There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé

"But one day your shit will be unbelievably together." ~ pg. 76

Let me be the first to admit: I judge books by its cover. I also judge books by its title. So when I came across There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé in my Goodreads feed, I immediately became curious. Call it a stan reflex. When the order arrived, I read the blurbs first. Very convincing! And it won a literary award in 2017. But it was the inside flap language, with a touch of blasphemy, that made me dive into this book of poetry.

"The only thing more beautiful than Beyoncé is God, and God is a black woman sipping rosé and drawing a lavender bath, texting her mom, belly-laughing in the therapist's office, feeling unloved, being on display, daring to survive." 

There are 42 poems meant to evoke emotion, hurt, pride and unity. I could relate to some, while others read like a riddle. Nevertheless, this collection is a celebration of Black American womanhood.

Title: There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé
Author: Morgan Parker
Published: February 2017
Pages: 85
Edition: Paperback
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

 

Whiskey & Ribbons

"My life used to have color. Now it's monochromatic." ~ pg. 110

Life continues after loss. We may not feel it is possible at the time of grief. We may not want to move on. But the world does not stop; loss is a major part of life that cannot be avoided. Heal the best way you know how.

Told in three points of view, alternating between past and present, is a story set in contemporary Louisville, Kentucky. Evi is a trained ballerina, nine months pregnant and snowed in during a blizzard. Her husband, Eamon, prepares for fatherhood and grapples with his dangerous profession as a police officer. He is killed in the line of duty on a hot morning in July. Now it is winter again and Eamon's brother moves in with Evi to help raise the six-month-old baby.

"And now I was burdened with a secret that was never mine. A secret on loan." ~ pg. 174

Leesa Cross-Smith, may I have a word with you? The audacity to invade my literary life and take my imagination away from the real world to focus on characters you created. The dialogue and descriptive scenes demanded my undivided attention. Certain chapters forced me to think about how I handled losses I'd experienced; questioning whether I really moved on. Oh, the power you had over my time while slowly turning the pages of this well-written book! Taking in every sentence.

No, it was not a page-turner. No, I did not rush reading. I haven't read a book this slow in ages! I took the advice of my bookhearts (#PrissInBooks, #ReadInColour, Keyona Chocolate-Covered-Pages and Author D.L. White) and savored every word. Thanks for the recommendation, y'all! And thank YOU, Leesa Cross-Smith for gifting readers with Whiskey & Ribbons. I know it's only May but this is the best book I've read this year!

I don't drink whiskey but I definitely advise bookhearts to 1) read Whiskey & Ribbons at your leisure and 2) sip your favorite adult beverage while reading this novel. It is meant to be consumed at a slower than normal pace; savor the flavor. Put everything else on hold to discover what it means to really heal.

Title: Whiskey & Ribbons
Author: Leesa Cross-Smith
Published: March 2018
Pages: 259
Edition: Hardcover
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

 

Raising Kanye

"I always wanted my son to feel free to express himself." ~ pg. 78

Donda West is the deceased mother of hip-hop superstar and fashion designer, Kanye West. This book, Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Superstar, was published six months before she passed away. It is about lessons she learned being a single mother in a black community and raising a son with strong moral values. She even explains his reputation as a "mama's boy" and excuses his outbursts. I get the idea she was the type of mother who thought her child did no wrong. In fact, this book was moreso how Kanye helped shape Dr. Donda to be the woman she was.

So why did I pick up this book eleven years after it's been published? Well, I wanted to get more insight into Kanye given his recent erratic actions. Was his childhood privileged or a struggle? Did he always speak before thinking? Did his arrogance start at a young age or when fame and fortune hit? A few of my questions were answered but mostly, I got a sense of his upbringing. The year spent in China, living in Chicago and the separation of his parents was discussed in detail. As were his experiences in the music industry. Donda West did not skimp on the inside scoop.

"And in a society where our legacy is surely the love of our forefathers but also the hate of slave masters, it is imperative that parents consciously teach the love of self, the courage of Malcolm, the wisdom of Martin, the tenacity of Marcus." ~ pg. 85

I won't speak ill of an angel; so let's just say I now understand the origin of Kanye's views. Sadly, I also understand how close Kanye was to his mother. They were best friends. I cannot imagine the pain and heartache. The absence of conversating (it's now a real word!) with a like-minded person must feel lonely. Holding onto thoughts until he bursts into a rant that the general public does not understand. Reading Raising Kanye did not stop my side-eye but I now have patience with Kanye's antics. It is coming from a sincere place on a level not everyone understands. Bookhearts, let us not write him off just yet. I hope he finds peace and stability.

SideNote: Dare I say that I like four out of seven songs on Kanye West's new album, ye.

Title: Raising Kanye: Life Lessons from the Mother of a Hip-Hop Superstar
Author: Donda West
Published: May 2007
Pages: 237
Edition: PDF
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤

 

US vs. UK

The UK is my hometown glory but I live in the US. And it is our Memorial Day! The US vs. UK bookish meme compares book covers published in the two countries. Enjoy the battle of the book covers!

