E. Samms
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Love
- De: Toni Morrison
- Narrado por: Toni Morrison
- Duración: 7 h y 45 m
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From the internationally acclaimed Nobel laureate comes a richly conceived novel that illuminates the full spectrum of desire. May, Christine, Heed, Junior, Vida - even L: All women obsessed by Bill Cosey. More than the wealthy owner of the famous Cosey Hotel and Resort, he shapes their yearnings for father, husband, lover, guardian, friend, yearnings that dominate the lives of these women long after his death. Yet while he is both the void in, and the centre of, their stories, he himself is driven by secret forces - a troubled past and a spellbinding woman named Celestial.
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Wonderful
- De Steve en 05-22-10
- Love
- De: Toni Morrison
- Narrado por: Toni Morrison
Love (or Hate)?
Revisado: 04-18-25
While this is my second (third if you count my readings from college) time reading through this selection, I still deeply appreciate this book.
It is very much a book I have to sit with and take my time getting through because the character jumps and jumps in the storyline, gets a bit tangled, which I fullheartedly believe is intentional, based on the book's subject matter. One of the biggest overarching themes is an inappropriate relationship with a grown man and a young female child whom he ultimately makes his child bride. That decision leads to the fracture in a friendship as well as an even deeper chasm in the family tree. It is a tangled web of a story of betrayal and heartbreak, molestation, r*pe, p*dophilia, family and friend dynamics, gender roles, motherhood, fatherhood, and, as the namesake of the book goes, LOVE. It explores how the actions of one person in a family affect all those in the family and all those associated with that family. Again, a tangled web.
It is a book, like many of her other works, that brings light and life to the very taboo topics that black families (and families in general) historically ignore or brush under the rug or struggle to make sense of because how can you HATE the very people you are supposed to LOVE? It's a tale as old as time, sadly, but a tale worth telling, nonetheless. If you have yet to dive into this book, it's worth it, even just once.
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Native Son
- De: Richard Wright
- Narrado por: Peter Francis James
- Duración: 17 h y 47 m
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Right from the start, Bigger Thomas had been headed for jail. It could have been for assault or petty larceny; by chance, 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 1930s, Richard 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.
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Simply a classic
- De Noah Smith en 11-11-10
- Native Son
- De: Richard Wright
- Narrado por: Peter Francis James
Native Son
Revisado: 02-26-25
Continuing my black author / banned books / black history month (all in one) reading journey, I have made it to my 3rd book this month and it is the Richard Wright classic: “Native Son.”
Now, I’ve read parts of this book in my collegiate and post-collegiate days, but never the full book. I’ve also seen the 2019 movie adaptation of the book some years ago - which was, in my opinion, pretty good based on my limited interactions with the book. However, now that I am in the midst of reading / listening to the audio adaptation of the book, it is, TO NO ONE’S SURPRISE, how GREAT the book is. Knowing what is to come, the anticipation of how much the author will detail the events of Bigger’s choices was what was slowly eating me alive!! But alas, with no reason to read ahead as I know how the book ends, I will pushed through and read on. And it was indeed a great, yet profoundly depressing read.
Without diving too much into the overarching themes of the book, just know that burden of the black man (and black woman) ring ever so true and LOUDLY today. While we’ve come so far, so little about the sentiments of black and brown lives has changed. There’s still a deeply woven narrative of hate that this country has continuously failed to address at a larger scale. The disproportionate realities that are justified with false senses of security that “it could be worse.” As if what is, is ok!?! When undoubtedly it is not okay. It goes against the very performative principle that all “men are created equal.” So, just know, in reading this book, that all lives cannot matter until black (and brown) lives matter.
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Ghost Boys
- De: Jewell Parker Rhodes
- Narrado por: Miles Harvey
- Duración: 2 h y 51 m
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Twelve-year-old Jerome is shot by a police officer who mistakes his toy gun for a real threat. As a ghost, he observes the devastation that's been unleashed on his family and community in the wake of what they see as an unjust and brutal killing.
