March is here. It’s a month representing Women’s Empowerment and one that represents knowledge through books. This month is National Reading Month. As someone who enjoys reading, this is a great time to celebrate. Being able to read whether for leisure or for education is a beautiful thing. The stories that form on these pages have transformed the world over the years because they can inspire, they can educate, they can be relatable, and they can bring joy to someone. Currently in our political climate, having access to some of these books at the appropriate time is being heavily regulated.
Many books have been banned in schools, mostly at the high school level where one can receive information better. Some of these have been around for decades if not years before, yet they still fell to the ban. A recent study has determined that most of the books banned are ones depicting people of color and LGBTQ+ stories. The issue with this is that we are at a time where most of the people in the country are people of color. Also, many people today are open about being a part of the LGBTQ+ community. Plus, more influence comes from social media/internet for adolescents in my opinion
For today, I would like to point out some of these banned books. Highlighting these books do not make them any better than another book. But, I have read them all at different points in my life. My hope is that we honor the hard work of these authors all while realizing that these stories are not made up. These stories depict real life. The life that many people have lived as well as the history that have impacted our country/world. Of course, there is an appropriate age to introduce these works to adolescents. But in a country where our history is dark, we must never erase these stories. The only thing we should be doing is accept these stories and learn from them as we move forward for the better.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
This was the first book that I read with a Women of Color Book Club I was a part of at the
time. The book was 400+ pages but I read it in 3 days. It came out during a time where
we were seeing so many police encounters with Black people turn deadly, but in this
young adult novel it involved teenagers.
The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
A book my family allowed me to read at 12 years old. It was my first adult book,
but with a story of a young girl around my age who deals with incest. This is a topic we
don’t like to talk about but is one that happens to many little girls around the
world. Many don’t speak up, so reading stories like this can influence more
girls to be aware of these situations depicted in this story and hopefully speak up if it happens.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
A book that I read in the 8th grade for school. At the time it was a joy to read and
one I still remember many years later. In it, we saw the mockingbird in two different people one
who was a white male and the other a black male during a time of racial segregation.
Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson
As our July 2023 Book Recommendation this story deals will child neglect/abuse,
mental health, trauma, and friendship. The book’s chapters go back and forth between
before and after a young girl name Monday goes missing and her best friend Claudia
seeks to find her.
Dear Martin by Nic Stone
A story I read a few years back that speak on the interaction
between a teenager and a police officer. While dealing with injustice in
the eye of the law you meet Justyce who uses the teachings of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to get through this time.
To all of you I wish you a Happy National Reading Month. May you continue to read books by authors of various backgrounds with different stories. Also, check out our monthly book recommendations here.
Well shared 💐