Book lovers lounge
- 'Demi Fauziyyah Adebo-Adelaja
- Dec 3, 2018
- 8 min read
Updated: Jan 22, 2019
If my audiobook collections were physical books, I imagine they’d fill a bookshelf similar to this.
#BookLovers #BookLoversLounge #BlackGirlsRead #AfricansRead #BusyMomsRead #AudioBooks #AudioBookReadings #AudioBookIt
Parable of the Sower - by Octavia E. Butler
So eager to get back to Butler's books!!! I was first introduced to her by way of KINDRED, a "historical sci-fi" (a "LEGIT made-up genre" someone suggested, which I agree needs to be adopted as a legit-legit genre...but I digress). I've been attempting to get into sci-fi for a while now, but just never really enjoyed it until I met Ms. Butler. In Kindred, I found an opening! It is primarily the historical fiction attribute (my forever-love genre) that helped make the sci-fi part tolerable at first, but then I really began enjoying it. After that reading pleasure, I got curious about the author, the late Octavia E. Butler (1947 - 2006). Imagine my surprised when I found out that she's a black female author #BlackFemaleAuthors who writes in the genre I am slowly dipping my toes in. That struck me as a nice triple-package deal. I decide to dedicate the beginning of 2019 to reading her books, with the hope that it will help get me acquainted with the sci-fi reading world. Anyhow, back to Parable of the Sower...the book was written in 1993 (Butler's 10th novel) and and tells of a hellish 21st century prediction and the Earthseed philosophy of "God is change," guiding the female protagonist , Lauren Oya Olamina. The book pulled me in from so many angles. For one, Olamina is the Yoruba name her grandfather adopted, which I found intriguing (I'm Yoruba, in case anyone missed that). Her middle name, Oya, is also Yoruba. Lauren is described as a being born with some sort of "hyperempathy" syndrome, which I'm not sure is something I'd wish on anyone, ever. I was fascinated by her geek-ish upbringing by her scholarly parents and their emphasis on education. She's a first-born daughter like me, and I found myself perfectly understanding some of her struggles and our birth order responsibilities. I was quickly drawing parallels with current day events as Lauren's Earthseed journal entries were narrated (because I #AudioBookIt), complete with dates. I kept wondering if we haven't already plunged into the beginnings of the similar horrors of climate change, ravaging poverty, and political predicament the Olamina family found themselves in. Lastly, I understand that the novel title has a biblical parable inference, which I'm not familiar with. I'd appreciate if anyone could share something about that. THANKS in advance. Now on to Earthseed 2.0.
I asked, and folks delivered. Here's the biblical parable explanation someone sent to me:
The Parable of the Sower is a parable of Jesus found in the three Synoptic Gospels in Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, and Luke 8:4-15. In the story, a sower sows seed and does so indiscriminately. Some seed falls on the path with no soil, some on rocky grouNd and some among thorns. Each condition of the soil represented as situation or circumstances that prevented the person from hearing or obtaining the word of God. To me the sower has a responsibility on where the seed should be planted to get the greatest return. And the seed and the sower are the same person.. is my understanding now, though it was not always so.
A Piece of Cake - by Cupcake Brown
Finished this beauty last week...my first book of the year 🙌🏾 2019 🙌🏾 What a story! What a beautifully narrated memoir!!! This little girl went through some stuff. Not sure I could have survived it. So much to take away: the American foster care system (hope some things have changed 👀); black American lives (nah, not much has changed here as long as we’re still helping folks understand why #BlackLivesMatter); the drug epidemic of the 80s & 90s (not all sex, drugs & rock n’ roll after all); gang infestation of urban America (finding “family” among blood & crips 🙄); what first, second, third, fourth, & fifth chances could look like; the importance of motherly nurture; believing in oneself; allowing for vulnerability; finding God...AND the plight of a girl-child in the midst of these elements. The last couple of chapters had me in tears, literally! I was balling out my eyes. Glad to have been hidden in the kitchen, away from the kids, lest they badger me with queries. So good to hear of Cupcake’s redemption and continued work at finding and redefining herself. This is truly a story of beauty...the beautiful life Cupcake carved out for herself, in spite of her tumultuous childhood and troubling adulthood. This is to taking back your life, Cupcake 🥂🧁🥂 Your story is legendary and worthy of being shared a million times over.
Kindred - by Octavia E. Butler
This book...the very last book I read in 2018...blew me away. I actually completed it right on December 31st. It is a one-of-a-kind historical fiction. A reader-friend of mine dubbed it a "historical sci-fi" and I think that should be a legit genre. I love the suspense of the storyline and I found it nerve wrecking (in a good way...if that’s possible). The book was both entertaining and educational at the same time. It accurately outlines the complications of the slaveholding south...how even those who appear to ‘mean well’ are, at the end of the day, a product of their time. I am not sure how I would fare if I were to get a chance to go back in time like the protagonist did. Not sure I'd have enough sense to keep my mouth shut and watch so many dehumanizing events play out. I say "enough sense" because back in those days, speaking up came at a price.
