REVIEW: Black Water Rising

Black Water Rising by Attica Locke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Set in 1981 Houston, TX, Black Water Rising is a story of power and political corruption in high places. Jay, the main character, is a Black lawyer who must make the choice to either look the other way and stay safe, or risk everything and expose the truth. Heightening that risk is the fact that he is married with a baby on the way. He knows that everything he does has implications for the woman he loves. Moreover, Jay has a past he can't escape. It has shaped him into the complex person he is, and informs his actions.

A favorite part of this book is how author Attica Locke writes the dialogue between Jay and Christine, Houston's mayor. The two are old friends and their sparse conversations are just enough to indicate their deep, complicated history. I also found Locke's subtext intriguing. It centers on themes of identity, loyalty, and trust. My least favorite part of this book is the author's writing of Jay's wife. Her character seemed flat and her reactions to Jay did not ring true. Overall I give this book 4 stars. Locke's deftness at weaving Black Panther history into the narrative enriched this story immensely.


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REVIEW: The Pearl That Broke Its Shell

The Pearl that Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a fascinating story by a skillful author. This work of fiction is set in 2007 Afghanistan. It centers around a family that has only female siblings. As author Nadia Hashimi shows, this places the entire family in a precarious situation: girls/women cannot move about freely and unmolested in public.  Thus, who will buy food and oil from the market?  And Who will chaperone the girl children when they leave the house? The answer they turn to is the ancient custom of bacha posh, which allows Rahima, one of the siblings, to dress and be treated as a boy until she is of marriageable age. 

The freedom and expansive life Rahima experiences as a boy is in stark contrast to the limitations placed upon her sisters.  Even her father — who knows she’s really a girl — treats her better.  When Rahima becomes a teenager and is forced to get married, she misses the freedom of being male. Moreover, having lived free makes the physical and emotional abuse she experiences in her marriage all the more difficult to endure.

My favorite part of this book was how the author made Rahima's handicapped aunt a central character in the narrative. Though ostracized for her deformity, her character was strong and willful. She empowered her nieces by telling them stories and advocating for them, even when their own mother could not. I give this book 5 stars.


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REVIEW: Nickel Boys

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There are places we don't like to hear about because we know the news will be bad. A juvenile reformatory school for boys in the 1960s, the setting for Whitehead's novel, is one of them. Narrated in first person, the main character Elwood is a black teenager with a promising future. But despite the efforts of his grandmother to shelter him from the harsh realities of the day, he innocently gets caught in the dragnet. Elwood is sent to a reformatory school in Florida, which changes the trajectory of his entire life.

My favorite part of the book is how the author uses Dr. MLKs message of love and selflessness as a backdrop to understanding Elwood's actions. In trying to give meaning to his experiences at the reformatory school, he believes he can do something to change conditions there. Elwood maintains a sliver of hope despite the hardships he endures. "I am stuck here, but I'll make the best of it, Elwood told himself, and I'll make it brief."

Whitehead's writing is lively and the story is well-paced. His exploration of the varying ways the Nickel Boys responded to the conditions of their confinement was instructive.


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Review: Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time and time again we have discovered the integral role of African Americans to America's social, economic, and political development. Here again, is another story investigating their contribution to American aeronautical and space exploration history. Shetterly's excellent work falls into several overlapping categories: biography, women's studies, AA history, and NASA history. Its main characters are the African American women whose tireless mathematical computations helped to further the Space Race.

Though there were dozens of black women who participated in this endeavor, the author does the most in-depth studies of  3 of them: Dorothy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, and Katherine Johnson. Besides discussing their extraordinary accomplishments, Shetterly expertly situates their experiences within the historical context of African American life during the post WW2 era. Thus, she educates the reader of not only, the many obstacles they overcame, but also, the social networks and aspirational communities that supported them.

I give this book 5 stars. As a historian, I appreciate the author's depth of research and ability to incorporate several mini-biographies into a cohesive work.


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Review: Between the World and Me

Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Race is a social construction. Most of us know this; but Between the World and Me explains how being relegated as "Black" in American society has and does serve a real purpose. Author Ta-Nehisi Coates argues that the so-called American Dream has been built on the bodies (enslavement/ suffering/ death/ impoverishment/ disembodiment) of others. Those others are labeled as "Black" by those who call themselves "White."

