Book Blogger Hop No. 88: Reading Diverse or Own Voices Books

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This Week's Question

Do you read a lot of diverse or

own voices books?

Why or why not?

(Submitted  by Kitty @ 

Vicarious Bookworm)

My Answer

I must sheepishly confess that I haven't read that many diverse books.... This is something I really need to work on! 

I do remember reading To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, years ago, and this would supposedly count as a diverse book. However, this novel has been criticized as being racist. I've been thinking about this recently, and I have to say one thing about it: the main focus in the narrative is placed on Atticus Finch, the white lawyer who defends Tom Robinson, an African-American man accused of raping a white woman. From what I remember, the reader knows very little about Tom's life, except for the fact that he's accused of a crime that he did not commit. Atticus is portrayed as  not only a very skillful lawyer, but also as a very decent human being who tries to do the right thing in the face of blatant racial prejudice. But again, it's all about him and what a great, progressive lawyer he is. The novel also focuses on his children, Jean Louise, nicknamed "Scout", and Jeremy Atticus, nickamed "Jem", and how the trial affects them.

On the other hand, there's another African-American character included in the book -- Calpurnia, nicknamed "Cal". She is the Finch family housekeeper, and a mother figure for the Finch children, especially Scout.

It looks like I need to re-read this book, in order to assess it in light of the criticisms leveled against it. Of course, I would review it afterward, but not on this blog. I would do so on my other blog, MindSpirit Book Journeys, which is dedicated to classics, literary fiction, and nonfiction.

I recently read a nonfiction book by Martin Luther King, Jr., titled Why We Can't Wait. I've reviewed it on both of my blogs. You can read my review HERE.

I meant to add that I want to read Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. My blogger friend Brian, who blogs at Babbling Books, referred to it in his comment below, so I've come back to add this book to my post.

Hurston was a member of the Harlem Renaissance group of African-American writers. They were active from about 1918 to the mid-1930s. Although they were based in New York City's Harlem neighborhood, they influenced many African and Caribbean writers living in Paris, France.

Novels featuring other ethnic groups would also be interesting to me. I also recall reading, years ago, romance novels in which the hero was a Native American, and the female protagonist was white. This was way before I had even ONE blog, so of course none of those reviews appear on either of my two blogs. I could look up new Native American romances to read, which I could then review here at A Night's Dream of Books.

I need to read more books about Hispanic characters, as well. Back in August of last year, I read and reviewed a YA novel titled Future Shock, by Elizabeth Briggs. The female protagonist, Elena Martinez, is a Mexican-descent young woman who is the strong leader of a group of teens sent into the future. Thus, the book has a definite feminist viewpoint. It also includes a lesbian character, but no gay sex scenes, so I had no problem reading the story. (I explain further below.) You can find my review of this novel HERE.

I definitely want to read more diverse books, but I must honestly say that, for me, there are exceptions as to the books I will be willing to read. Books about disabled or handicapped people, for example, can be very depressing reads. I'm a very sensitive person, so I'm not sure I could handle such books, unless, of course, the tone of the narrative was upbeat and optimistic. As for books dealing with LGBTQ characters, I can read them as long as there are no explicit sex scenes depicted between such characters. For instance, I would not be interested in reading a romance novel in which the lovers were either male or female homosexuals. I have nothing against LGBTQ people. I'm just not interested in romance novels depicting such couples, for the same reason that gay or trans people would not be interested in reading romance novels about heterosexual couples.

I did read one novel recently that included a trans female. This novel is titled Just For Christmas, by Scarlett Bailey. I LOVED this book! There were no explicit sex scenes AT ALL, whether of gay or straight couples. The trans female did get to meet a man toward the end of the novel, but again, nothing graphic was depicted. She was a great character, too! You can find my review HERE.

So I guess I need to make another New Year's resolution, this time in March: Read More Diverse Books! I think I need to compile a list, and decide which blog I'll be reviewing each book on. The list provided by Goodreads, at the link below, is a great place to start!

Online Links

The Harlem Renaissance 

Our Own Voices: Book Riot

Own Voices Books: Goodreads

 

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