diverse reading – Page 2 – Andrea Is Reading

February 27, 2020

10 Books for Black History Month (And the 11 Other Months, Too)

February is Black History Month, and I couldn’t let the month go by without sharing some of my favorite titles by black writers. Diversifying my reading has been a priority for me over the past few years, and following through on that goal has been wonderfully illuminating. Reading books by people who don’t look like me, have grown up in different environments than I have, or who have faced discrimination that I will never know is incredibly important for developing my empathy and understanding. Have you read any of these books? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

At its heart, Americanah is a love story between Ifemelu and Obinze, two Nigerians who fall in love as kids. They go their separate ways, however, when Ifemelu heads to America and Obinze goes to London. This novel has much to say about immigration, identity, and finding your place in the world. It’s beautifully written and engaging from beginning to end.

Becoming by Michelle Obama

Becoming is the story of Michelle Obama’s life from her childhood in Chicago to her role as First Lady of the United States. All of the political stuff is as fascinating as you imagine it is, but Obama’s focus on family and education are my favorite parts of this outstanding and inspiring memoir.

Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke

If you’re paying attention, you know that the publishing industry is primarily white. That seems especially true when it comes to the mystery genre. I think Bluebird, Bluebird is the first mystery I’ve read by and about a person of color. Texas Ranger Darren Mathews begins investigating two murders in the small town of Lark. One of the victims is a black lawyer from out of town, and the other is a local white woman. Attica Locke has delivered an unputdownable mystery that’s also a smart look at racism and justice.

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood
by Trevor Noah

You probably know Trevor Noah as host of The Daily Show, but you’ll know him a lot better after reading this fantastic memoir. In it, Noah talks about growing up biracial in South Africa during apartheid, what it’s like to grow up poor, how his mother survived an abusive relationship, and how he found his way to comedy. Born a Crime is funny, sad, and ultimately hopeful.

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Homegoing is in a rare category of books that left me stunned. Somehow, first-time novelist Yaa Gyasi includes 300 years of Ghanian history in a mere 320 pages and does so beautifully. Each chapter tells the story of a different person who is a descendant of either Effia and Esi, two sisters born in the eighteenth-century. Homegoing is an unforgettable and frank look at the horrific legacy of slavery.

I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
by Austin Channing Brown

In this memoir, Austin Channing Brown discusses what it was like to grow up black and Christian in a predominantly white culture. Brown cares deeply about racial justice, and that passion shines through each page of this book. I’m Still Here is a good book for anyone to read, but it should be required reading for white Christians who want to do better about honoring black lives and stories.

The Mothers by Brit Bennett

When Nadia is seventeen, she gets pregnant by Luke, the pastor’s son. How Nadia handles this pregnancy is what fuels the drama of this excellent novel. The Mothers is a page-turner but is also a smart meditation on grief, secrets, and love.

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

The Nickel Boys was a novel that I couldn’t stop reading even when I wanted to put it down. It’s about a terrible reform school in Florida that leaves physical and emotional scars on its students. Two of those students are Elwood and Turner, who face abuse, violence, and racism. The Nickel Boys is a bleak, haunting, but ultimately essential story of life in the Jim Crow era.

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

Sing, Unburied, Sing is one of my favorite novels from the past few years. At the heart of the story are Jojo and Kayla, two young biracial kids living with their grandparents. Their mostly-absent mother, Leonie, is in and out of their lives due to drug addiction, and their father is in prison. He’s about to be released, though, so Leonie loads up the kids and her best friend and sets off on a road trip to pick him up. Like The Nickel Boys, this novel can be a challenging read due to its bleak subject matter, but it’s also a gripping look at how love can sustain us even when things are falling apart.

An Untamed State by Roxane Gay

I think Roxane Gay is a brilliant writer. She writes essays, memoir, short stories, and criticism and executes each flawlessly. An Untamed State is her first and only novel about a woman named Mireille. Like Gay, Mireille is of Haitian descent but currently living in America. On a trip to visit her wealthy parents in Port au Prince, Mireille is kidnapped by violent criminals who want money from her father. If you’re a sensitive reader, know that this book contains some rather graphic depictions of assault. It’s a difficult but excellent novel.

What other books by black authors should I add to my reading list? Leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts.

