After the Rain by Nnedi Okorafor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I picked this up for a bookclub read.
I did not read the book that this graphic novel was based on. I don’t know if I would have enjoyed it more if I had the context from the original in mind when I read it. It was definitely on the stranger side, but it was an interesting read, and I had no idea where it was going until I got to the end of the book.
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys graphic novels and fantasy.
As you know, February is Black History Month. According to the above linked article, here are the other heritage months that we observe.
| Month | Heritage Celebrated | |
| January | None to date | |
| February | African American History Month | |
| March | National National Women’s History Month, Irish-American Heritage Month | |
| April | March 13 to April 15 is National Deaf History Month | |
| May | Asian Pacific American Heritage, Older Americans Month and Jewish American Heritage Month | |
| June | Gay Lesbian Pride Month | |
| July | None to date | |
| August | None to date | |
| September | National Hispanic-Latino Heritage Month (Sept. 15-Oct. 15) | |
| October | National Disability Employment Awareness Month and National Italian American Heritage Month | |
| November | National American Indian Heritage Month | |
| December | None to date; are two international commemorations |
In the past, I have posted for Black history month, Women’s history month, LGBT Pride month, and Hispanic-Latino Heritage month. I plan to do the same this year, as best as I can.
Happy Heritage month when your favorite arrives!
The above linked article tells about Martha Wash. She did a lot of singing in her day, but didn’t get credit for it. She went to court and helped change the laws that make publishers give credit where credit is due.
She did a lot of voice work that we recognize, but we don’t recognize it as her. Next time you listen, think about how those voices got onto the albums. If it’s a male singer and there’s a part with a female singer, is she credited?
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I picked this up as required reading for school. I was expecting an old, dry, politically driven book, but I was pleasantly surprised. While much of the book was about a heavy topic, it was well-written and a fairly easy read. It gave the reader time to think about what was going on at the time it took place and didn’t distract the reader by having to go look up old-fashioned words.
The above link is a YouTube link to a 2002 made for TV movie starring Angela Bassett. I watched it recently along with a discussion about Rosa Parks. I learned a lot from both. It makes sense now about the changing of the seat to the back of the bus and all.
Mrs. Parks did a great service all around to help with integration, not only with the bus boycott, but with her help as secretary for the NAACP.
I know that a lot of people know a little about her life, but this movie tells a lot more. She was a great figure in the civil rights movement and it’s worth it to learn more about her.
Books for black history month 2022
The above linked article lists several new books that are great for black history month. I have a few of them and I fully intend to read a few more, but I doubt that I’ll get to them before the end of the month. I do encourage you all to pick up one or two and tell me what you think. I always love book recommendations.
I recently watched the documentary, I Am Not Your Negro, which was a documentary about James Baldwin, based on the novel that the author never finished. What a powerful movie!
The movie is available on Amazon Prime for a few more days, and then it’s available for purchase or rental. It is worth watching, especially if you think you know about Baldwin’s writings. The movie was well put together.
Officer Clemmons by François S. Clemmons
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I picked this up for bookclub. I was interested to learn how a black, gay man ended up on a very white children’s television show in the time that desegregation was happening. Instead, we actually superficially learned about the life of the actor who played the character.
It is not until about 2/3 into the book when the Rogers family is introduced in the book. The author does a great job talking about his mentor, but doesn’t really realize he had a mentor all this time.
I would have loved to hear about how the author came out publicly. I would have loved to know more about some of the people who were important in his life, such as his mother, his wife, and his friends/lovers who were mentioned multiple times in the book.
I feel that if the author wanted to tell his story, great. I think that he could have given a little more thought to opening up further to his audience. A good editor should have helped with this, along with helping him tell his story in the appropriate order, and not randomly. Oh, by the way, I had a sister and here’s what happened to her 30 years before the rest of the story happened – this should have been brought up earlier in the book instead of at the end.
It was an interesting book, but it left me wanting more information. I would recommend the book to someone who likes to do Google searches to check into things that were just barely touched upon in the book.
The event in the elevator in Oklahoma was the start of the Tulsa Race Massacre in 1921. Dick Rowland tripped and tore Sarah Page’s dress. Both of them disappeared before all of the events of the massacre occurred. The above linked article speculates on what may have happened to them. Interesting that they weren’t around to see what happened or at least to tell their part of the story.
For allies who want to do better
The above linked article tells about books to help allies do better. I am sorry about the font and color of the list of books below, but I seem to have difficulties changing them. They do look like they would be good books, though.
bookworm at the gym 