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oyceterHaving forgotten to go to the library sale yesterday, I went twice today (once for first picks, once for the bag sale). I now have even more books.
In between, I sauntered about the library looking for even more even more books, woefully handicapped by the fact that I couldn't access LJ for recs (all the internet computers were being used). I managed to actually talk to real people and ask the librarian at the Teen Zone (new one, not same one from knitting) for recs for YA books by people of color, preferably women. She thought I was a high school or college student for a bit, hee hee. I got several nice lists from her, checked out The House on Mango Street and browsed the YA section, but I figure LJ knows all.
So, anyone have recs for good books by and/or about people of color? My general preference is for books by and/or about women of color, preferably YA, preferably fantasy. I have read Stormwitch and Zahrah the Windseeker and loved them both, and I already know about Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Amy Tan, Maxine Hong Kingston, Gus Lee, Marjane Satrapi, Geoff Ryman, Nalo Hopkinson, Gail Tsukiyama and Kyoko Mori, although book recs for Hopkinson, Tsukiyama and Mori would be nice.
What I really want is something like Stormwitch or Zahrah the Windseeker. I want something about girls of color kicking ass and growing up. I randomly browsed through some adult books by Asian Americans (I accidentally wandered into the Ch section -- Chiu, Choi, Chu, etc.), and I put most books down despite really wanting to read more about people of color. I don't really feel like reading a sad, depressing story about people dealing with hate and race relations and the difficulty of being a POC; I know that stuff. I don't mind those elements in the book, but I want the story itself to be about kicking ass and taking charge, about women and girls finding power within themselves and changing things.
I don't mind books about female POC written by white people, though I would prefer that the books not be centered around whiteness and white people dealing with race (ex. Han Nolan's A Summer of Kings, which I may read some other time but am not in the mood for now).
All POC are good, though bonus points for Latin-American (as opposed to Mexican or Chicano), South-American, African, Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian including Indian fiction, as I have read much less of those and not seen much of those recced at all.
Uh, so do these books I am hankering to read actually exist? Where can I find them? What have you guys read?
In between, I sauntered about the library looking for even more even more books, woefully handicapped by the fact that I couldn't access LJ for recs (all the internet computers were being used). I managed to actually talk to real people and ask the librarian at the Teen Zone (new one, not same one from knitting) for recs for YA books by people of color, preferably women. She thought I was a high school or college student for a bit, hee hee. I got several nice lists from her, checked out The House on Mango Street and browsed the YA section, but I figure LJ knows all.
So, anyone have recs for good books by and/or about people of color? My general preference is for books by and/or about women of color, preferably YA, preferably fantasy. I have read Stormwitch and Zahrah the Windseeker and loved them both, and I already know about Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Amy Tan, Maxine Hong Kingston, Gus Lee, Marjane Satrapi, Geoff Ryman, Nalo Hopkinson, Gail Tsukiyama and Kyoko Mori, although book recs for Hopkinson, Tsukiyama and Mori would be nice.
What I really want is something like Stormwitch or Zahrah the Windseeker. I want something about girls of color kicking ass and growing up. I randomly browsed through some adult books by Asian Americans (I accidentally wandered into the Ch section -- Chiu, Choi, Chu, etc.), and I put most books down despite really wanting to read more about people of color. I don't really feel like reading a sad, depressing story about people dealing with hate and race relations and the difficulty of being a POC; I know that stuff. I don't mind those elements in the book, but I want the story itself to be about kicking ass and taking charge, about women and girls finding power within themselves and changing things.
I don't mind books about female POC written by white people, though I would prefer that the books not be centered around whiteness and white people dealing with race (ex. Han Nolan's A Summer of Kings, which I may read some other time but am not in the mood for now).
All POC are good, though bonus points for Latin-American (as opposed to Mexican or Chicano), South-American, African, Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian including Indian fiction, as I have read much less of those and not seen much of those recced at all.
Uh, so do these books I am hankering to read actually exist? Where can I find them? What have you guys read?
Re: Okorafor-Mbachu's next novel and more recommendations
Mon, Mar. 12th, 2007 09:47 pm (UTC)I feel that YA fantasy and science fiction could use a shot of ethnic and racial diversity.
So very much with you there. Particularly when it comes to women of color; when I was growing up, I can only vaguely remember reading one or two YA genre books with Asian girls (I think one was Lawrence Yep's dragon series). Now there are a few more, but I wish I could rattle off a list of ass-kicking girls of color in YA off the top of my head. And hopefully things like the Carl Brandon awards at Wiscon will help getting them promoted and read, since that's where I heard about Stormwitch and your book.
I'm also torn between wanting genre books that deal with real-world racial issues like Stormwitch does with the Civil Rights movement and wanting genre books that have fantasy non-white societies, like LeGuin's Voices. Preferably both! But I do want some confrontation of racial issues and young girls deriving a sense of power from that confrontation. I was reading the backs of YA books set in ancient Persia or somesuch, which is awesome, but doesn't talk about the issues that I currently want to read about. This is of course not to say that all books should talk about Race Issues with Capital Letters, because I love the non-European-mythology genre books as well. But just that... I think if I had read more ass-kicking girls dealing with race issues in fantasy growing up, it would have been really comforting and given me something to draw on.
Which is why I'm looking for them now!
And thanks for dropping by and for the recs; I will look those up! And am looking forward to your new book!