US vs. UK

• The Family Lawyer ~ Both covers show a person running away. But the UK version looks like an actual lawyer running to court versus a random lady at a boat dock. UK wins 🇬🇧
• A Spark of Light ~ Again a similar concept but the US cover most fits the spring/summer season. It reminds me of cotton candy or tie-dye. US wins 🇺🇸
• Barracoon ~ This is such an easy choice. Of course I pick the book cover with the larger picture of the last slave. A fine example of Black Don't Crack. US wins 🇺🇸

Total: US 41; UK 39

Series Sunday: Tempest

(Old West #3) 

Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Read an installment of a series.
• Share your review/recommendation below.
• Include the title, author and series name.

My Series Sunday pick is Tempest, the third and final book in the Old West series by Beverly Jenkins. Greeting your husband-to-be with a bullet is probably not the best idea. But it was an honest mistake. Mail-order bride, Regan Carmichael, is an independent woman with plans to marry a man she's never met. Widower Dr. Colton Lee is seeking a wife not for love but to care for his daughter. He doesn't expect a fierce beautiful woman that can literally shoot her shot. Tempest is the story of making this match a true union. 

"The United States was only twenty years past the horrors of slavery, and although his father's side had been free before Emancipation, his mother's side had been free for only a generation." ~ pg. 284

Funny how I am not a history buff. Nor do I like westerns. And I especially do not like cheesy book covers. But damnit if I do not love this Old West series by Beverly Jenkins. In true Cass Technician fashion, Jenkins is thorough in her research, providing readers with history education and a love story worth swooning over. Tempest was the best ending to the trilogy. I wish there was more!

Title: Tempest

Author: Beverly Jenkins

Published: January 2018

Pages: 348

Edition: Paperback

Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

First Lines Friday - Memoir Memorial Weekend

First Lines Friday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.

• Grab your current read(s).
• Share the first line(s).
• Include the title and author.

"After two weeks of intensely working out, I had lost not one fucking pound!"

~ The Mother of Black Hollywood by Jenifer Lewis

"On March 6, 2000, I stepped to the podium at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City to accept Earth, Wind & Fire's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In my acceptance speech, I told the audience that establishing the band's place in history had been a hard road, but a good road."

~ My Life with Earth, Wind, & Fire by Maurice White

"He was about seven months old when I first noticed it."

~ Raising Kanye by Donda West

Barracoon

"I want to look lak I in Affica, 'cause dat where I want to be." ~ pg. 113

In late 1927, Zora Neale Hurston conducted a series of interviews with the last known surviving African of the last American slaver. Oluale Kossola, also called Cudjo Lewis, was 86 years old at the time. He recalled memories of his childhood in Takkoi, the attack of female warriors, seeing jawbones snatched and decapitated heads of his family and townspeople. He was held at the barracoon, enslaved in America, then lived through the Civil War and Jim Crow to tell about it. He trusted and shared his life story with Zora Neale Hurston over the span of three months.

Look at the book cover above and let this fact sink in. Of all the millions of people captured and transported from Africa to America, Cudjo Lewis was the only man left. His illegal journey from Africa to Alabama, United States was aboard the fastest slave ship called Clotilda under the guise of shipping red palm oil. It would turn out to be the last voyage. The thought alone makes me shiver.

"How does one sleep with such memories beneath the pillow?" ~ pg. 16

Barracoon has elements of folklore, traditional storytelling and historical data. But it is told in a way that is not up for interpretation. It is Cudjo Lewis' life story as told by himself. Thanks to the dialogue written as Cudjo pronounced it, I can picture Zora Neale Hurston eating sweet Georgia peaches and ice cold watermelon* as Cudjo gets lost in thought and shares details from a cargo's point of view. Most times it was hard to understand but about halfway through, I picked up on certain words (de=the; Afficka=Africa; doan=don't; astee=ask). *Please note this is not a stereotype that I threw in my review. They really did commune over watermelon under the shade of his China-berry tree.

"My folks sell me and yo folks (Americans) buy me." ~ pg. 68

I have to be careful reading books like this. The ways of our good ole' country and its treatment of blacks usually rile me up. But surprisingly, it was not the content that made me angry. Barracoon was completed back in 1931. How this story of the last "black cargo" took so long to find a taker and be published is beyond me. It's been nearly a century! Perhaps because there is no sugar-coating that Africans were not only victims, but participants, of the slave trade. Yeah, go ahead and swallow that pill. This nugget of truth is just one of many that makes Barracoon a hard read. Alice Walker says, "We are being shown the wound."

At the risk of sounding like a school book report, I will now end this review with a recommendation. Bookhearts drawn to black history, nonfiction and a good word from novelist/folklorist/anthropologist, Zora Neale Hurston, will appreciate this new release.

Title: Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo"
Author: Zora Neale Hurston
Published: May 2018
Pages: 171
Edition: Hardcover
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