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Ghost Boys was AWESOME
- De Packbuck en 03-28-19
- Ghost Boys
- De: Jewell Parker Rhodes
- Narrado por: Miles Harvey
Ghost Boys
Revisado: 02-12-25
Ghost Boys is somehow a heartwarming and heartbreaking book, all in one. It is a story about racism and the ramifications of blind prejudice. It is a story about life and death. It is a story about history, the good, the bad and the ugly of it all. It is a story about THEN and a story about NOW. How far we’ve come and how far we still have left to go.
It is reality - sadly - for many black and brown families who’ve lost someone they loved to senseless police brutality. It is reality for black and brown kids and adults that have to wake up each day and pray they are not made famous due to their death at the hands of the very people sworn to protect: the police. It is reality. And it hurts. And it’s infuriating. And while all this is TRUE, yet another thing is true too, progress and healing.
This book takes a glance into some of the progress and some of the healing that has occurred and will eventually occur as time passes. It’s a story about HOPE. Hope for a better tomorrow.
Please read this book for yourself and to your kids (if you are a parent). Because once you know better, you inherently desire to do and be better!
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Where Sleeping Girls Lie
- De: Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
- Narrado por: Natalie Simpson
- Duración: 16 h y 57 m
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In Where Sleeping Girls Lie—a YA contemporary mystery by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, the New York Times-bestselling author of Ace of Spades—a girl new to boarding school discovers dark secrets and coverups after her roommate disappears.
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This would be good for a teenager
- De Tee Raman en 04-25-25
- Where Sleeping Girls Lie
- De: Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
- Narrado por: Natalie Simpson
Where Sleeping Girls Lie
Revisado: 02-12-25
This book had been on my "TBR" list for some time and, finally, I got around to it this year.
Where Sleeping Girls Lie is a book highlighting the trauma that comes with silence and complicity in the commonplace culture of rape and assault. It dives into the consequence of allowing rape and assault culture to be "brushed over" or "looked past" to maintain the status quo or not tarnish the reputation of an institution or individual with "power." Far too often, those with "power" (perceived or financially) get away with their dirty bidding. Leaving in their wake victims silenced out of fear of victim blame/shame or even more severe consequences - as illustrated in this book through the attempted murder of one of the victims. This book dives into uncovering the things done in the dark and giving light to them.
We learn about the importance of speaking out - even despite the outcome. We learn the importance of therapy and how it can shift the perspective of those afflicted by grief, trauma, anxiety, and whatever else may haunt them. We learn the importance of friendship and companionship. It has once been noted that growth cannot solely occur in insolation. To grow through and get through trauma, you need the help of others - which is something our lead character in this book learns and ultimately embraces.
It is also a story about forgiveness, grace, giving space, acceptance, and love. It is a story about women's rights and their voices not being silenced by men who wield a false sense of security in their misogyny. It is a story about resilience and triumph. It is a good read - a triggering one - but definitely, a good read because these moments are too common among women and young girls (and men too - whilst this book does not focus on that side of the coin).
In the context of this book, may we learn to teach our men and boys the importance and NECESSITY for consent - SOBER CONSENT. Plain and simple. Using drugs to gain consent is NOT CONSENT. Forcing someone in any manner or with any substance is NOT CONSENT. And until the consequences fit the severity of the actions this will continue to be an unspoken yet spoken issue. May we get to a point where women (and men) do not have to hashtag "Me Too." May we see a day when sexual abuse and rape are punished accordingly and not just swept under the rug.
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Presumed Innocent
- De: Scott Turow
- Narrado por: Edward Herrmann
- Duración: 15 h y 34 m
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Rusty Sabich, family man and the number-two prosecutor of Kindle County, is handed an explosive case—the brutal murder of a woman who happens to be his former lover. A shocking turn of events suddenly transforms him from the accuser into the accused... and plunges him into a nightmare world where nothing seems real and no one can be PRESUMED INNOCENT.
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Excellent Book, Gripping Entertainment!
- De Glen en 04-16-10
- Presumed Innocent
- De: Scott Turow
- Narrado por: Edward Herrmann
Presumed Innocent
Revisado: 01-20-25
Presumed Innocent, along with a handful of other books I've read this year where I watched the limited series or movie adaptation prior, followed in line with my book-to-film/TV adaptation kick I've been on. Naturally, I watched the limited Apple TV series and was immediately hooked. I knew I had to read the book - if there was one. And to my delight, not only was there a book but it was part of a bigger series. So, like a moth to the flame, burned by the fire, I was ENGULFED.