December 14, 2018July 5, 2021

My 2019 Reading Goals

A few years ago, I chose all kinds of reading goals for myself. I didn’t complete any of them, felt like a failure, and decided not to set any goals for the next couple of years. But even though I’m happy with my reading life, I know it can get even better, so I’m back to the goal-setting this year. There’s a caveat, though: I love reading, am a mood reader, and refuse to make it feel like work, so these goals are more like loose guidelines. I’d like to see these goals happen, but if they don’t, that’s okay too, as long as I tried.

Goal #1: Read more books by people of color.

Less than 10% of the books I read this year were written by a person of color. I’d like that number to be much higher for two reasons. The first is that reading helps develop empathy and understanding toward people who don’t look like me. The second reason is that people of color aren’t always provided with the same opportunities white writers are given, so it’s important to seek out and support their work.

Goal #2: Read more books in translation.

I only read two books in translation in all of 2018. Two. That’s a shame since there is a plethora of great literature throughout the world that I’ve been ignoring. This goes along with goal #1, but I’d like to read more about different cultures and experience new-to-me settings. If you have suggestions for this goal, I’d love to hear them.

Goal #3: READ THE BOOKS I ALREADY OWN.

This goal is in all caps because I’m yelling at myself; it’s that important to me. I love working in libraries, but the one problem is that I’m regularly checking out new books. I read book reviews online, decide I need to read a book immediately, place a hold, and check it out so it can sit in a tote bag with 15 other new releases. This wouldn’t be a big deal if I didn’t have hundreds (yes, hundreds) of unread books at home. I’m immensely grateful for the books I have, and I need to follow through and acknowledge that privilege by actually reading them. I have plenty of titles by people of color and even a few in translation, so working on this goal will help me with my other goals, as well.

Goal #4: Read 75 books.

Reading 50-60 books a year is my reading sweet spot. That’s my natural range, but I think I could read even more if I were consistently mindful of how I spend my time. I know I could read more if I scrolled Instagram less and read on my phone instead. I could read more if I remembered to put my Kindle in my purse every day. There are times when I’m tired and don’t want to think, and the mindless scrolling is perfect for those times. But I rely on it too often and know I can make better use of the hours I’m given in a day.

Those are my four ~~goals~~ loose guidelines for 2019. Do you set reading goals? If so, what are some of yours? I’d love to hear them.

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October 29, 2018July 5, 2021

The Importance of Reading to Develop Empathy

Last week certainly had its share of anger and violence here in the U.S. Pipe bombs were mailed to political leaders, 2 black shoppers were gunned down in a Kentucky Kroger store, and 11 Jewish people were murdered in their place of worship. Such violence (and the hate that fueled it) is utterly heartbreaking.

As I always do when tragedy happens, I try to make sense of it. I want to understand what could drive a person to hate people based only on their political views or ethnicity. There are no easy answers, of course, but one thing does seem obvious to me, and that’s how desperately we all need more empathy.

Over the weekend, I finished reading Anne Lamott’s newest book Almost Everything: Notes on Hope. In it, she talks about a writing class she was teaching for little kids, and says this:

I tell the six-year-olds that if they want to have great lives, they need to read a lot or listen to the written word. If they rely only on their own thinking, they will not notice the power that is all around them, the force-be-with-you kind of power. Reading and writing help us take the blinders off so we can look around and say “Wow,” so we can look at life and our lives with care, and curiosity, and attention to detail, which are what will make us happy and less afraid.

I’m not naive enough to believe that if people just read more books, they’ll never be violent or hateful. But I do think reading broadens our worldview and invites us into stories that are different from our own. It’s easy to fear what we don’t know, but it becomes increasingly difficult to be afraid of something we clearly understand. And isn’t much of our violence based on fear? We humans can turn on each other so quickly, making our neighbor into an Issue or a Problem or an Other. You can’t love an Issue or a Problem or an Other. You can eradicate or solve or ostracize, though. You can slowly keep adding labels to people that dehumanize them.

Later in her book, Lamott goes on to say, “Empathy, a moment’s compassion, seeing that everyone has equal value, even people who have behaved badly, is as magnetic a force as gratitude.” Empathy allows us to get rid of our imperfect and unjust labeling systems and see people for who they are: fragile, needy, and worthy of love and belonging, just like us. This is grace. When it applies to us, it’s the best thing imaginable. When it applies to people we’ve labeled and dehumanized, it can seem terrifying and unjust.

