What I’m Reading – 15 January 2018
I want to read ALL THE BOOKS by women. Seriously, it’s becoming a problem.
I was able to whittle down my must-read fiction by women in 2018 list to 12 (plus a bonus book by -gasp!- a man) and that was near impossible. Still as I am tooling around on The Twitter I see books that I am horrified that I left off the list. Perhaps there will be a Part II? And I mean, we haven’t even gotten to my non-fiction list yet. #nerdproblems
I am still looking for books by and about Palestinian women and Native American women. I would love for these to be debut books, up and coming women writers. If you have ideas, please comment below!
So here’s what I am reading today:
Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao – I am *in love* with this book. The main character, Poornima, is so vivid, I can almost feel her pain, her fear, her disappointment but also her joy and resilience. I hope to finish this one in the next couple of days and post a review this weekend. But Saturday is the Women’s March and I will be spending that day in Milwaukee, voicing my utter contempt for 45 and the current state of affairs in our country, so we will have to see what I can get done…
I am still listening to Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi and reading Alice Bag‘s Violence Girl. I am thinking about writing a larger article on Alice, her music, and her writing for an upcoming issue of Resources for Gender and Women’s Studies: A Feminist Review.
And here are some articles:
- The Heartbeat of Racism is Denial by Ibram X. Kendi in The NY Times – Speaks for itself.
- Leaving Women and Girls Behind in the Data Revolution is Not an Option by Jemimah Njuki on The Wire – This article aligns well with my own research on the necessity of relevant, current information by/about women in their development and agency. Njuki stresses the importance of data collection, especially regarding women’s land rights and ownership. Local libraries or information centers could help with this; my goal is to increase awareness of the role that libraries can play in increasing women’s rights and empowerment.
- 5 Families Who Are Changing the World as We Know It in Vogue – I originally read this article because of the inclusion of Akwaeke Emezi, whose debut novel, Freshwater, is on my top 12 must-read list of books by women this year. After reading through the whole article, I was so inspired by the other families included as well.
- By women, for women: The new economics of menstrual pads in Africa by Devin D. Thorpe on ImpactAlpha
- Nafissa Thompson-Spires is Taking Black Literature in a Whole New Direction by Tyrese L. Coleman on Electric Lit – The authors discuss Thompson-Spires’s new book, Heads of the Colored People. In the interview, Thompson-Spires send an important message to “literary gatekeepers”:”I want them to recognize us all and not pit us against each other. There can’t only be this narrative of the one “anointed Black writer” who gets the attention at a time. People can get equal attention and an equal playing field. I also want them to recognize that Black writing is art in the same way other writing is. That we can take risks that other writers can take. I would like to see more space for all of us and more recognition of the many things we can be, which is what my collection is about.” As a librarian and book reviewer, I will keep these words with me.
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