As suspected, the book, provided more insight into the gaps in the storyline from the TV adaptation but a different feel to the story in general. In fact, there were quite a bit creative liberties taken with the TV adaptation that had NOT been written in the book. While it didn't necessarily take away from the story, it does leave a different feel. All in all, both are great in their rights, and I recommend you read the book and then watch the limited series to avoid that, "Oh, this is NOTHING like the book feeling." That way you go in knowing that the book was just an "outline" for the show and not an exact step-by-step blueprint.
The book (and the show) do a wonderful job of highlighting the fact that everything is not all as it seems. As well as, that whatever is done in the dark, will eventually come to light. It explores the complexities of marriage dynamics, sexual desires, and family. It looks at how breaking the sacred bond of marriage, the betrayal of a loved one, and the scorned heart can lead to actions of greater consequence than the act that spurred it. It is a tale as old as time but a tale that rings true in this time as these stories happen more often than not. Love, as they say, can make one do unimaginable things. Nonetheless, great read. I'll be continuing the series for sure!
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The Yellow Wife
- A Novel
- De: Sadeqa Johnson
- Narrado por: Robin Miles
- Duración: 9 h y 31 m
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Born on a plantation in Charles City, Virginia, Pheby Delores Brown has lived a relatively sheltered life. Shielded by her mother’s position as the estate’s medicine woman and cherished by the Master’s sister, she is set apart from the others on the plantation, belonging to neither world. She’d been promised freedom on her eighteenth birthday, but instead of the idyllic life she imagined with her true love, Essex Henry, Pheby is forced to leave the only home she has ever known. She unexpectedly finds herself thrust into the bowels of slavery at the infamous Devil’s Half Acre.
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A Real page turner
- De Elizabeth Early en 01-19-21
- The Yellow Wife
- A Novel
- De: Sadeqa Johnson
- Narrado por: Robin Miles
Yellow Wife
Revisado: 01-20-25
Yellow Wife is a great read for a period / historical-based body of work. Though it has triggering moments - as any story about slavery does - it is truly a great story about the coming age of a young mixed black girl into womanhood at the tail-end of slavery.
This book explores not only the horrors of slavery, but also dives into colorism within the "colored" community that was a direct spawn of slavery (the favoring of fairer-skinned blacks over darker skinned blacks – which still has negative implications today), womanhood set in a world of patriarchy, motherhood, and the ferocity of a mother determined to protect her own, the importance of education and how it is the FIRST TOOL to free one's mind (even if one's body is enslaved), mental health, self-preservation, love, hate, and the resilience to fight the powers at be at any means necessary. This book looks into the dynamics of women and men and general gender roles as well as the idea of "passing" and all that comes along with it in a time where being black in America could easily cost you your freedom (or life).
This book is a great and digestible read on a horrific period in American history that is slowly being pushed out of the history books to preserve the sanity of the people whose ancestors BENEFITED most from this era. It is a gentle but poignant reminder that good will always outweigh evil. That life is NOT WITHOUT LAUGHTER even in the scariest of times. That life is NOT WITHOUT LOVE in the most hateful of times. That life is NOT WITHOUT HOPE in the darkest of times. It is a symbol of our people (black people) and how we overcame adversity knowing that it could cost us our own life in the process. There is something poetic about the selflessness of protecting those you care for by any means necessary, praying that, in the long run, it will all work out in the end.
Though this was not always the case in many stories of enslaved families, this story was a great historical account of a family that was torn apart, brought back together (even if briefly), and then torn apart again to SAVE its preservation that had, for the most part, a realistic and happy-enough-ending. A tiny miracle. Also, it is a story based on true accounts – a moment in time that happened many centuries ago. So, it adds a heavier level of realness that humbles the mind.
