Tag: racial issues
Review: Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam
I had mixed feelings about this book, which generated a lot of buzz when it came out, but I continue to think about it. It’s an unusual blend of character-driven horror, something like Station Eleven. It’s a book where not much happens, but it’s… Continue Reading “Review: Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam”
Nonfiction November: Reading about Race
This week’s Nonfiction November prompt is hosted by Rennie @ What’s Nonfiction: Week 3: (November 16-20) – Be The Expert/Ask the Expert/Become the Expert: Three ways to join in this week! You can either share 3 or more books on a single topic that you have read… Continue Reading “Nonfiction November: Reading about Race”
Review: Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko
I love reading about Australia, ever since I traveled there in 2013. I was struck by the similarities in the history of Australia and the United States, though I felt Australia was much more open about its troubling treatment of Aboriginal populations. Too Much… Continue Reading “Review: Too Much Lip by Melissa Lucashenko”
Review: Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
If you’re like me, the first time you knew anything about the 1921 Tulsa race riots – or race massacre – was this summer, when Trump scheduled a rally in Tulsa on June 19 (Juneteenth). Before that I was mostly unaware of this history. What… Continue Reading “Review: Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham”
Review: Saint X by Alexis Schaitken
I had mixed feelings about this book, but I found the story and its characters really compelling. Saint X is a fictional island in the Caribbean, a place where affluent white families go to soak up the sun and drink all day long. The… Continue Reading “Review: Saint X by Alexis Schaitken”
A Double Review: The Dry and Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
I read these two books nearly back to back, and their plots and characters were amazingly similar, though I had no idea when I chose them. I love a totally random reading coincidence. Here’s a comparison of the two novels. The story: both The… Continue Reading “A Double Review: The Dry and Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter”
Review: All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung
I really appreciated this memoir by Nicole Chung about her adoption and the search for her birth family. It was particularly interesting to read about her personal struggles as a child being of Korean descent in a white family and a mostly white town.… Continue Reading “Review: All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung”
Ten Books to Help You Learn about the United States
It’s Back to School week at Top Ten Tuesday (hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl), so I decided to write about ten books that can help us learn about America. Right now I’m in the midst of Hamilton-mania, so I’m reading Lafayette in the Somewhat… Continue Reading “Ten Books to Help You Learn about the United States”
Review of Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
I’ve been putting off writing a review of Just Mercy, because it felt so important I didn’t think I’d do it justice. There are very few books that I wish everyone would read, but this was one of them. It’s about race and the criminal… Continue Reading “Review of Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson”
Review of Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires
I enjoyed this book more than I expected to, mainly because the stories are a surprising combination of everyday life, tragedy, and humor. The stories focus on black identity in a powerful way, but this is far from a one-issue book. Thompson-Spires covers body… Continue Reading “Review of Heads of the Colored People by Nafissa Thompson-Spires”
Review of The Vain Conversation by Anthony Grooms
This was a very intense read, and a thoughtful one. Grooms takes us into the minds of three characters who are involved in a mass lynching in Georgia in 1946 (one based on actual events). One character is Lonnie, a young white boy who… Continue Reading “Review of The Vain Conversation by Anthony Grooms”
Reading the Bailey’s Prize: Pleasantville by Attica Locke
Pleasantville is part of a series about a Texas lawyer named Jay Porter. I try never to come into a series in the middle, but this book was on the Bailey’s Prize longlist so it seemed worth a try. Although coming in at Book… Continue Reading “Reading the Bailey’s Prize: Pleasantville by Attica Locke”