I’m certainly not immune to these feelings. I’m terribly uncomfortable with confrontation, so I try to stay out of political debates as much as possible. But I must admit that I have a hard time loving our current president. I’m offended by his words about immigrants, appalled by his treatment of women, sickened by his disregard for the truth, and shocked by the mess of his White House. His values are at odds with my faith and viewpoint. Last week I read a Facebook post from Lamott in which she’s talking about the battle inside to remember that grace always wins in the end. She says of Trump:

Twenty percent of me aches for the total barbaric ruins of his inner life. Twenty percent. That is a miracle. And on top of that, I’ve realized that God looks at Trump and sees His own suffering son, never leaves him and aches for him, too, pulls for him to be transformed by Love, loves him as a mother does her child.

That gutted me. Lamott’s words immediately gave me pause and helped turned my anger into empathy. While I’m still in strong disagreement with his policies, I’m doing my best to remember they’re coming from a broken man. Aren’t we all well-acquainted with brokenness?

In this time of violence and anger, I’m grateful for the power of words and books to change my own heart. I’m grateful for Born a Crime that showed me what it was like to live in Apartheid. I’m grateful for The Book of Unknown Americans that showed me how hard it is for immigrants to chase the American Dream. I’m grateful for The Ragamuffin Gospel that showed me how absolutely no one is beyond the reach of grace. My list could go on and on.

Reading widely isn’t going to save the world, but it might make us a little kinder, a little gentler, a little more empathetic. And that’s a good start.

October 17, 2018July 5, 2021

So You Want to Read More Diversely

I’m a white, middle-class woman. That comes with certain privileges not given to those who don’t look or live like me. As a way to learn from different viewpoints and broaden my view of the world, diversifying my reading has been one of my primary goals over the past few years.

One of the best things about reading is that it helps develop empathy, and empathy makes us better humans. If you too are hoping to read more diversely, the books below are a good start.

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah

The title of Trevor Noah’s book comes from the fact that his entire early existence was indeed a crime. He has a black mother and a white father whose relationship was forbidden during apartheid. Noah tells the story of his struggle to find a place as a biracial kid growing up poor in South Africa. Though this book grapples with abuse, poverty, and systemic oppression, it’s also incredibly funny. One of my favorite parts of the book is when Noah talks about how humor in dark times isn’t just necessary, but that it helps tear down barriers between people on opposite sides of an argument. If you’re an audiobook fan, that’s definitely the best way to read this book. Noah narrates and does an excellent job telling his story.

This Will Be My Undoing: Living at the Intersection of Black, Female, and Feminist in (White) America by Morgan Jerkins

The best word I can use to describe the essays in this collection is “fierce.” I was blown away by the honesty and vulnerability in this book, the author’s first. Jerkins in only in her mid-twenties, so her insights are especially impressive. There were sections of her book that made me uncomfortable because I didn’t want them to be true. I don’t want it to be true that black women are often ignored in the discussion and practice of feminism. I don’t want it to be true that black women will not be forgiven for the same mistakes white women make all the time. That discomfort is exactly why reading diversely is important. This book expanded what I thought I already knew and reminded me how important it is to listen.

One Day We’ll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter by Scaachi Koul

This collection of humorous essays discusses Koul’s unique experiences growing up in an Indian family living in Canada. She wrestles with feeling out of place in her family’s traditions. I loved reading about her life, and especially like the essay in which she travels to India for a family wedding. Koul’s discussion about introducing her white boyfriend to her parents was another highlight for me. If you’re looking for a lighthearted, funny book, this is a great choice.

The Complete Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi

I’ve only read a handful of graphic novels because it’s just not a format I like that much. I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic memoir, though, and suggest it even to those of you who might not think the format is for you. Persepolis is about Satrapi’s coming of age in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution. She has to navigate all the difficulties of growing up alongside great political unrest in a culture in which females aren’t fully valued. This was an engrossing, eye-opening story that I’m glad I took a chance on.

The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez

While all the other books on this list are true stories, I wanted to recommend this piece of fiction too. Henriquez tells the story of the Rivera family. They move to the United States seeking better medical care for their daughter, Mirabel, who has just suffered a terrible accident. Eventually, a romance develops between Mirabel and a boy who also lives in her family’s apartment complex, but this story is really about the struggles immigrants face as they chase after the elusive American Dream.

I realized while putting this post together that not only are all of these books worth reading, but they’re worth staring at too. How great are these covers? What books would you suggest to someone who wants to expand their literary horizons?