reading – Page 21 – The PBS Blog

Must Reads – Richard Wright’s Native Son

“As the car lurched over the snow he lifted his eyes and saw black people upon the snow-covered sidewalks. Those people had feelings of fear and shame like his….To Bigger and his kind white people were not really people; they were a sort of great natural force, like a stormy sky looming overhead, or like a deep swirling river stretching suddenly at one’s feet in the dark. As long as he and his black folks did not go beyond certain limits, there was no need to fear that white force. But whether they feared it or not, each and every day they lived with it.”

A classic, Richard Wright’s Native Son is a powerful story about a young black man who, in a state of panic, kills a white girl. When I first read this book, I was startled and certainly unprepared for what awaited each page. It was not the murder that shocked me, it was Wrights talented description of Biggers inner turmoil, not as a murderer but as a Black man in 1930s America and the fear and shame of that alone that coincided with his actions. Not in a justifying way, but in a way that painted the picture of what it looks like when fear manifested itself into the physical; when it rose from that invisible feeling, the beating heart and sweaty hands, and into the full image of its potential. Native Son in essence shows us the danger of that kind of fear and not just the danger, but what it looks like. The image of fear wrapped in black skin, smack down in the midst of white America.

Synopsis:

“Right from the start, Bigger Thomas had been headed for jail. It could have been assault or petty larceny; by change, it was for murder and rape. Native Son tells the story of this young black man caught in a downward spiral after he kills a young white woman in a brief moment of panic. Set in Chicago in the 1930’s, Wright’s powerful novel is an unsparing reflection on the poverty and feelings of hopelessness experienced by people in inner cities across the country and of what it means to be black in America.” – Book Blurb

My Pros and Cons of Autumn

Cons:

Yea yea yea, it’s officially Autumn, so what. Today marks my least favorite time of the year for the Western part of the world. For one, I don’t celebrate holidays, so this is the time where people look at me like I got 3 eyeballs, a long green nose, and a broomstick hid away somewhere. At this time of the year flowers and pretty plants wither, and everything loses its vibrant colors and instead becomes a collection of blacks and grays.

The trees look creepy all naked like that, someone should find some leaves to cover them. This is basically the time of year where everything dies and the Earth is cold (and I utterly despise the cold).

But…

Pros.

What I do like about the Autumn (or what I like to call the reading) months is the peace it brings to our homes on the inside. Since were pretty much buried in, this is the time to catch up on some much needed studying. It is the time to cook foods that warm your soul like Chili, Greens, and Macaroni and Cheese fresh out the oven. And it is the time where we must turn up the heat and snuggle under the covers next to our lovers.

Speaking of cuddling, this time of the year makes movie night a lot more exciting than the summer months. In the summer, no one wants to be in the house because it’s so very nice outside. Summer is the time to get out and about and smell the fresh air. Winter and Fall however, is the time to be homebodies. A time to relax with a cup of warm tea, hot chocolate or coffee. I mean sure, you have a cup of coffee every morning but none of them can compare to the feeling of having the steamy liquid to engulf your throat when it’s bitter cold outside.

The Fall / Winter months are also a great time to read so I will be looking to put my Fall Reading List together. I think perhaps I’ll even challenge myself to get through a certain number of books this year. My only set back is that I don’t want it to cut down on my scripture reading time so I’ll have to stick to a nice balanced schedule. I mean you know, priority is everything.

Is this time of the year exciting to you? Is it not exciting? Why? I would love to hear your pros and cons!

Must Reads

I think I’m gonna start incorporating more book recommendations to this blog. I want to build a neat bookshelf but I’m not sure if there’s much room in here. I’ll have to move the furniture around, don’t want it to get all crowded and whatnot. So anywho, every now and again I’ll recommend a book I think will provide a thought provoking jolt if you will, to our daily lives. Most of them will, naturally, come from my very own book shelf.

Today’s Must Read is:

Before the Mayflower: A History of Black America by Lerone Bennett JR.

“Before the Mayflower” traces black history from its origins in western Africa, through the transatlantic journey that ended in slavery, the Reconstruction period, the Jim Crow era, and the civil rights upheavals of the 1960s and 1970s, culminating in an exploration of the complex realities of African-American life in the 1990s. Here is the most recent scholarship on the geographic, social, ethnic, economic, and cultural journey of “the other Americans, ” together with vital portraits of black pioneers and seminal figures in the struggle for freedom, as well as additional material on historical developments in the Reagan, Bush, and Clinton years.”

Find it on Amazon

Thank You

Good Morning beautiful people…

I want to take this time to thank those of you who volunteered to review Beyond The Colored Line. I am just getting back in town so I ask your patience as I catch up to my emails. I am still allowing room for more reviewers for those who are still interested. Email me at ahouseofpoetry@gmail.com for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. As stated this is a short story so it won’t take up too much of your time. Thanks again.

What is a Book Review (and how to schedule yours)

What is a Book Review?

