A Look at “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave”

Title: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American SlaveAuthor: Frederick DouglassPublished: 1845Genre: Non-fiction, Autobiography, Slave Narrative I regret that I only now got to this book. I mentioned in my first post months ago that literature written by Black authors wasn’t a big part of my curriculum in high school, so I’m only now

“Are Prisons Obsolete?” by Angela Davis (Noname’s Book Club July Selection)

Title: Are Prisons Obsolete?Author: Angela Y. DavisPublished: 2003Genre: Non-fiction, Politics & Sociology So not long ago I read an essay by civil rights attorney Derecka Purnell titled “How I Became a Police Abolitionist.” In it, Purnell detailed the rough neighborhood she grew up in, the police’s inability to solve the real issues in her community,

Reading Roundup: Essays from Audre Lorde, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and more

So I’ve taken a short break from fiction and spent the last few weeks reading articles and essays that focus more on topics like sociology and politics. I felt it appropriate especially in light of everything that has happened recently. The essays I focused on were all written by Black women and focus topics like

2020 Mid-year Reading Progress and TBR

Given everything that has happened in the world recently, I didn’t read as much as I wanted to in the month of June. With that being said, I figured I would reflect on what I’ve read so far this year and look at which books I want to get to before the end of the

Mystery Blogger Award

I’d like to thank Violet from Wool and Words for nominating me for the Mystery Blogger Award! So let’s get into it: Rules Put the award logo/image on your blog List the rules Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog Mention the creator of the award and provide a link as

Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye”: A Look at How Racism Is Internalized

Title: The Bluest EyeAuthor: Toni MorrisonPublished: 1970Genre: Fiction Blurb: The Bluest Eye is Toni Morrison’s first novel, a book heralded for its richness of language and boldness of vision. Set in the author’s girlhood hometown of Lorain, Ohio, it tells the story of black, eleven-year-old Pecola Breedlove. Pecola prays for her eyes to turn blue

Another Look at “The Underground Railroad”: The American Imperative

I remember, back when I was in middle school, learning in a history class about this concept called manifest destiny. This was during lessons about American westward expansion during the 19th century — the Louisiana Purchase, the annexation of Texas, Oregon Territory, etc. Manifest destiny was described as a sort of religious calling; the “literal

The Movement For Black Lives: Resources and Ways to Support (brought to you by other Black bloggers)

Featured image from banksy via Instagram 2020 has been rough, the past couple of weeks even more so for me, other black Americans and black people around the world, who have had the displeasure of witnessing so much racist violence and death occur in rapid succession in a brief period of time. It’s been an

A Look at Colson Whitehead’s “The Underground Railroad”: The Antebellum Era

Title: The Underground RailroadAuthor: Colson WhiteheadPublished: 2016Genre: Alternate History Synopsis: Cora is a young slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. An outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is on the cusp of womanhood — where greater pain awaits. And so when Caesar, a slave who has recently arrived from Virginia, urges her to

‘Imago’ by Octavia E. Butler

Title: ImagoAuthor: Octavia E. ButlerPublished: 1989Genre: Science Fiction Synopsis: Child of the Earth and Stars, Jodahs can create, shapeshift, heal the maimed, cure cancer, create contagion with every breath, or mutate the ground with a touch. Jodahs is an ooloi, a being beyond gender, born with the alien Oankali power to mix pure DNA within