The Next Book On My List

Allegedly by Tiffany Jackson                 Mary has spent years in baby jail and now is staying in a group home for murdering baby Alyssa. Allegedly. She was nine the night Alyssa died. When the cops arrived at the home she was covered in mud, the baby had bruises all over here face and body. It’s been years and Mary hasn’t stopped thinking about Alyssa. She also never admitted to the crime. Her mom agreed to the plea deal of manslaughter on behalf of Mary. But now Mary has a different story to tell. She didn’t kill Alyssa but she knows who did. And if it means she’ll be able to keep the baby growing in her stomach, she is willing to tell everyone the truth.                 I regret that I started reading this book while visiting family. If I had been at home I would have finished this book in a day or two. It’s the kind of...

Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao                 Poornima was the oldest daughter. Her mother had passed years ago and she was the one who cared for not only her father but her brothers and sister. Savitha’s father was an alcoholic and her mother did the laundry for other people in their village. The two became friends when Savitha came to work for Poornima’s father. Both were poor and struggling but their friendship was filled with a love and trust that neither had known and both depended on. It wasn’t long before Poornima’s arranged marriage that Savitha fled from their village, a victim who was going to be forced into an even worse situation. But the two would always yearn for each other and the friendship they had, with paths crossing until they could find each other again.                 There are some books that I c...

The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo by Tom Reiss I heard about this book a few years ago. I have never read anything by Alexander Dumas but I feel like I’ve always known about his books. The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers had all been made into movies that I’ve browsed through or knew of. Not to mention The Man in the Iron Mask featuring those same musketeers and Leonardo DiCaprio, a movie that I have watched countless times over. I knew these characters for the most part but I had no idea what the inspiration might have been for them. Then I came across this book which states that Alexander Dumas’s dad, a Black man, was the novelist inspiration for much of his work and I became very intrigued. I had assumed that Dumas was white. Mostly because all of the depictions of his characters were white and because people usually make it a point to point out when an author is Black. I picked this book up with the int...

Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi                             It’s 2018. I wish I could tell you that racism is no longer an issue in the world but if my life has taught me anything it’s that racism still exist, is prevalent and may not ever cease to exist. This book answers a lot of the questions as to how that is true in 2018. It discusses the type of racist though that has been so prevalent throughout history and the systems in place that have allowed racism to flourish. It’s comprehensive, easy to read and understand but it isn’t for the feint of heart. If you aren’t prepared to look at some extremely hard truths then you should probably step away from this type of book, one that refuses to dumb down the situation to make you comfortable.            ...

Bird Box by Josh Malerman I have many, many thoughts regarding this book, but first I want to say that I really enjoyed Bird Box . This review might come off a little critical at times. I had to keep reminding myself to stop comparing this to other dystopian books that I’ve read and movies that I’ve seen. Overall this was an intensely disturbing novel, that has an extremely interesting premise and this really boils down to survival and trying to hold on to remnants of society even when no such society exists any longer.                 Malorie had just moved in with her sister Shannon when reports started coming in. It started in Russia and the videos would show people being randomly attacked. There were reports of people going into rages and attacking others or harming themselves. The reports began to trickle in from Alaska, then different areas of the northern part of the United States. Something...

Odd One Out by Nic Stone                     Courtney and Jupiter have been best friends since he moved into the house next door eleven years ago. And even though she proclaimed she was a lesbian years ago, that hasn’t stopped him from falling head over heels in love with her. Everyone knows them as Coop and Jupe. They’ve always been inseparable and none of his relationships have ever stood a chance because of how close they are. Then there was Rae, some girl Jupiter had been texting for a while. All three ended up being friends and while Jupiter may be developing feelings for her, Rae is trying to sort out her feelings for Cooper. And Jupiter.                      Love is complicated. Sexuality is complicated. Stone created a book that shows just how complicated and disorienting it can ...

The Last Girl: My Story of Captivity, and My Fight Against the Islamic State by Nadia Murad                 Nadia Murad is the survivor of a genocide. She lived in a small village in Iraq called Kocho. She was born into Yazidism, a monotheistic religion spread in the oral tradition. It is a religion that you can only be born into. There are only about one million Yazidis alive in the entire world. The Islamic State captured her village, killed the men and kidnapped the women and children. Nadia and other Yazidi women were forced to become sabaya, sex slaves. She was sold and raped multiple times, by multiple men before escaping. Nadia is now a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking. She travels telling her story and demanding justice for the Yazidi genocide taking place in Iraq at the hands of terrorist.         ...