Day 5 – It’s a family affair!  

I have quite a few possibilities on my shelves with this theme but the book that came to my mind first was The Darkest Child by Delores Phillips.  Now to be honest, this book has been sitting on my shelves for over 2 years. Why? Because I’m not sure I can bear reading the abuse that I imagine it contains and that my followers on Instagram have subsequently confirmed.  However, every single person has said they loved the book and that I should read it, even though it’s emotionally challenging.  So that gives you an idea on whether you should pick it up if you haven’t already.

The author of this book Delores Phillips passed away suddenly in 2014.  This special edition pictured contains an introduction by Tayari Jones and an excerpt from the author’s unfinished sequel called Stumbling Blocks.  So I recommend you pick up this edition (ISBN: 9781616958725).  The Darkest Child also won the Black Caucus of the ALA Award and was a nominee for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award.  An interesting tidbit about The Darkest Child is its beginnings, a long form poem written over a four-year period.  In the end, Phillips decided to make it into a novel seeing that it counted several hundred pages.

Day 6 – Author on the Come Up

C.P. Patrick is definitely the author on the come up!  I was introduced to her writing when I picked up her debut novel called The Truth About Awiti.  What a creative, original fashion to recount a slave narrative.  I highly recommend this one to people who have given up on reading about slavery.  This story has just the right amount of spirituality to keep the reader engrossed until the end.  With its mysterious cover, The Truth About Awiti definitely follows in the footsteps of the great Octavia E. Butler.

Patrick has also written Dear Ancestors: poems and reflections on the Arican Diaspora which is a piece written in verse about the Middle Passage.  It too recounts the history of slavery in all its emotion and accuracy.  Each word has been chosen carefully to convey particular images and meaning.  It’s brilliant and surprisingly celebratory!  It weighs in only at 75 pages so you can read it in one sitting or even twice in a row like I did.

Patrick is also working on series of children’s books the first telling the important stories of our history(Each book features an important person from history like Harriet Tubman and Joan of Arc) and the second series is called Ana & Andrew.  She’s been touring elementary schools talking about history.  If you’re interested in learning more about her writing for children, go to her Instagram page, @afrominimalist to follow more of her writing journey. 

If you’d like to pick up a copy of any of my recommendations or just shop for yourself please consider clicking my affiliate link for The Book Depository.  It would be much appreciated. It will help fund my incessant book buying, reading, and reviewing. Thank you!

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