- In the wake of the Seuss Fuss (thanks for that, Sofia!), publishers are taking a closer look at racial diversity in children’s books. About time. [via ABC News]
- Practically, this means that diverse children’s book lists are taking over the internet now. I personally liked this list of baby board books about science in English and Spanish. [via Book Riot]
- Also, Black folks seem to be making unexpected headway into the genre. I’ve posted before about Lil Nas X’s children’s book bestseller–now Idris Elba is joining the party with a multi-book deal. For those of us looking for slightly meatier work that has already been published, even mainstream publications like USAToday are out here sharing lists of seminal Black YA writers we should all get into. [via USAToday, Black Girl Nerds]
- On a more serious note; in light of the recent tragic events in Georgia, I’ve been thinking a lot about past Afro-Asian solidarities in response to racial discrimination and violence in the US, and the reams of writing about it. This is an older reading list but still very vital: Black And Asian American Feminist Solidarities. Give it a click and a think. [via Black Women Radicals]
- Heading back to a lighter note–the video above is an interesting list of books from and about Taiwan from world-traveling bloggers Books and Bao. While their take on the country as a whole is a little naïve in my opinion, the list is really good and I’ve added K-Ming Chang’s Bestiary to my TBR. [via Books and Bao]
- Several authors share what they read to get them “through” the pandemic (Is it over? It is not! Slow down!). Charles Yu read socially indicting non-fiction, while Kiley Reid(Such A Fun Age) relied on Orwell’s Animal Farm. I don’t know what else I was expecting, exactly. [via Time]
- Last link for today; speaking of the plague that is not yet over, Margaret Atwood is editing a Decameron-esque collaborative novel called Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering, about strangers telling stories on a New York rooftop during lockdown. Atwood’s been on my ‘meh’ list for a while, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little excited, since it gathers a really interesting collection of writers including Celeste Ng, Angie Cruz, Nafissa Thompson-Spires, and John Grisham(…?). [via The Guardian]
That’s it for this week, beautiful people. Read something good this weekend.
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