Diversify [NEW SERIES]
Hello everyone!
As you can probably tell from the title, today's post is quite different from my usual content. That is because today I'm introducing a new series on my blog!!
This series is called Diversify, and the sole intention of this series is to diversify your reads. This means broadening your reading tastes by reading books written by people who are Black, Asian and other ethnic minorities. Highlighting and uplifting BIPOC voices is something we should be working on doing every single day, and reading books is one way to do that. Supporting BIPOC authors is so important, and helping raise their voices is essential.
So, what does Diversify actually require from you?
The purpose and goal of this series is to help support and celebrate BIPOC authors. There isn't going to be a set book that you have to read every month, all you have to do is make sure you read at least one book by a BIPOC author every month. Together we can celebrate Black voices, Asian voices and the voices of Indigenous Poeple. Every month I'll do a blog post sharing the book I've read for this series, and I hope you'll all join me in celebrating and supporting these authors and their beautiful books!
Just in case you're struggling to find some books to read, I'm going to list below 5 books that I’ve read recently, I encourage you to read them because they are truly amazing novels. I’ll try to pick books that cover a range of genres:
▪ The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (YA Fantasy)
Filled with beautiful prose, this book is a retelling of Arabian Nights. It follows Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all. This duology is now an all time new favourite of mine (look out for an elaborate review which I’ll be posting soon). The writing style is stunning, the Arabian setting was atmospheric and mesmerising, the characters were original and refreshing. This duology is a pleasure to read, and if you were to only read one of the books mentioned on this list, I’d recommend it be this one.
▪ Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman (Contemporary)
I’m actually not sure if this author is a POC (I’ve done research and I couldn’t find anything regarding her ethnicity) however this book does follow a half-Japanese teen called Kiko Himura who grapples with social anxiety and her narcissist mother in the wake of a crushing rejection from art school in this debut novel. Kiko finds out she doesn’t get into Prism, at the same time her abusive uncle moves back in with her family. So when she receives an invitation from her childhood friend to leave her small town and tour art schools on the west coast, Kiko jumps at the opportunity in spite of the anxieties and fears that attempt to hold her back. And now that she is finally free to be her own person outside the constricting walls of her home life, Kiko learns life-changing truths about herself, her past, and how to be brave. This is a luminous, heartbreaking story of identity, family, and the beauty that emerges when we embrace our true selves. I stuggle a lot with anxiety, this book really helped me mentally and emotionally. I should mention there are a lot of trigger warnings including sexual abuse and anxiety.
▪ Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (YA Fantasy)
Tomi Adeyemi is a Nigerian-American author, this is the first book in a African inspired young adult fantasy trilogy.
Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope. Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good. Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.
Children of Blood and Bone has quickly become a new favourite, and I can’t wait for the final book in this trilogy.
▪ Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami (Magical Realism)
In Killing Commendatore, a thirty-something portrait painter in Tokyo is abandoned by his wife and finds himself holed up in the mountain home of a famous artist, Tomohiko Amada. When he discovers a previously unseen painting in the attic, he unintentionally opens a circle of mysterious circumstances. To close it, he must complete a journey that involves a mysterious ringing bell, a two-foot-high physical manifestation of an Idea, a dapper businessman who lives across the valley, a precocious thirteen-year-old girl, a Nazi assassination attempt during World War II in Vienna, a pit in the woods behind the artist’s home, and an underworld haunted by Double Metaphors. A tour de force of love and loneliness, war and art—as well as a loving homage to The Great Gatsby—Killing Commendatore is a stunning work of imagination from one of our greatest writers.
Killing Commendatore was atmospheric, and moody and gripping. Part of this is because the plot was excellently crafted. I had no idea where the story was heading, and just when I thought I did have an idea, Murakami threw a curveball and something completely bizarre happens (which I’ve heard is often the case with Murakami). I loved the motif of art in this novel. Art plays a key role in the plot and in the lead character’s life. I enjoyed viewing the world through an artist’s eyes.
▪ 10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak (Literary Fiction)
*Before I get into the synopsis, please check the trigger warnings before reading this! It deals with a lot of sensitive topics*
For Leila, each minute after her death brings a sensuous memory: the taste of spiced goat stew, sacrificed by her father to celebrate the long-awaited birth of a son; the sight of bubbling vats of lemon and sugar which the women use to wax their legs while the men attend mosque; the scent of cardamom coffee that Leila shares with a handsome student in the brothel where she works. Each memory, too, recalls the friends she made at each key moment in her life - friends who are now desperately trying to find her…
10 Minutes and 38 Seconds in This Strange World, is one of those books that rip your heart and make you sob uncontrollably, yet the message is so important that you have no choice but to push through and keep reading to the end. To say this book destroyed me is an understatement. I have never cried so much whilst reading a book (I’m not exaggerating). It crushed me. It dealt with so many difficult topics from child abuse, rape, self-harm, abuse towards transgender women etc.
Although this book destroyed me, I’d still recommend it. I think we owe it to everyone who suffered the same life as these characters, I think they deserve to be acknowledged.
That's all from me, I really hope you decide to join me in this series!
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