The importance of telling black stories
“Reading has not so much changed my life as shaped it.”
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BLACK: (blak) adjective; of any human group having dark-colored skin, especially of African or Australian Aboriginal ancestry; relating to Black people
BOOK·ISH: (ˈbo͝okiSH) adjective; a person or way of life devoted to reading and studying rather than worldly interests; of language or writing literary in style or allusion
Black & Bookish is an education site that contains book reviews, lists, opinion pieces, and services all based around the love of books, Blackness, and continual exploration.
You have stumbled upon a living history database of literary cultural studies focused within the African Diaspora.
Prompted by current events and book study, these think pieces engage with my personal philosophies around activism and social justice beyond a book review.
This is what started Black & Bookish. Reviews are a mix of genres, new and indie authors, old favorites and classics. Submissions guidelines can be found here for the Self-Published Spotlight.
Manuscript critiques, sensitivity reads, and project consultations are available to help writers tell their best stories.
This all STARTED WITH AUTHORS I ALREADY KNEW AND LOVED.
A search of my own personal library contained many titles by black authors. Most were best sellers or classics. I had much more material than expected and a decent start to my experiment.
Zora Neale Hurston, author of Their Eyes Were Watching God and Of Mules and Men. (Google Images)
Kwame Alexander, author of The Crossover and Booked. (Google Images)
Octavia E. Butler, author of Parable of the Sower and Kindred. (Google Images)
And CONTINUED WITH LOCAL AND INDEPENDENT AUTHORS.
Some of the best stories come from the communities we live in each day. Organizations like World Stage Press and Flowered Concrete help new writers tell their stories.
Camari Carter, author of Death by Comb
S.L. Ladd, author of Suburban Werewolf
Next Came with LOCAL Bookish EVENTS.
Attending book signings by local authors quickly became my favorite thing to do. Live poetry readings feed my soul. High energy, low energy, panels, and booths.
Have a local event you'd like me to attend? Click the button to complete a suggestion form.
Allowing for New Perspectives.
Bookish Thoughts are just that- beyond the books. Social Justice Studies are current events or cultural themes (like Colorism or Racism) that I need to get off my chest.
Then I embraced all that I had to give.
Editing and manuscript services were the next logical step in serving writer’s needs. Helping writers tell great stories added to the mission of the site.
The great Odie Hawkins at the Paperback Collection Expo
AND SOMEHOW, ALONG THE WAY, this BECAME MUCH MORE THAN A BOOK BLOG.
The Historic Thomas House in Eatonville, FL
WELCOME TO BLACK & BOOKISH
Hope you stay a while.