While we have come a long way from some of the more blatant atrocities of slavery, we still, carry the brunt of history's ill intentions on us as a people (black people). We still must fight for the simple right of equality - the equality that all men (& women) are created equal to this very day. Though the fight looks different now, it is still a fight that persists. So, this book almost foreshadows some of the struggles we (as people of color) still face throughout this country, but especially in the south (or antebellum southern region). However, one thing does always ring true: the power of KNOWING. The power of education, and its gateway to FREEING one's mind. The moments in which the lead character made it a point to INSTILL in those around – especially her own children – the teachings of her own mother that you are only a SLAVE in FLESH and NEVER IN YOUR MIND. Knowledge was power – and our oppressors knew that. So, denying us a simple education was a systematic and strategic way of keeping our minds enslaved. I appreciated that the lead character did all in her power to TEACH those in her life how being educated would keep their mind shackle free. As the late and great Nelson Mandela once voiced, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” And as time would eventually, tell, we (black people) SLOWLY, but surely changed the world.
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Where Do We Go From Here
- From A Call to Conscience
- De: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrado por: Martin Luther King Jr.
- Duración: 1 h y 16 m
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Where Do We Go From Here is a selection from A Call to Conscience, a milestone collection of Dr. King's most influential and best-known speeches. Presented here with an introduction written and read by Senator Edward M. Kennedy.
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Timeless!
- De Anonymous User en 01-10-09
- Where Do We Go From Here
- From A Call to Conscience
- De: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Narrado por: Martin Luther King Jr.
A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches
Revisado: 01-20-25
I am paying homage to the late, great Reverand Doctor Martin Luther King Jr., on Martin Luther King Jr. Day by listening to some audiobooks of many of his various works. So, I kicked off my listening spree with a classic, "A Call to Conscience: The Landmark Speeches."
While I've read a handful of his works throughout my schooling years - middle through college - I've been doing my best, in my adulthood, to circle back to many of these pieces of literature to gain a deeper understanding. I have learned, as I’ve aged, that many of these great pieces of literary works resonate differently with me now that my lived experience is colored with biases, discrimination, and judgment passed upon me, circumstances that have shaped my livelihood, and a slew of other factors that color my perspectives and influence the way I receive (and return) information. So, it’s been a beautiful journey revisiting these literary works and seeing how they FILL and COLOR my thoughts now. Many times, I find my overarching sentiment has been upheld through all these years, and other times I find I discover new understandings and appreciations for stances I may not have once fully agreed upon. Nonetheless, I knew I wanted to take a trip down a powerful and influential memory lane. To walk in the direction of faith and unwavering belief that the DREAM Reverand Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once had, is still a DREAM that persists today. Though it has taken on new shapes, and the battles fought now are still not too different from the battles fought then, and progress is still slow, there remains this sliver of HOPE. Slow and steady wins the race, they say, and I still must believe in that HOPE and that DREAM, that one day we will be, “Free at last. Free at last. Thank God, Almighty, we are free at last.” Until then, the battle will rage on.
So, if you have not already, please take some time today to indulge in some of Reverand Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s greatest literary works/speeches. On this momentous day, celebrating and honoring his legacy, it's just befitting to do so.
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Do Not Disturb
- De: Freida McFadden
- Narrado por: Holly Adams, Daniel Thomas May
- Duración: 7 h y 53 m
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Quinn Alexander has committed an unthinkable crime. To avoid spending her life in prison, Quinn makes a run for it. She leaves behind her home, her job, and her family. She grabs her passport and heads for the northern border before the police can discover what she's done. But when an unexpected snowstorm forces her off the road, Quinn must take refuge at the broken-down, isolated Baxter Motel. The handsome and kindly owner, Nick Baxter, is only too happy to offer her a cheap room for the night. Unfortunately, the Baxter Motel isn't the quiet safe haven it seemed to be.
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Good story
- De Ana Camp en 10-24-22
- Do Not Disturb
- De: Freida McFadden
- Narrado por: Holly Adams, Daniel Thomas May
Do Not Disturb
Revisado: 01-06-25
Okay, now, Freida! You had your girl with this one here!
Continuing my Freida McFadden nose dive, I started on a selection recommendation from a friend. As she had already read Do Not Disturb and told me it was a WILD RIDE, I knew this would be my next read. And my oh my, she did not disappoint with this one. While I still complain that the twist reveals at the end seems to come at you quickly and that they feel out of place, I am now starting to think this is the intent.
