Black History Month: Random readings

Even when I have a defined reading plan things do not always go as expected; without a plan everything was always going to be all over the place. I did want to spend a little time on how and why I read what I read. Me adding things and getting distracted  and mission creep are all common themes; here's some delineation of how that works sometimes. It's not all-inclusive, because that would take too long, and sometimes I don't even know.

Starting out with a theme

Affrilachia by Frank X. Walker

I really thought that while focusing on film it would make sense to read some poetry too, and that this would be a good start. Then I just didn't find any other poets that I hadn't read yet. I have been pretty good about incorporating poetry into other months. I wanted to read some Frances E.W. Harper, but I couldn't find her book. I just didn't get back to that idea, except that the Boyce book was kind of poetry too.


Because of people I know on Twitter
Missing Daddy by Mariame Kaba
Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists: A Graphic History of Women's Fight for their Rights by Mikki Kendall and A D'Amico

I follow Kaba and Kendall, and was excited to find their books available. Kaba's book is a children's book, covering a not well-filled niche. Kendall's book is amazing for how much it covers. It could easily fit into a college curriculum. That should be checked out.

Still from Twitter, but not quite as personally connected
Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison
The Deep by Rivers Solomon and clipping.


Solomon wrote their novel inspired by a song by clipping., though that is kind of oversimplifying it. The book got a lot of Twitter buzz, and it was deserved. I don't tend to read a lot of fiction because there is so much non-fiction I want to get to, but it has a purpose too. It's important to remember that, and balance it some.

Hair Love got Twitter buzz and Oscar buzz, because there is a video short too. They are both really good, but here is your guide, based on my perception: the book is more from the girl's point of view, and the video identifies more with her father. Perhaps because of that, I understood the book better after seeing the video, so I would start with that.
Just because of how library searches work

The Headless Haunt and Other African-American Ghost Stories by James Haskins

I Love My Hair! by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and E. B. Lewis

It is actually quite logical that I Love My Hair! came up when I was searching for Hair Love. The book of ghost stories did not really relate to what I was looking for, but hey, sometimes there is serendipity. I love "real" ghost stories.

Because of the Goodreads book awards
Sulwe by Lupita N'yongo and Vashti Harrison

Once a year I am encouraged to vote for books in 16 different categories. Generally I have only read a handful of the books in maybe three or four categories, but I still look through them and I usually check out a few of the children's books. In this case I am quite fond of Lupita N'yongo, and I was already familiar with Harrison's gorgeous art from Hair Love.


Suggested by a friend 
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

I posted an article about the Black Panther breakfast program, and a friend mentioned there was a book about it from the point of view of children participating. I liked it. We may be separated by time and race, but as an overly responsible older sibling, I related a lot to the main character.

I read an article

The Promise of Change by Jo Ann Allen Boyce

One of the exciting things about this last round was how current so many of the books were; people were talking about them and nominating them because they were new. Most of that was happening in 2019, but I was reading things in the year they came out and that is not that common. Anyway, I read a review of Boyce's book, and decided to read the book itself.

That was the book that blended the most with my unexpected watching, and that is something I need to write about a little more next week.