinary tenderness Wallace brings forth from stony places. A beautiful, melancholy, cathartic anthem for these hard years."" --Lydia Kiesling, author of Mobility ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love is more than a memoir, it is a map of how to get free, a dare to be fully awake to the world, a receipt of a life lived in resistance, an invitation to recover wholly and bravely. An inspired and ferocious book from beginning to end."" --Jessica Hopper, author of The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic ""This book was like holding hands with a friend while they tell me everything I ever wanted to know in all the ways I never expected to find out. Every page was worth reading, and I'm sure I'll read them all again and again."" --Ashley C. Ford, author of Somebody's Daughter ""A gripping tour through one man's life and mind that is full of passion, humor, and heartbreak. Wallace's debut is no less than a guide for living, an inquiry into masculinity, fatherhood, and intimacy that brims with humility and insight."" --Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award ""Another Word for Love is brimming with insight, poetry, and care. Wallace is a staggeringly talented storyteller whose attention to both narrative and emotional detail is awe-inspiring. This is one to read and then reread."" --Morgan Parker, author of You Get What You Pay For"

""[Another Word for Love] arrives with great beauty, teeth and vulnerability . . . [Carvell Wallace] has spent his late-blooming journalism career writing bold and intimate profiles . . . He now turns his pen to his own life with the same poetic sensitivity and complexity . . . This book is funny and heartbreaking, religiously vivid and lovingly open."" --James Ijames, The New York Times Book Review ""Intricate and exhilarating . . . An exquisite, soulful must-read."" --Kirkus Reviews, starred review ""Stunning...What elevates the narrative is Wallace's capacity for forgiveness and his virtuosic--but never indulgent--prose. This profoundly compassionate volume hugs the reader tightly and doesn't let go."" --Publishers Weekly, starred review ""Another Word For Love is generous in how genuine the journey, the offering feels. Walking alongside a writer who is attempting to come to terms with the enormity of their survival, its joys and aches. And through this genuine nature, through this striking and beautiful prose, rich with touchable imagery, Carvell Wallace has you by the hand, and never lets go."" --Hanif Abdurraqib, author of There's Always This Year ""Another Word for Love recounts a life marked by profound uncertainty--mother, home, self as ephemeral as fog. And yet out of this morass emerges Carvell Wallace's voice, clear and sharp as glass--and this book of uncommon brilliance and grace. A classic is born."" --Danzy Senna, author of Colored Television ""One of the most soulfully crafted memoirs I've ever read. I couldn't figure out how Carvell Wallace blurred time, region, care, and sexuality into something so different from anything I've read before"" --Kiese Laymon, author of Long Division ""This is a remarkable book by one of the finest young writers I've come across in many years. An insightful work by a young scribe of deep talent, whose courage and ingenuity is inspirational."" --James McBride, author of The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store ""Carvell Wallace's devastating book vibrates with a rare power--the kind of power that will help save lives. Because not only is it a brilliant evocation of the effects of marginalization on generation after generation, it is the story of how hope persists, and nourishes, despite what has come before. An unforgettable treatise on pain--and love. This book is a gift."" --Hilton Als, author of My Pinup ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love moves us symphonically, presenting an orchestra of moving parts, sounds, ideas, exquisite images to the reader as if to a beloved. It gives us a nearly unprecedented vision of life. It is one of the most beautiful memoirs I've ever read."" --Kaveh Akbar, author of Martyr! ""Wallace writes with specificity and generosity about his own particular life, but in cultivating love and generosity for himself and the people around him, he manages somehow to extend the same abundant generosity to his reader. In a book filled with stories--in language that is poetic, profane, philosophical, and funny--what I will remember most is the extraordinary tenderness Wallace brings forth from stony places. A beautiful, melancholy, cathartic anthem for these hard years."" --Lydia Kiesling, author of Mobility ""Carvell Wallace's Another Word For Love is more than a memoir, it is a map of how to get free, a dare to be fully awake to the world, a receipt of a life lived in resistance, an invitation to recover wholly and bravely. An inspired and ferocious book from beginning to end."" --Jessica Hopper, author of The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic ""This book was like holding hands with a friend while they tell me everything I ever wanted to know in all the ways I never expected to find out. Every page was worth reading, and I'm sure I'll read them all again and again."" --Ashley C. Ford, author of Somebody's Daughter ""A gripping tour through one man's life and mind that is full of passion, humor, and heartbreak. Wallace's debut is no less than a guide for living, an inquiry into masculinity, fatherhood, and intimacy that brims with humility and insight."" --Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award ""Another Word for Love is brimming with insight, poetry, and care. Wallace is a staggeringly talented storyteller whose attention to both narrative and emotional detail is awe-inspiring. This is one to read and then reread."" --Morgan Parker, author of You Get What You Pay For

Author Information

Carvell Wallace grew up between Southwestern PA, Washington DC, and Los Angeles. He attended Tisch School for the Arts and worked as a stage actor before spending fifteen years in direct service youth non-profits. He has covered arts, entertainment, music, culture, race, sports, and parenting for The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Slate, GQ, Pitchfork, MTV News and others. As a podcast host, he has been nominated for a Peabody and won a Kaleidoscope Award and was the Slate parenting advice columnist. He is the co-author of the New York Times best-selling basketball memoir The Sixth Man with Andre Iguodala. He lives in Oakland and has two adult children, a comfortable couch, and a lot of plants.

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