Coates' understanding of how this phenomenon works became clearer after the killing of his college friend by police. He does not sensationalize events that are already sensational. His argument is humanistic and seeks to explain things as they are. Because this is an extended letter to his son, Coats makes his point through a discussion of events he experienced during his own childhood, college years, and early fatherhood.

My favorite part of this book is how Coates exposes the emotional and psychological pain of the racialization and subsequent brutalization of black bodies. He ends by telling his son that his struggle must not be waged to save the "Dreamers" but rather to preserve the things he holds dear.

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Review: The Last Black Unicorn

The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sometimes we can look back at hurtful things that have happened to us in the past and laugh. In The Last Black Unicorn, author Tiffany Haddish does just this. Her stories are painful, and often violent; but her readers can laugh because she does. Haddish was put in foster care after her mother had a life-altering accident and could no longer take care of her and her siblings. She describes growing up with the feeling that she was not enough and not safe. Her desire to be accepted, loved and protected, led her into many unhealthy relationships -- the worst being an abusive marriage.

Haddish writes this book almost as if she is doing a comedy set. It is in her voice: raw and honest, unvarnished and direct. Her comedic presentation almost makes the stories seem made-up, but they are not. She has taken many beatings and been betrayed by those closest to her. Yet, even her therapist encouraged her to pursue comedy as a career.

My favorite part of this book is its candor and authenticity. Haddish really opens up to her readers. After completing it, I was left with the feeling that its writing has been part of her healing process. I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

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Review: Where the Crawdads Sing

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Author Delia Owens uses the North Carolina marsh as the setting for this captivating story. Its main character, Kya -- also known as the "marsh girl" -- finds herself isolated from the townspeople. Abandoned by her parents and siblings, she in effect, raises herself. Kya develops an intimate relationship with the flora and fauna around her. They are her refuge from a community that has relegated her to the lowest rung of their society.

My favorite part of this book is how the author constructs a richly detailed geographical environment that becomes central to the novel's plot. Without knowing it, the reader cannot help but to develop a reverence for this place. Kya's ability to navigate the water, and to live in harmony with her surroundings give her the skills that, one could argue, saved her life.

Owens deftly explores several overlapping themes in this novel: race relations, class divisions, environmentalism, family, love. This is a murder mystery and a whole lot more. I give this book 5 stars.

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Review: The Farming of Bones

The Farming of Bones by Edwidge Danticat
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Unfortunately, massacres are not uncommon in human history. And though all are horrific, some -- like the 1937 massacre of Haitians that took place in the Dominican Republic -- are less widely known. Danticat's fictional account of this event is told through the voice of Amabelle, her main character.

Amabelle is the orphaned daughter of parents who died during their crossing of a river that separates Haiti and Dominican Republic. She is taken in by an upper-class family to whom she becomes a domestic servant. Amabelle's love interest is Sebastian, a sugarcane worker who has also immigrated from Haiti. Both displaced due to desperate circumstances, Amabelle and Sebastian share a deep connection.

My favorite part of this book is the author's writing of her main character Amabelle. The pain of her losses is palpable. As a reader I connected with Amabelle's anguish, despondence, and dread as the events in the novel unfolded. Though she is a survivor, she is also victim. The authors is succesfull in illuminating the interior lives of people in society who are often obscure. I give this book 4 stars.

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Review: Becoming

Becoming by Michelle Obama
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What does it really take to be the First Lady of the Untied States? In Becoming, Michelle Obama shows that it takes grit, grace and generosity of spirit. It is a role she not only grew into, but also, made her own. By allowing us access to her thoughts, decisions, and experiences, we learn that real service requires sacrifice.

My favorite part of the book was her examination of how she worked to balance her many roles: wife, mother, professional, First Lady, friend, etc. Her intense love for her husband and her deep love for her children is palpable throughout the pages of this work. Yet, even though she spent much time taking care of those she loved, she did not lose her own voice. Through her Let's Move campaign she was able to develop and oversee the implementation of a national action plan to improve the health of America's children.

I rate this book 5 out of 5. The author's authenticity and vulnerability makes it relatable to a wide audience. The title is apt. Mrs. Obama's formative years did contribute to shaping her; but more importantly I think, was her ability to learn, adapt, and ultimately grow in response to the challenges and struggles she faced.

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