I received this book for free from From the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Everything and Nothing at Once: A Black Man's Reimagined Soundtrack for the Future by Joél Leon Published by Henry Holt and Co., Macmillan on June 4, 2024
Genres: Non-Fiction / Biography & Autobiography / African American & Black
Pages: 302
Format: ARC
Source: From the Publisher
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Goodreads
For readers of Kiese Laymon’s Heavy and Hanif Abdurraqib’s A Little Devil in America, a beautiful, painful, and soaring tribute to everything that Black men are and can be.
Growing up in the Bronx, Joél Leon was taught that being soft, being vulnerable, could end your life. Shaped by a singular view of Black masculinity espoused by the media, family and friends, and society, he learned instead to care about the gold around his neck and the number of bills in his wallet. He absorbed the “facts” that white was always right and that Black men were either threatening or great for comic relief but never worthy of the opening credits. It wasn’t until years later that Joél understood he didn’t have to be defined by these and other stereotypes.
Now, in a collection of wide-ranging essays, he takes readers from his upbringing in the Bronx to his life raising two little girls of his own, unraveling those narratives to arrive at a deeper understanding of who he is as a son, friend, partner, and father. Traversing both the serious and the lighthearted, from contemplating male beauty standards to his decision to seek therapy to the difficulties of making co-parenting work, Joél cracks open his heart to reveal his multitudes.
In this book crafted like an album, each essay is a single that stands alone yet reverberates throughout the entire collection. Pieces like “How to Make a Black Friend” consider challenging, delightful, and absurd moments in relationships, while others like “Sensitive Thugs You All Need Hugs” and “All Gold Everything” ponder the collective harms of society's lens.
With incisive, searing prose, Everything and Nothing at Once deconstructs what it means to be a Black man in America.
Review
There’s something electric about reading Joél Leon’s Everything and Nothing at Once. It’s like sitting down with that friend who always tells it like it is – the one who makes you laugh, cry, and think all in the same conversation.
Leon, a Bronx native who’s made his name as a storyteller, brings that same raw energy to the page. Growing up, he learned that being “soft” could get you hurt. But in this collection, he flips that script entirely, showing us that real strength lives in vulnerability.
The essays hit hard. In How to Make a Black Friend, Leon cracks you up while making you think. Then he’ll knock the wind out of you with pieces like For Black Boys Contemplating Suicide, where he opens up about surviving childhood sexual abuse. It’s heavy stuff, but Leon handles it with a grace that pulls you through the darkness toward something like hope.
What makes this book special isn’t just what Leon says – it’s how he says it. He writes like he’s both a father sharing wisdom and a friend telling secrets. His perspective as a Black man, artist, and proud #GirlDad creates this perfect storm of storytelling that feels both deeply personal and surprisingly universal.
Don’t expect any easy answers here. Leon’s take on Black masculinity is as complex as the subject deserves. He writes with the precision of a surgeon and the soul of a poet, cutting through stereotypes to show us something real and rare – a man fully embracing all his contradictions.
Sure, some readers might miss certain cultural references, but that’s not really the point. Leon isn’t trying to explain the Black experience to outsiders – he’s documenting it in all its messy, beautiful glory. If you loved Kiese Laymon’s Heavy or Hanif Abdurraqib’s work, you’ll find a kindred spirit here.
The title says it all: Everything and Nothing at Once. It’s about holding joy and pain, strength and vulnerability, past and future – all at the same time. It’s not always an easy read, but the best ones never are.
4/5 stars. Leon’s voice is exactly what we need right now – honest, unflinching, and somehow still full of hope.