Quite like my first read into the McFadden universe, this book was a slow build and quick reveal. However, that reveal, that TWIST, was something I DID NOT SEE COMING. In fact, there were two well-placed surprises and of the two, the one about Greta had to be my favorite. I always had a sneaking suspicion of Greta but I could never place my finger on it. So, that reveal with really NICE and I wish we got a bit more of Greta and her POV throughout the book. As for Quinn's sister being the EVIL one, that was a shocker! Once we got to the point in the book where her POV revealed her true colors, it was on and popping. Standard snapped episode. It also goes to show that blood is NOT always thicker than water. Your family can be your own worst enemy.
I was happy Quinn survived as did everyone else that Quinn's sister tried to take out. I'll be continuing my deep dive into the McFadden world.
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Their Eyes Were Watching God
- De: Zora Neale Hurston
- Narrado por: Ruby Dee
- Duración: 6 h y 44 m
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Their Eyes Were Watching God, an American classic, is the luminous and haunting novel about Janie Crawford, a Southern Black woman in the 1930s, whose journey from a free-spirited girl to a woman of independence and substance has inspired writers and readers for close to 70 years.
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perfection
- De Mel en 04-06-15
- Their Eyes Were Watching God
- De: Zora Neale Hurston
- Narrado por: Ruby Dee
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Revisado: 07-12-24
My oh my!
WHAT A BOOK!!! 📚🥹 Janie was in LOVE!! And it was a LOVE she chose. It had its ups and downs but it brought her a happiness and a peace she had not known prior. In the end, that’s all many (if not all) seek: happiness and peace. In whatever form takes.
“Love is like the sea. It’s a moving thing, but it takes the shape of every shore it meets… And it’s different with every shore...” *snaps fingers melodically* ♥️🫶🏾♥️
Whewwwww… just go 🗣️ READ THE BOOK!!!
It is richly pregnant with just a little bit of everything, down to the empowerment and independence of women, the the notion of being seen versus heard, race relations, gender equity, the pursuit of happiness, nature vs. humanity, and so much more!! It is just a BOX of chocolates 🍫 like Forrest Gump would say! And each bite was pretty darn good!
I loved it!! Every bit of it!! ♥️ Ten ten tens across the board!! 👏🏾👏🏾 Also, may I add, it was so nice hearing about cities throughout Florida and how they were “back then” and comparing them to my reality now. What a different world. However, as different as these cities may have been physically, so much has also remained the same. It is a TREAT to hear Florida come to life on a page!! What a nice change of pace from the landscape it is today - considering the ISSUES we face now.
Anyway, I repeat: 🗣️GO READ THE BOOK!! (Or Re-Read if you’ve read before!!)
It’s definitely a book worthy of READING numerous times!
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The Butterfly Girl
- A Novel
- De: Rene Denfeld
- Narrado por: Alyssa Bresnahan
- Duración: 7 h y 34 m
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A year ago, Naomi, the investigator with an uncanny ability for finding missing children, made a promise that she would not take another case until she finds the younger sister who has been missing for years. Naomi has no picture, not even a name. All she has is a vague memory of a strawberry field at night, black dirt under her bare feet as she ran for her life.
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Bummed!
- De Anissa B. en 10-17-19
- The Butterfly Girl
- A Novel
- De: Rene Denfeld
- Narrado por: Alyssa Bresnahan
The Butterfly Girl
Revisado: 03-15-24
This book came into my radar from reading through a list of popular books on the GoodReads website - which I tend to do from time to time. So, I went ahead and purchased it because the premise of the book intrigued me. Now, once I got into the thick of it all, the story really opened up for me. I’ll admit, it’s a slow burn though - almost a little too slow but once it revs up it keeps you in. I appreciated how the author would blend the surrealism of the characters inner worlds into the, often times, stark and dark realities of their real world. It was a lovely way to highlight how the power of the mind can transform and transport you to places of solace to keep you alive in hardest of circumstances. Overall, good book! Now that I know there was book prior to this, I’ll be picking up a copy of that too. The author has made me a fan of her works!!
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