I really, really liked Jacqueline Woodson’s memoir Brown Girl Dreaming. When I heard that she’d come out with another book, I got excited. Would this be a sequel to Brown Girl Dreaming? Alas, no. Another Brooklyn, while lyrical and poetic in nature, is a fictional novel that takes place in Brooklyn. Woodson is a skillful writer, but I just didn’t connect with this book in the same way. I go into further details in my full review, but I must confess that perhaps my not […]
John Lewis is a hero, Part II.
Because March is a three-part series, it’s hard to talk about each book individually, because each develops the larger story arc. Nevertheless, I’ll do my best. As with the last book, Lewis, Aydin, and Powell develop a captivating narrative which delves into Lewis’s life and history as an activist and warrior for equality in the United States. Read my non-spoilery review here.
We need diverse books. John Lewis is a hero.
One of my favorite mentors from my MA program has done a lot of research on graphic novels and comics. I always appreciate her recommendations for new things to read, especially if I can then pass on the books to my students. When she began posting stuff about Nate Powell and his work on the March trilogy, I was intrigued. I had definitely heard of John Lewis, and he’s come back into prominent public attention with the House Democrats’ sit-in this last summer (#nobillnobreak). But […]
Getting back into reviews with Jason Reynolds
Let’s be real, people. I read this about two months ago. I’ve had this review written and just sat on it. Time to play catch-up. There are a *LOT* of reviews coming. Jason Reynolds’ fiction focuses exclusively on middle-school boys and young men in or just out of high school. I didn’t love The Boy in the Black Suit, but I very much loved his co-authorship with Brendan Kiely in All American Boys. I was interested to see how As Brave As You, his middle-grade […]
I came for discussions of Lady Kluck. I stayed for discussions of internet bullying.
I’ve long been a fan of Lindy West’s irreverent and sharply funny style. I loved reading her film reviews when she was still with The Stranger (my favorite review is of Sex and the City 2, which I absolutely refused to go see) and Jezebel (hello, scathing indictment of Love, Actually, which is a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad movie). I was excited to see her book released this year, and her passage on Lady Kluck in the first chapter made me cackle as […]
A nominee for Best Book of 2016
If you’ve never read Jewell Parker Rhodes, you absolutely must. Her prose is light and crisp at once, and she tells a story like no other. You inhabit her characters fully, and they are strong, sensitive young women. I’ve read Ninth Ward and Bayou Magic, both of which tackle current issues and also include an intriguing thread of magical realism that’s friendly to young readers. I’ve taught excerpts from Ninth Ward to my college Composition I course, and if I was to theme a course […]
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