Tag: white supremacy

REVIEW: Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

REVIEW: Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary

Lula Dean is on a crusade to rid the town libraries of “pornography.” It doesn’t matter that the erotic cookbook was put on a shelf as a prank. Lula has found her calling.

Beverly Underwood has been Lula Dean’s long-time nemesis. And as the head of the school board, Beverly has a front row seat as Lula and her “Concerned Parents Committee” attack the various school and public libraries with their “righteous” intensions. And the townsfolks are ready to watch the “filth” burn. Beverly is blindsided by the whole thing. But her college-aged daughter, Lindsay, is inspired to action.

In the dark of night, Lindsay swaps out the prim books in Lula’s Little Free Library for the banned titles confiscated from Lula’s crusade, setting them inside the jackets of Lula’s “approved” titles.

And then people in the town start reading those banned books – without Lula noticing.

Review

What a brilliant story! Once the premise is set up, most of the chapters focus on one person and one book from Lula’s library – and how reading that book changes something for them. It’s a series of fascinating short stories from a variety of perspectives.

Positioned around those vignettes is the larger story of Lula, Beverly, and the town. It’s stunning – like watching something get woven together. In the end as the threads are finally pulled taut, you see the whole picture come together in a way that is nothing short of brilliant. It’s a creative structure that elevates an excellent story to a whole other level. (I feel the same way about The Candymakers for kids.)

This is thought-provoking – and funny. But it’s also grim at times. I was captivated by the folks in this town and the way books influenced families and kids and siblings and spouses. The ending is supremely satisfying – including an epilogue from 2034 that was more than I even hoped for.

This will definitely be one of the top reads for me in 2024!

(Language, some sexual content. TW: racism, homophobia, rape, gun violence, suicide, white supremacy/Christian nationalism)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥♥ – Outstanding!

BONUS REVIEW: The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

BONUS REVIEW: The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

Posted on by Jaymie

Summary and Review

The Color of Compromise: The Truth about the American Church’s Complicity in Racism originally published in 2019, and it sat on my reading wishlist forever. My local bookstore never carried it in 2019. And when I had the opportunity to order a new book, I almost always chose a fictional adventure instead. I knew this was not going to be a “feel good” read for me.

But when the paperback released earlier this year, my local store had copies ordered for a Black History Month display. I was picking up some other books on racism and white supremacy, and I grabbed this as well. It was time.

I can read a fiction novel in a day or two without trying hard. This took me almost a whole month to finish – not because it was bad but because the truth was so hard to read. And even though I finished this months ago, it is a timely read now, in the middle of 2020, too, not just during Black History Month.

This book changed me, changed my thinking and my understanding. It changes not only how I see the Church and the state of our country today, but also how I see myself. And I am challenged by the author’s call to live out James 4:17 – “If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” It is not time for silence or for fear. It is time to put the words and actions of Jesus into practice.

This book covers the history of race in America from the Colonial era to today. Concepts of racial identity and oppression are explored in the history of the country and also in where the Christian Church stood on the issues of the times. While the author is very clear “all Christians” aren’t complicit, it’s still an unflattering portrait of the Church. And readers are forced to consider, from the “enlightened” 21st Century, if we would have been on the side of right if we had lived in those times.

I am grateful for the chapters on where people of faith should go from here. There are many great ideas. I am also challenged because I am tired. I feel the weight of these stories, and I’d love to move on to something more pleasant. And that is sin – to know and to hide from action. To see the truth and ignore it is a primary example of White Privilege. It dishonors my friends who are people of color who live this every day. It dishonors the call of Jesus to love my neighbor.

So, one of my actions is to write about and talk about and recommend this book. It’s not the only action I’ve taken this year, but it is one piece.

If you love history, if you are feeling challenged to face systems of White Supremacy – or your own privilege, if you are a person of faith, do not miss this book. This December you will be able to pick up a study guide that will go with a video series on this book. If you have a membership to MasterLectures from ZondervanAcademic (which I do – it’s awesome!), you can watch the video series there right now.

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

REVIEW: Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad

REVIEW: Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

The author, a Black Muslim writer, speaker, and teacher, created a free 28-day Instagram challenge about white supremacy. That turned into a free pdf workbook which was then updated and expanded into this traditionally published book. It begins with a forward by Robin DiAngela, a white anti-racist educator. Then Ms. Saad gives the history of the book and a bit of her personal story. Then she very clearly outlines the WORK the reader will be doing if they are serious about digging into their own relationship with white supremacy.

This is not supposed to be easy work. And it’s not one-and-done work. Readers will get out of the process what they put in. They’ll benefit even more if they revisit it and keep learning and growing.

The writing style for this is great. It’s conversational while also being honest and direct. The daily work tends to be five or so pages of reading with five to eight reflection questions for the reader to consider and journal about. And these questions aren’t about generic “white people.” They are personal, about you, the reader. The questions will require self-examination and significant self-awareness. This is why this can’t be a one-and-done sort of exercise. As awareness grows, there is value in revisiting these principles and questions.

Review

I was challenged by what I read in this book. I know there are things in the world, and in myself, that I am blind to. And this book inspired me to want to do the work and dig into these things. I know it will be difficult and not really “fun,” but it will be worthwhile. As soon as I finished reading through my review copy, I ordered an official copy that will be here later this week. My plan is to spend February, Black History Month, working through this 28-day exercise. The timing couldn’t be more perfect.

So, I can’t say what the process of completing this book/workbook will be like in this review. I can’t really know until I dig in and do the work. I can say that I was drawn in and challenged by the opening pages of this. And I feel this is the next step in my journey of seeing myself and the world around me more honestly in terms of race and racism and white supremacy. I can tell this will require a lot of prayer – to see and reflect on my own white privilege, white fragility, etc. If I am afraid to see it, I can’t root it out and replace it with things that honor BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) the way God intended.

I encourage readers to pick this up and begin your own journey with the material. I don’t feel like I can give this five stars without having actually done the work of the book, but everything I have read so far is excellent. Be sure to pick this one up!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½