As many of you know, I’m trying to read a couple Zora Neale Hurston books to get deeper into her not-insignificant bibliography. But she’s not alone on the list of black women whose work I wish I could read and analyze full-time. Who wants to fund a PhD program for me to spend 100% of my time on the following 20 names?
The Fire This Time | edited by Jesmyn Ward | ECW Press | Pub: 8/02/2016 | Goodreads Toward the end of his The Fire Next Time, Baldwin emphatically states that the inability to resolve its “racial nightmare” is a sin for which America will eventually be held accountable. Race, and whether American can ever overcome its legacy, isn’t something about which Baldwin comes to an simple conclusion. Jesmyn Ward begins her anthology The Fire This Time by pulling this specific quote from Baldwin’s meditation: “…If we do not dare everything, the fulfillment of that prophecy, recreated from the Bible in song by the slave, is upon us: God gave Noah the rainbow sigh, No…
Did real life keep you away from Brown Books & Green Tea this month? No worries! July has been an absolutely crazy month for me, so I hope you all have been satisfied with quality instead of quantity. Here’s the July Wrap-Up! Teas I’ve been obsessed with: Ginger Beer from David’s Tea: I haven’t tried this yet, but I’m so excited! Ginger beer is my favorite beverage– alcoholic or no. I love the harsh bite in the back of my throat when I drink it, so I’m hoping I get a little bit of that in this tea. Coconut Cream Pie…
If you know anything about me, you know that I absolutely love traveling. While I’d love to go back to Singapore or Uganda… my bank account has been known to sabotage my plans. In case your checking account is just as evil as mine, here’s a list of old and new books that will transport you all over the world:
If you haven’t already fallen in love with nayyirah waheed, now’s the time to do so. Her poetry, popularized through social media, is oftentimes short and powerful– some lines reading more like one brief self affirmations. Like Warsan Shire, she manages to talk about a long list of societal and internal struggles. Her 2013 latest book, salt., is an insightful exploration of identity that will resonate with those who have been following the troubling events of last week and beyond.
Under the Udala Trees | Chinelo Okparanta | 336 pages | Houghton Mifflin Harcourt | Goodreads | Amazon In her striking novel Under the Udala Trees, Chinelo Okparanta details the development of a young lesbian in 1960’s Nigeria. Ijeoma is a young girl when she begins to understand her sexuality, falling in love with a close friend. She’s barely older when she and Amina are caught embracing, after which she is sent to complete intensive bible study with her mother. “Nwoke na nwunye. Adam na Eve. Man and wife,” her mother repeats in their daily sessions. Ijeoma’s feelings remain unchanged, instead forcing…
The end of another month– and officially half way through the year. If you’ve fallen behind at all over these last few weeks, here’s a summary of what went down this month on Brown Books & Green Tea. Teas I was obsessed with: Rumi Tea, Oolong Orange Blossom: This is technically a July tea since I bought it yesterday, but I’m highlighting it anyway since it tastes and smells absolutely amazing. I’ve loved citrus notes in my tea ever since I was little, when my favorite tea was Bigelow Constant Comment. I don’t drink black tea much anymore, but this one…
I love reading novels where circumstances lump together people from entirely different backgrounds. Pardon the shoddy analogy, but it’s almost like putting together random fruits and seeing if they work as a smoothie (relevant: I’m hungry). That’s what readers get in A House for Happy Mothers, by Amulya Malladi. After multiple heartbreaking miscarriages, Priya and Madhu decide it’s time to try something different. A relatively well-off couple, they decide to find a surrogate mother in India. Not only will this be a less expensive solution after their failed in-vitro fertilization, but they’ll be able to have an Indian woman carry their Indian child,…
This is post 100, everyone! From the affirmations on the back of the hardcover, I knew I was dealing with someone who had a finger on the pulse of Baltimore. I’m from Maryland, but admittedly, this isn’t my Maryland. Small as it may be, Maryland doesn’t get enough credit for being incredibly socioeconomically, politically, and topographically diverse as it truly is. Were I to write a book about my experiences, Deray Mckesson and David Simon wouldn’t see any reason the provide a testimonial. So yes, comparisons to The Wire abound, but that’s a cop out. The Wire is arguably “urban…
Last Thursday, multicultural, LGBTQIA+ and differently abled bloggers converged for an epic discussion on the state of diversity in book blogging. Started by Nazahet (the blogger behind @_diversereads) and others, the #diversebookbloggers chat sought to unify book bloggers internationally. Unexpectedly, the turnout was great, with people checking in from Singapore, Germany, Australia, and other corners of the world. With questions like “What can diverse book bloggers contribute to the book blogging community that other’s can’t?” bloggers were able to get to the heart of representation issues in the blogging community, and how this has larger ramifications on the industry at…
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