Book of the Month
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Americanah: Reflection
About halfway through Americanah, we see the origin of Ifemelu’s blog, “Raceteenth or Various Observations About American Blacks (Those Formerly Known as Negroes) by a Non-American Black”. She makes her first post and checks the stats a little later. Nine… Continue reading
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Book of the Month: Americanah
Last week I read an excerpt from Charles Baxter’s Wonderlands: Essays on the Life of Literature. In the excerpt, Baxter talks about building characters through lists of objective, detailed facts and material possessions. The lists he recommends do not allow… Continue reading
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The Collected Schizophrenias: Reflection
“In my peer education courses I was taught to say that I am a person with schizoaffective disorder. “Person-first language” suggests that there is a person in there somewhere without the delusion and the rambling and the catatonia. But what… Continue reading
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Book of the Month: The Collected Schizophrenias
Nonfiction gets a bad rap. When we think of nonfiction, we think of textbooks, flowery essays, and dry biographies of famous dead people, all requiring knowledge of field-specific jargon or a dictionary to decipher. I’m guilty of perpetuating this stereotype;… Continue reading
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Book of the Month: On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous
All language is communication. That may sound stupidly obvious from someone who runs a blog, but it’s good to remind ourselves. Every time we chat about the weather with a colleague, get into arguments with someone who watches too much… Continue reading
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In The Watchful City: Reflection
I jinxed myself. Contrary to May’s introduction post, this month was more hectic than the last few. I should’ve seen that coming- birthdays and warm weekends make for a packed planner. It made me glad to have chosen In The… Continue reading
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Book of the Month: Lighthead
Writing is, and always has been, entwined with visual arts. Art shown in galleries and museums display artist statements to give the piece context. Illustrations and photos dot their way through books or are displayed boldly on the cover. The… Continue reading
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Between The World and Me: Reflection
“I would not have you descend into your own dream. I would have you be a conscious citizen of this terrible and beautiful world.” – Ta-Nehisi Coates There are books that change the way you read. Jane Eyre opened me… Continue reading
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The Fifth Season: Reflection
I love being wrong about a book. Reading a book so completely outside your expectations is like going on an adventure in an unknown land. Piecing together clues and foreshadowing felt like charting a course on a map. Revelations near… Continue reading
Tea Reads 