Friday Reads (06/24/2016)
Thanks for stopping by. Are you new to Black and Bookish? Please take a look around. Here are the books I've read and reviewed, or you can start here to get an overview of who I am and what I do. Don't forget to subscribe to get news and posts sent straight to your inbox.
Friday Reads is a social media hashtag that connects people by talking about the books they're reading as we head into the weekend. I like to use it as a roundup of the books we spent the week with, which includes authors of all heritages.
This post contains affiliate links.
For the Love of Sci-Fi
In case you missed it, I posted TWO reviews this week, each in the Science Fiction genre. First was Kings of Earth (2015) by Joe Ponder, a newly published author living in Texas. His book deserves some praise!
The second is Parable of the Sower (1993) by Octavia Butler. Butler is well-known as not only a great writer but an icon in the genre. I recently read a piece called Remembering Octavia Butler, which in turn made me wanted to honor her too. I haven't had a book touch me in the way Parable did and I am grateful and humbled by that. Lastly, I also found out that talks started last year to turn Butler's book, Dawn, into a tv series. This article from IndieWire gives you some more background.
If you need a pick-me-up, Blavity.com has a list for you. 11 Self-Help Books Written By Black People That Will Get You Through Anything. Making the cut is one of my current reads Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes.
And reminder of why I do this? '“Of 3,200 children’s books published in 2013, just 93 were about black people,” according to a study by the Cooperative Children’s Book Center at the University of Wisconsin.' Check out the article Diversity Is Not Enough: Race. Power. Publishing.
I always thought American and British publishers would do the trick. See why she disagrees in Why I Chose an African Publisher Over a Western One.
Words are constantly updating and Mx. is gaining traction as the gender neutral Mr. or Ms. Learn more about it in A Gender-Neutral Honorific.
Questlove, the drummer and leader of The Tonight Show's house band has a new book out called something to food about. Check out his wonderful interview for Fresh Air about his book, his job, and working with Prince.
Being proactive takes some work and this article can help you do it. Teaching Young Children About Bias, Diversity, and Social Justice.
