Black

Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

March 16, 2020 Leave a Comment

9 hours 58 min. | G.P. Putnam’s Son | Adult Fiction | Release Date: 12/31/19

2020 has been kind of a meh reading year for me so I decided to switch it up with some upmarket book club-y fiction. This is one of those books where it’s better to go in with as little information as possible. Such a Fun Age starts with 25-year-old Emira, a Black girl living in Philadelphia, being racially profiled while babysitting a white child. The book then follows Emira as she tries to figure out how to become a “real adult” and her boss, Alix Chamberlain, who starts noticing Emira in a new way after the incident.

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Let Me Hear A Rhyme by Tiffany Jackson

January 21, 2020 Leave a Comment

Rating: ★★★★| Macmillan | Contemporary | Release Date: 05/21/2019

After Brooklyn teenager and aspiring rapper Steph is shot to death, his two best friends and sister hatch a plan to give Steph the legacy he always dreamed of. They use his recordings to turn him into Brooklyn’s hottest rapper and unexpectedly uncover secrets to solve Steph’s murder.

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Jackpot by Nic Stone

December 28, 2019 Leave a Comment

I forgot to write a review for this book and I read it so long ago; so please check out the audiobook review I wrote forAudioFile magazine! This was narrated by Nic Stone and I was blown away by her performance.

Listeners will find winning humor in this audiobook as narrator and author Nic Stone provides a flawless, upbeat performance. She gives voice to Rico and Zan–teenagers on a mission to find an unclaimed winning lottery ticket that could help Rico’s struggling family. Stone taps into Rico’s perseverance and strength as she tries to keep her family financially afloat. To track down the winning ticket, she reluctantly ropes in Zan, whose breezy laid-back tone reflects his privileged upbringing–opposites quickly attract! Listeners get the bonus of hearing the flirtatious back-and-forth between the teens, including Zan’s capricious way of mispronouncing Rico’s surname. Stone also brings a delightfully over-the-top performance to the inanimate objects that act as a Greek chorus.

Psst. Don’t forget to check out AudioFile Magazine’s website and podcast for more audiobook content.

Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite

December 8, 2019 Leave a Comment

432 pages | Inkyard Press | Contemporary | 09/03/2019

Dear Haiti, Love Alaine is a book that defies categorization as Alaine, an aspiring journalist and daughter of one of the biggest Black women in broadcasting, (read: Joy-Ann Ried or Melissa Harris-Perry ) begins a project to follow the history of her Haitian family. Told in diary entries, e-mails, letters and text this book takes some deeply emotional turns and dives into the complications of mother-daughter relationships and unspoken family history–with a touch of magical realism.

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On The Come Up by Angie Thomas

November 2, 2019 Leave a Comment

447 pages | Contemporary | Balzer & Bray | Release Date: 2/5/2019

I don’t know what this says about me but when a book or author has a lot of hype I tend not to read it until it quiets down. Angie Thomas was an author like that. I’d been following her ever since she announced her deal on Twitter and I’m happy to see the success she’s gained. I’ve still yet to read The Hate U Give because I’m not in a place to read Black trauma stories but when I was taking a bus trip I saw this on Overdrive and picked it up.

Now, this book exists in the same place as The Hate U Give and does spoil some of the outcomes of that book so be warned if you haven’t read it.

In On The Come Up 16-year-old Brianna “Bri” Jackson is an aspiring rapper from the hood who lives in the shadow of her deceased father’s rap fame. She’s ready to have her come up but injustice, poverty, and complicated family dynamics stand in her way.

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