The Healing - by Jonathan Odell
“If you want to destroy a people, destroy their story. If you want to empower a people, give them a story to share.” ~ Jonathan Odell. Boy, do I love historical fiction! You learn so much about who you are...who we are as a people. I’m not new to this genre, but one thing that shocked me about it is that this pick was written by a white man from the south. Had to remind myself that this is also part of his own history, after all. The book seems to be well researched and I’m quite impressed. ...also from the author: “The repression of story can scar the soul. But knowing our common story can heal.”
Loving vs. Virginia - by Patricia Hruby Powell
There’s something about historical fiction that sucks me in...this particular LOVE story, I much appreciate. #HistoricalFiction
My Sister, The Serial Killer - by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Another nicely crafted Naija work by an up and coming writer. Note to my sis...don’t expect me to do this for you!!!
Silver Sparrow - by Tayari Jones
Just finished this number, but I had totally forgot about it. It came as a recommendation on Black Girls Read Books, Too but I let it sit on the back burner, and then rediscovered it a few days ago. Seems to me, Tayari Jones has a thing for family life stories, functional or dysfunctional, and I love it! I definitely strongly recommend this book along with the one I first fell in love with, An American Marriage❤️📚❤️
American Street - by Ibi Zoboi
Well dang...this was deeper than I was prepared for! Big-ups to Haiti 🇭🇹 I enjoyed the allegory that goes all the way back to my homeland of Nigeria...to Yoruba land...and then meets on American & Joy Street in Detroit. Reminds me of Yaa Gyasi’s HOMEGOING. This book is mind blowing. #BlackAuthors #BlackFemaleAuthors
The Passage - by Justin Cronin
I have a bone to pick with folks. So, someone in my reading group posted the preview to The Passage...the (first part) sci-fi novel by Justin Cronin made into a movie. Since I was in the "lets give thrillers and sci-fi a try" mode after getting through Forty Acres & Children of Blood and Bone, I decided to jump into this book, especially after watching the TV series preview. BIG MISTAKE...well, maybe not. All this while, I was imagining Amy Belafonte, the main protagonist, to be the cute little girl I saw in the TV series preview...a BLACK girl...that was until I get to Chapter 7 in the book where the author describes her as a white girl. Do you all know what that did to me? I'll tell you what it did...it drove me crazy! And confused! Now, I had to the new task of re-imagining Amy. I've had to go back in my mind and give her mama a white face, and her father, a deadbeat no less, a white face, and her hardworking grand father a white face. My mind is all twisted up now. I also had to re-imagine her hair being detangled in the bathtub by the nun. This was a hard one for me because I got deep into imagining a cute little black girl with kinky coily hair being detangled with such love and gentleness. Now I've had to change that image to a white little girl (also cute, but) with hair all matted up and being combed out. It's such a glaring difference! And also the zoo scene where the nun...a Sierra Leonean...carried her. Do you all know how different a black nun holding a white girl at a zoo looks in comparison to a black nun holding a black girl? The latter would not garner any attention, but the former...um, YEAH, lots of attention will be paid!!! This is what finding out that Amy Belafonte is white in the book and not black as portrayed in the TV series. Am I the only one baffled by this? I am so weak, my brain is about to explode. I'm not ready for the TV adaptation and will not be until I get through this book and make peace with the fact that Amy Belafonte is a white girl...or is she black? Technically, the TV adaptation lives on, so is it okay to keep imagining her to be black? Now, I'm all discombobulated. HELP!!!
The Passage - by Tomi Adeyemi
Finally, finally, finally finished reading AND listening to #ChildrenOfBloodAndBone...yes, I was that pressed, so pressed I read it on Kindle and listened to the audiobook. The narrator was screwing up too many Yoruba words, so I had to read along to correct them in my head. The epilogue though! That really got me. I’m curious to know if others got the storyline’s parallel to America’s state of affairs with innocent black bodies. I can’t wait to see how the movie (series?) will pull this off. So excited for the author, #TomiAdeyemi And reading books like this, where my children's faces are represented among the characters...that is everything. My 10-year old is excited to get into the story.
WHEN I HAD A BONE TO PICK: So, I finally got into Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone...SUPER EXCITED to read, rather, listen to this highly acclaimed work of art, until I wasn’t 🤨 My issue is not with the books itself...the book is GREAT! It’s the narrator. I’ve always appreciated the narrator's works, but this one sucked, sorry to say. This is probably because because I’m Nigerian, Yoruba specifically, and I know the proper pronunciations of these words. I can excuse a few mispronunciations here and there, but the ones in this book has so gotten to me. Why didn’t they get other African narrators or someone with some sort of proper training? The likes of Adenrele Ojo (Nigerian / Yoruba) or Adjoa Andoh (Ghanaian?). My review to Audible will not be nice at all. I've had to get either the e-book on Kindle just to be able to get through the book. Any one else having this issue?
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