So last week I posted a review of Prince Harry’s memoir Spare and it’s attracted a whole new spate of fellow readers. Welcome! It’s also attracted a lot of people with nothing better to do than post nasty comments about people so famous they’ll never meet either of us, and to those folks I say; get gone. Please!
Anyway, there’s some interesting diverse books news out this week, so without further ado…
- A 13-year old Afrolatina from Hamilton, Ontario has created one of the brightest spots on Bookstagram. Ainara’s Bookshelf talks all about books that relate to the diverse experiences and cultures of her and her classmates.[Hamilton Spectator]
- Valentine’s day is coming up, and one of my favorite passages about loving yourself, from one of my favorite books — Toni Morrison’s Beloved— is highlighted in this short piece, just in time to get ready for the season. [The Marginalian]
- The internet is spawning takes on this at an epic rate, but I cannot bring myself to be mad about the cancellation of the television adaptation of Octavia Butler’s Kindred. I can’t even bring myself to finish the furious blog post I started a month ago on why I hate the series so much. Instead, I’ll just direct you all here to get a copy of the OG book for yourself and read that instead. [Hollywood Reporter]
- Xiaolu Guo’s account of how she published her first novel is worthy of being a book itself, and now it is! Once Upon A Time In The East: A Story of Growing Up, came out last week and this excerpt made me add it to my #tbr stat. Equal parts sad, funny, and frustrating, it echoes the experience of many travelers, not only those from China to the West. [The Guardian]
- Two of the people I’ve been fortunate enough to meet in my own journey as a writer–Sheree Renee Thomas and Alex Jennings — gave a talk on worldbuilding at Under The Volcano in Mexico. The whole thing is available here via Facebook Video, and includes a brief reading from Jenning’s work The Ballad of Perilous Graves [Facebook]
- When you consider that Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer is one of the most hotly contested banned books in American schools lately(sigh), the significant of queer comics and graphic novels is definitely worth a closer look. A documentary has been released, and this interview with featured players Alison Bechdel(of the infamous test) and director Vivian Kleiman gives a lot of context.[The Washington Post]
As always, if you’re looking for something to read that is by and for diverse readers, click around this blog or check out the Equal Opportunity Bookshop. Don’t forget, we have an affiliate relationship with the blog and any purchases you make at that link will result in a commission being paid to this blog. Peace, and go read something good!
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