Books by Black Writers – Page 2 – Equal Opportunity Reader

[REVIEW] The Windweaver’s Storm(TJ Young and the Orishas Book 2), by Antoine Bandele

A Black woman's hand(my hand) holds up the Kindle cover of The Windweaver's Storm up against the cloudy blue and white sky. The cover shows a teenaged black boy and girl pointing at a giant female figure made of lightning and fire in the distance.

(Buy this book!) One of my most anticipated new reads for 2022 is finally here and let me say the important part first– it did not disappoint! When we last saw teenaged magic student Tomori Jomiloju Young, he had survived remedial magic summer camp, traveled to the spirit realm, made a bargain with Olokun himselfContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Windweaver’s Storm(TJ Young and the Orishas Book 2), by Antoine Bandele”

[REVIEW] Black Girl, Call Home by Jasmine Mans

(Click here to buy this book.) I am once again asking publishers, editors, and readers to let Black women write beyond sadness in America. Please? sigh This collection of poetry from a queer Black woman starts strong. It’s put together very well in a technical sense but it all feels kind of by the numbersContinue reading “[REVIEW] Black Girl, Call Home by Jasmine Mans”

[Reading Challenge] Read #BlackJoy for #PrideMonth

(To skip straight to a booklist of Black Pride and joy, click here.) Y’all knew this was coming, right? I’m not an ally, I’m an accomplice. In the roughest, toughest parts of my non-ambiguously Black nerd femme life, my gay, lesbian, trans, and non-binary fam have always jumped in the trenches with me, helped meContinue reading “[Reading Challenge] Read #BlackJoy for #PrideMonth”

[REVIEW] Fledgling, by Octavia Butler

(Buy this book here.) *Content warning* Not every written word ages well. Every author has something in their catalog that gives readers of the future the ick. Sometimes it’s the whole catalog. If they’re lucky, it’s just one book or part of a book. Octavia Butler got lucky. Fledgling has been called Butler’s vampire novel,Continue reading “[REVIEW] Fledgling, by Octavia Butler”

[READING CHALLENGE] February Reading Challenge: Black Love

(Check out the booklist here.) Is it February already? Last month I challenged all you beautiful people to read a memoir by someone really different than you.(Hit the comments with what you read!) This time I’d like to challenge you to read one of my favorite literary things because this month is too perfect notContinue reading “[READING CHALLENGE] February Reading Challenge: Black Love”

[REVIEW] The Secret of Gumbo Grove, by Eleanora E Tate

A paperback copy of The Secret of Gumbo Grove lies on a table, surrounded by a crochet project, an open laptop, and a blue and white paper bookmark.

(Buy it from Bookshop here.) Finally I have time to write another book review! Eleven-year old Raisin Stackhouse loves Prince, her younger sisters, and history. She’s a responsible kid who does odd jobs for neighbors in her South Carolina tourist town, so when Effie Pfluggins, the church secretary, calls her over to help clean gravesContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Secret of Gumbo Grove, by Eleanora E Tate”

Last Week In Books: Black Superheroes, Pandemic Flash Fiction, and Asian Family Drama

After the last update involving phone carnage(which has since been solved…grudgingly) this week’s quickie diverse book info roundup is a more mixed bag than usual, fellow readers. Let’s start with this great list of diverse comics from Cultured Vultures. It includes all sorts of genres and points of representation, from the Count of Monte CristoContinue reading “Last Week In Books: Black Superheroes, Pandemic Flash Fiction, and Asian Family Drama”

[Booklist] And No-one Kills The Black Boy: A Selection of Black Boy Heroes

A young Black boy sits against a white wall with a notebook and pencil in his hands, staring into space pensively

Black boys are precious. Let me say that again. Black boys, and the men they grow into, are precious. It happens to be International Men’s Day today. As a result, the internet is full of Things About Men, good, bad, political, personal, and all points in between. I find myself thinking about the men IContinue reading “[Booklist] And No-one Kills The Black Boy: A Selection of Black Boy Heroes”

[REVIEW] The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda, by Ishmael Reed

A thin white book with a red stripe lies on a shiny gray formica table. The title is The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda, the author is Ishmael Reed. There is a goblet of amber beer and a glass of water nearby. A green exit sign is reflected in the table's shiny surface.

(Buy it at Bookshop.) I loved Broadway’s Hamilton despite myself. The songs, the sincerity, the hammy hip-hop–it all got to me. I went in scoffing at the idea of Founding Father fan fiction and came out claiming George Washington as my new bae. I don’t hate the play, but I can see its problems justContinue reading “[REVIEW] The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda, by Ishmael Reed”

[REVIEW] Starlion: Thieves of the Red Night, by Leon Langford

A Black woman's hand holds up the colorful anime-style cover of Starlion: Thieves Of The Red Night in front of a office window overlooking the Boston Seaport district.

(Buy it here from Bookshop.) What do you get when you cross Sky High, The Avengers and Yu-Gi-Oh? Toss in a little Harry Potter and Percy Jackson too and apparently, you get this fun middle-grade superhero fantasy novel by indie author Leon Langford. It’s about Jordan Harris, a supernaturally gifted Black boy in an alternateContinue reading “[REVIEW] Starlion: Thieves of the Red Night, by Leon Langford”