Hello, fellow readers. Pay no attention to the time between this post and the last. These aren’t the reviews you’re looking for. There is no hiatus in Ba Sing Se.
There is, however, diverse and bookish news to share so without further ado…
- American writer Sue Monk Kidd, whose feminist theology book The Dance of the Dissident Daughter holds a special place in my heart and in my personal liberation, has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I’m surprised I haven’t seen more people talking about this–I found out through her social media. Thankfully, her prognosis is relatively positive. [Instagram]
- There are many reasons I’ve been absent from this blog for so long–life be life-ing, y’all–but one of those reasons is cooler than all the other ones. Since July, I’ve been a staff reviewer at Lightspeed Magazine. I’ll still be posting plenty of reviews here, but once a month I’ll be dishing about an upcoming spec-fic book in an award-winning magazine in the presence of actual greats. *squee* So far I’ve talked about African epic fantasy, middle-grade urban folkloric coming of age, and Sabaa Tahir’s long-awaited follow up to her Ember in Ashes series. Check me out over there when you have a moment. [Lightspeed]
- Despite their necessity, I’m kind of over reading deep statistical dives into the state of BIPOC presence in US publishing. Unfortunately, it seems the industry is beginning to feel the same way. I’m starting to see all white booklists in major publications like it was the bad old days again. A few folk are still out here fighting the good fight, however, like writer Emily Jiang, who’s done a great job delving into diverse speculative fiction for SFWA. Spoiler alert: things are getting better, slowly. [SFWA]
- Things may be improving in US speculative fiction publishing, but UK children’s publishing still needs some help. Apparently most British children’s books with Black main characters are actually written by white authors. [The Guardian]
- Han Kang won the Nobel Prize in Literature. Predictably, society is either rapturous or vitriolic in response. Go Un and Hwank Sok-yong are probably somewhere munching on their own livers. Personally, I think it was well-deserved, for Human Acts if nothing else. [Hankyoreh, Nobel Institute]
- Senegalese writer Mohamed Mbougar Sarr is already being touted as a future Nobel winner. Instead of linking you to all the critics telling you why he’s great, I’ll direct you to his short story Ami Police so you can begin to form your own opinions. [The New York Review]
There are, as always, many more things happening in the world of diverse books, but for now I’ll leave it there. For more books and to show this blog a little support, please visit the Equal Opportunity Bookshop. Now, go read something good! Peace!
Equal Opportunity Reader 