I read only non-white authors for 12 months. What I learned surprised me | Sunili Govinnage

Reading science fiction, chick lit and fantasy novels by people of colour for a year brought home to me just how white my reading world wasIn 2014, I managed to read 25 novels. All of them were written by people of colour. That was the result of a small challenge I set myself: not to read books by white authors for a year. The things I learned in my year of selective reading made me pretty glad to have persevered. Rather than restricting myself, my decision to be conscious about what I read introduced me to books I ordinarily would not have bothered with. Instead of my usual crime/procedural/legal thrillers, I actually read some science fiction. And some fantasy. And I loved it. Saladin Ahmed’s Throne of the Crescent Moon and Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death are now two of my favourite books. I would never have heard of them had I not deliberately sought them out.One difference that my book list made is that it ever-so-delicately altered the way I looked at the world. It was slow at first, but opening myself up to a variety of female perspectives made me more aware of the female lives around me … Feminism, as bell hooks pointed out, is for everyone. And when we become more aware of the small injustices and tiny everyday tragedies around us, we become better people. Reading women’s voices helped me to hear them more loudly in my daily life. Our culture is getting better and better at encouraging women to speak, but it’s not doing enough to listen to what they say when they... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-02-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #reading women #daily life #encouraging women

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Literal Star-Crossed Lovers: A Reading List of Space Operas with Romance Subplots

I have loved reading science fiction since age ten, when my school librarian handed me a copy of Jill Patton Walsh’s The Green Book. I fell in love with romance after reading Jane Eyre, which my uncle gave me. When I became a writer, my focus was on the former, but my stories often include […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-26 08:52:31 UTC ]
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Freedom to Read Supporters Say It's Time to Get Louder

At an American Booksellers for Free Expression session, panelists discussed different approaches booksellers can take to fight book bans. Among the ideas floated were outreach to government officials, creating library-style “request for reconsideration of materials forms,” and improving Banned... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-04-25 04:00:00 UTC ]
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'They can't ban all the books': Why two banned authors are so optimistic

"Banned Books," one of the most popular panels at the Festival of Books, featured Angie Thomas, George M. Johnson and some sharp students from Fairfax High. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-04-24 19:40:50 UTC ]
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10 Spy Novels to Read Before You Die

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-04-21 04:00:00 UTC ]
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National Library Week to Include 'Right to Read Day'

“ALA calls on readers everywhere to show our commitment to the First Amendment by doing something concrete to preserve it,” said ALA president Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-04-20 04:00:00 UTC ]
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A Dancer’s Life: Chita Rivera on Working Hard and Learning From the Best

A new memoir traces the three-time Tony Award winner’s life and career working with Balanchine, Robbins and Fosse. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-04-19 09:00:33 UTC ]
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Double Vision: A Reading List of Twins in Literature

Sometimes, the most powerful stories to read are the ones you see yourself, or a part of yourself, reflected back in. Growing up as a quadruplet, I always knew there was something rare about me and my sisters. Strangers at the mall would stop our stroller procession and ask questions like, Hold... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-19 08:51:36 UTC ]
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How lawyer-author Orlando Ortega-Medina turned his exile from L.A. into a legal thriller

'The Fitful Sleep of Immigrants' began as a memoir about Orlando Ortega-Medina's exile from a homophobic U.S. How it became an immigration thriller instead Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2023-04-18 13:00:23 UTC ]
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Girls to the Front: A Reading List of Provocative Feminist History

My particular variety of feminism has long been one devoted to the idea that women’s lives are not solely defined by their familial roles (wife, mother, sister, etc). Women’s lives are shaped by the communities they build, run from, collide within, and redefine. Communities of women, those whom... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-18 08:52:31 UTC ]
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Learn something new every day and save 77% off this top-rated app

If you have a reading list a mile long that seems to just keep growing, it’s about time you do something about that. Fortunately, apps like Headway make it easy to get personal with your reading and learning. Whether you want to build a business, improve your health, or level up your... Continue reading at PC World

[ PC World | 2023-04-18 08:00:00 UTC ]
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As London Book Fair Opens: Authors Seed a ‘Tree to Me’ Campaign

Authors are asking their publishers in the UK 10 questions about the climate crisis and what it takes to get a book from the 'Tree to Me.' The post As London Book Fair Opens: Authors Seed a ‘Tree to Me’ Campaign appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-04-18 05:42:45 UTC ]
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Survey Finds Self-Published Authors Making Gains

The median income for self-published authors increased substantially in 2022 compared to 2021, to $12,749 last year—more than the median for authors published by traditional houses. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Exclusive Cover Reveal of Ross White’s “Charm Offensive”

Electric Literature is pleased to reveal the cover for writer Ross White’s poetry collection, Charm Offensive, which will be published by Eyewear Publishing this July. White is the designer and author of Valley of Want, a finalist for Electric Lit’s Best Book Cover of 2022 contest. Charm... Continue reading at Electric Literature

[ Electric Literature | 2023-04-14 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Rachel Pollack, Transgender Activist and Authority on Tarot, Dies at 77

Her science fiction writing won awards. Her tarot books won her a devoted following. And she created DC Comics’ first transgender superhero. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-04-13 20:05:34 UTC ]
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A Feminist Before Feminism: A Reading List in Honor of Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Boston

How funny to curate a list about Boston when I never really considered it my home—possibly not until my new novel, The Lioness of Boston. I moved a lot as a kid—house to apartment, town to city, out of the country, back in, out again, until I finally moved back to the US and my […] Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-13 08:52:53 UTC ]
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Lit Hub Daily: April 12, 2023

“What had I done, insisting on more of us?” Maggie Smith on the anxious, silent first year of motherhood. | Lit Hub Memoir We asked, you answered: Here are 22 (more) adaptations better than the books they’re based on. | Lit Hub Film & TV Naomi Kanakia on literary transphobia. | Lit Hub... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-04-12 10:30:47 UTC ]
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20 Must-Read Indigenous Historical Fiction Books Set In North America

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[ Book Riot | 2023-04-11 10:36:00 UTC ]
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Get Your Reading on with These 10 New Manga Releases for April 2023

This month, we’ve got new Tatsuya Endo and Hiromu Arakawa series, a quirky comedy about a boy who becomes a cat, and much more! Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2023-04-11 10:30:00 UTC ]
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Religion Book Deals: April 12, 2023

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Author Chuck Forester Donates $250K to Lambda Literary

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