A book review is a form of literary criticism in which a book is analyzed based on content, style, and merit. A book review can be a primary source opinion piece, summary review or scholarly review. Part of the purpose of a good book review is to help the reader ascertain whether the author accomplishes his/her goal or not so they can determine if they should read the book. Books are written to entertain, inform, persuade and overall to advance ideas and book reviews are written to further the discussion the author has started. A good book review doesn’t just answer questions related to why the book was written but expands the conversation of the book in order to advance the discussion. This in turn, expands the author’s message, helping readers get a feel for who he or she is and whether or not their style of writing is worth investing both their time and money in.

About Yecheilyah’s Book Reviews

My Book Reviews are honest and thorough. I approach each project with the same level of professionalism and care as I would a big company. I show no partiality and I do not publish constructive criticism. This means that any review under a 4 will not be published unless otherwise requested by the author. I believe there is some good in everything if we are willing to see it. So before I provide critical feedback I do so while first highlighting the positive points of where I think the author does well. The writer believed enough in his/her topic to write on it, so I believe the reviewer should acknowledge where the writer has been successful. This helps the author to feel that I understood his arguments, and it also helps the reader to understand that not everything in the book is bad.

The Process

Book Reviews are scheduled in the order in which they are received. After receiving your book in the mail (or email), I will begin reading and analyzing your book in the order in which I have received it (I will let you know if someone is in front of you and the estimated wait time). Please give me time to read your book. I will then write the review and then publish it to this blog as well as my social media sites. Again, I do not publish reviews under a 4 star rating, though I will send you a copy of the review via email. The purpose is not to badger you as author nor is it to overwhelm you, but to provide thoughtful feedback. I believe in this way the criticism is not more negative than it is helpful, but engages the author’s thoughts from the book.

Ratings

After studying the material, my final rating is based on the following system ( I rate on a scale of 1-5):

Plot Movement / Strength
Entertainment Factor
Characterization
Authenticity / Believable
Thought Provoking
Recommendation

Ratings of 4 and 5 stars are published to my blog and social networking sites. Links to author website, blog, and social networks are also promoted. Authors are also sent a free PDF copy of the review for their personal records. Reviews are free. If you like the review, I only ask for permission to use your feedback in the furthering of this service, such as the quote used in the AD above.

If you are interested, please complete the form below.

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Writer’s Quote Wednesday – Throwing Words

Hey there loves, Welcome to another Writer’s Quote Wednesday Edition with Colleen of Silver Threading. I thought it would be fun to surprise her with a cartoon of us together since she got me so addicted to them.

Now, in other news, who’s throwing words tho?

Whew, he said that.

There were lots of quotes I wanted to use from Richard Wright’s “Black Boy”, but I enjoyed this one the most as appropriate for Writer’s Quote Wednesday. I love Wright’s description of hurling words into the darkness and waiting for an echo because I think that is something all writers do. If we see light as symbolic of truth, of awakening, and of hope, then to throw our words into the darkness is to send hope out into the world. If someone responds, someone who has perhaps awaited this moment for some time, if that person responds, they are the echo that justifies the need for this light. They are the people who validate that the writing is not in vain and gives authors a kind of heads up that it is OK to throw more words out into the darkness. It is not from the perspective of writing specifically to be heard or writing for validation. The heads up instead informs us that there are others who are in need of the power these words have to offer.

About Black Boy

Most of us are all familiar with Richard Wright by now (and if we aren’t Google is a gem) so I thought I’d give history on “Black Boy” instead, Wright’s Memoir.

From: http://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/b/black-boy/book-summary

(clearing throat) yes these are cliff notes, don’t judge us:

“Black Boy”, an autobiography of Richard Wright’s early life, examines Richard’s tortured years in the Jim Crow South from 1912 to 1927. In each chapter, Richard relates painful and confusing memories that lead to a better understanding of the man a black, Southern, American writer who eventually emerges. Although Richard, as the narrator, maintains an adult voice throughout the story, each chapter is told from the perspective and knowledge that a child might possess. Yet, because the narrative is told with such force and honesty, the reliability of Richard’s memories is not questioned. By the story’s end, as Richard comes of age, the voice of the narrator and of the nineteen-year-old young man he has become merge into one.”

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And that’s it for this weeks segment. See ya next week 🙂

Need to Know Info

I hope your day is going well so far. Just a few updates you should all know about before you dig in this weekend. I am rearranging the site a little bit so there are some changes. The Pages are now located to your left (scroll down) and are highlighted in green. I have also set my home page to feature a static page on The Stella Trilogy so if your looking for the most recent posts, they are located to your left under RECENT POSTS. The following pages are also new:

Guest Blogger Page
Author Media Kit

This year I want to focus more on building my level of professionalism both as a Blogger and Author, while maintaining the same unique, laid back freedom I am accustomed to in my small corner of the web, and that I think makes blogging fun in the first place. For this reason, the Author Media Kit contains the basics that you (and your super cool professional friends you can’t wait to introduce me to) will need to get to know me as an author, and the Guest Blogger Page is to garner more variety here on the PBS Blog by having other bloggers to visit from time to time. I have also decided to do Movie Night Friday every other Friday to keep it fresh.

So, that’s what I’m up to and I ask for your patience as I clean up the house here and put the furniture back where it needs to be.

Have a great weekend!

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