Tag: African authors

Bookish

BLACKATHON TBR!!

India
Hi everyone and welcome back to my channel. My name is India and today we are going to be doing my TBR for Blackathon, which started at the beginning of the month, but that I’m finally getting up now. If you’ve been following me on twitter then you know that I had a difficult time getting some of these books and went ahead and started reading some other books. Let me know what you’re  reading during this challenge!
I’m really excited about this read a thon because it is centered around books written by black authors and/or books with black main characters. This read a thon is hosted by Francina Simone over at Francina Simone, Lauren over at The Novel Lush, and Jessie over at Bowties and Books. They have decided to do this with reading challenges to help pick out your books and to force you to try to read more diversely, which I think is awesome! I know that I’ve picked way too many books for this read a thon and probably won’t get to a lot of them, but I decided to aim high. It also gives me a lot of variety to read, so I can go from book to book. What are some of the books that you’re reading? Below are some of the books that I have chosen as well as a couple that I have read and loved that fit into the categories
1. FEEL THE LOVE. Read a book (any genre) featuring romance between two black people (or one black person + a person of color).
An American Marriage, Tayari Jones
Recommend A Princess Theory, by Alyssa Cole
2. WAKANDA FOREVER Read a graphic novel or comic series with a black or African MC
Kindred, Octavia Butler
3. HEAR US ANY work by a Black or African author
Dread Nation, by Justina Ireland
Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany Jacksonn
Let’s Talk About Love, Claire Kann
Black Enough, Anthology by multiple authors
Well Read Black Girl, Anthology by multiple authors
4. FEEL THE BEAT. Spoken word: listen to these 4 poems and share your favorite on social media or with a friend. Discuss what this poem means to you and why it matters.
Balaenoptera by Joshua Brandon Bennett https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9TWj…
What I’ve Learned by Aja Monet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8byI7…
“Waiting” by Jasmine Mans, Alysia Harris, and Jennah Bell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgxU7…
Cuz He’s Black by Javon Johnson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9Wf8…
5. MORE THAN A COLOR. We house complexity within us. Read a book starring an intersectional black character (black & LGBT, black & neurodivergent, black & disabled, etc)
Let’s Talk About Love, Claire Kann
Recommend: Odd One Out by Nic Stone, Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert
6. IN THIS TOGETHER Read the group book with us! Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Book Reviews

Binti, Nnedi Okorafur

India

– Short Story – 

Binti is about a girl, Binti, who is the first of her kind to ever be invited to this grand Oomza University where only the brightest are accepted from around the world and the galaxy. For her family leaving is not an option, it’s not something that they do. The people of the Himba tribe stayed where they were and created amazing things that were used throughout the world.
The majority of people are Khoush, who believe that they are better than the Himba people, but they really just don’t understand them. Binta has certain things that her and her people do including braiding their hair down, and using a mixture of natural ingredients called otjize in their hair on their body. They never washed it off and were called “dirt bathers” because of it.
Binti knew what it meant to leave her village and her home, but she also know what it would feel like to not go to a place where a whole new world awaited her. She knew that she was going to learn amazing things while gone, but she never thought that she was going to learn so much about herself, and invoke so much change in the world.

– What I Thought  –

I really enjoyed this novella and wished that it was longer…of course then it wouldn’t be a novella…. There are more after Binti, but I’ll read those later. It’s a sci-fi- novella and that made it a lot of fun to explore the different worlds, but even through out it there are a lot of places for discussion. The novella brings up what it is like to be different, and looked down upon based on what you look like and what society has deemed you are to be.  Okorafur also brings in the ideas of stereotyping other individuals, and trying to come into your own. There are more books in this novella, which is good because I felt that it ended rather abruptly and did not answer any questions. There are a lot of holes in the story, but overall it is a good story. I can’t wait to read the rest of them. As always there is a more detailed review on my YouTube channel! Until next time,
Keep turning the Pages
90s Born Reader