(Buy it HERE(e-book only)) Yerong is a South Korean kindergarten teacher– sweet, intelligent, creative and reasonably aware of social issues. One day she meets Ghanaian scientist Manni and her eyes are opened to the realities of being an immigrant and a black person in a society that values conformity and often puts white Europeans onContinue reading “[REVIEW] A Black Guy Was Sitting Next To Me On The Subway, Yerong”
Author Archives: Mel The Bookworm
[REVIEW] Whiter, edited by Nikki Khanna
(Buy it HERE). I think I was 14 or 15 the day a male relative(I honestly don’t even remember who) peered at me and said, “You know, you’re not light enough to be really beautiful, but you’re not too dark, either.” This is me: Now, granted, this is a remarkably good selfie with remarkably goodContinue reading “[REVIEW] Whiter, edited by Nikki Khanna”
Guest Review: All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M Johnson
A quick note: I’m Mel, the author of 99% of the reviews on this site. I’m a straight cis woman who firmly believes in equality and equity for LGBTQIA+ people. While I’ve been doing targeted reading for Pride Month, I haven’t really read a lot of queer books in any genre and I’m aware myContinue reading “Guest Review: All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M Johnson”
[REVIEW] Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby⠀(Buy it HERE.)⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2 out of 5 stars.⠀ “I can’t watch This Is Us because even though the brothers are hot and the dad is a smoke show, in the first couple of episodes the fat girl doesn’t get to be much more than “fat”, and wow, no thank you!”Continue reading “[REVIEW] Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby”
[REVIEW] Felon, by Reginald Dwayne Betts
Buy it HERE. 🚔⠀I am a father driving/his Black sons to school & the death/of a Black boy rides shotgun &this/could be a funeral procession⠀~from “When I Think of Tamir Rice While Driving”⠀✊🏿⠀When it’s difficult for me to focus, I tend to read poetry. This short collection surprisingly filled an empathetic void in me IContinue reading “[REVIEW] Felon, by Reginald Dwayne Betts”
[REVIEW] The Hundred Wells of Salaga, Ayesha Haruna Attah
⭐⭐⭐⭐(4/5) ⠀ (Buy it HERE.)⠀ ⠀⠀💧Wow, where do I even begin? I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like this before, even though all of the elements of it are familiar. There’s a misfit princess, warring nations, a beautiful foreign slave girl, and strange visitors from a faraway land. Characters struggle with unrequited love,Continue reading “[REVIEW] The Hundred Wells of Salaga, Ayesha Haruna Attah”
[REVIEW]No One Can Pronounce My Name, Rakesh Satyal
(Buy it HERE.) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5⠀ This book is easily my second favorite read of the year so far after Girl, Woman, Other. It’s funny, touching, warm-hearted, and surprisingly deep. It’s also ferociously well-written. (One chapter made me close the book, say WOW, & sit for a while with the words.) I can’t believe I’ve never heardContinue reading “[REVIEW]No One Can Pronounce My Name, Rakesh Satyal”
[HEAR ME OUT] A Thought On Injustice and Lost Voices…
(This post is an edited Facebook post. Follow EQR on FB blah blah etc.) If you haven’t gathered from the About Me page or some of my posts, I’m a Black American, living abroad. This blog is about books, not me, so I don’t talk about my own experiences often. My day job and lifeContinue reading “[HEAR ME OUT] A Thought On Injustice and Lost Voices…”
[REVIEW] On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong
(Buy it HERE.) “Who will be lost in the story we tell ourselves? Who will be lost in ourselves?” This is a messy book. There’s a lot going on between its covers–PTSD, emerging sexuality, poverty, war, immigration, mental illness, class, race, abuse, art, gender performance. There’s a lot going on, but it all seems toContinue reading “[REVIEW] On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong”
Last Week In Books: May 18-24, 2020
So here we are in the last full week of May, beautiful people. It seems like just yesterday it was the 78th day of March, but we’ve made it all the way to the beginning of summer and hopefully no-one’s broken their glasses yet. This week sees sea creatures, fictionalized president’s wives, and a veryContinue reading “Last Week In Books: May 18-24, 2020”
Equal Opportunity Reader 