“The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir” by Martha S. Jones c.2025, Basic Books $30 315 pages “Last Seen: The Enduring Search by Formerly Enslaved People to Find Their Lost Families” by Judith Giesberg c.2025, Simon & Schuster $29.99 309 pages Who do you think you are? That’s a question that can be taken a multiple of ways. It’s in-your-face, aggressive, angry. Or it’s inquisitive and open, asking for introspection. Where did your family come from, and who do you think you are? Or, as in these books, is that question to be answered? For author Martha S. Jones,…
Author: Terri Schlichenmeyer
Mom and Grandma know a lot of things. They know what you like for breakfast and for lunch. They help you find the coolest clothes and the best toys. They’re really good at telling stories, teaching you chores, and giving you hugs. You know they do great things and so have other women throughout history – so grab these great books and learn more… March is Women’s History Month and learning about it is easy when you have “The ABCs of Women’s History” by Rio Cortez, illustrated by Lauren Semmer (Workman, $18.99). From artists and activists to Zora Neale Hurston,…
The anticipation is high. Your soon-to-be-graduate has been checking every day to see if there’s good news or bad news from the college of their choice, and to determine if they need a change of plans. It’s an unnerving time, but also one of hope. So why not be prepared, and read these great books about education in the Black community… More than 70 years ago, something happened in rural Tennessee that was almost lost to history: three people – one of them, a white man – joined forces to help Black southerners get past Jim Crow laws and vote.…
Check your work. When you were in school, you probably heard that a lot. Look over that math equation. Be sure your spelling is right. Reexamine your answers. Doing those things should result in rewards, then, right? Unless, as in the new business book, “Qualified” by Shari Dunn, someone’s over-checking you. In her experience as a consultant, Shari Dunn firmly acknowledges that being an employee is complicated and not-so-easy. For Black employees, though, there’s additional level of difficulty, “competency checking,” or the constant need to prove themselves and their intelligence. Says Dunn, the demand for competency checking can start before…
You march to the tun of your own drummer because you like the beat. It’s the same cadence you carry in your heart and soul, and it sets your pace and your path. No one else’s pulse matches yours, no one else’s rhythm will do. You march to your own drummer and as in the new memoir, “Fearless and Free” by Josephine Baker, translated from the French by Anam Zafar and Sophie Lewis, you dance to it, too. When he first met Josephine Baker in 1926, journalist Marcel Sauvage suggested that she might want to write her memoirs and the…
Your mother tells you stories. She talks about things that happened before you were born; Grandpa does it, too, and you like to hear every tale. So why not have these stories about Black History on your shelves? For the boy who loves looking good, “Saturday Morning at the ‘Shop” by Keenan Jones, illustrated by Ken Daley (Beach Lane Books, $18.99) is a great book to have around. One day each week, everything happens at the barber shop, and not just haircuts! This is a fun read and a cultural touchstone for boys ages 4 to 8. Young cooks will…
“Slavery after Slavery: Revealing the Legacy of Forced Child Apprenticeships on Black Families, from Emancipation to the Present” by Mary Frances Berry c.2024, Beacon Press $27.95 184 pages Your kids will have a better life than you had. You’ll make sure of it, saving for their education, demanding excellence from them, requiring discipline, and offering support for their dreams and desires. Their success is your dream and, as parents did in the new book “Slavery after Slavery” by Mary Frances Berry, you’ll fight to see that it happens. In the years after the end of the Civil War, some Southern…
You’re not letting go that easily. No, you’re on the right side of justice and you’re not letting go of the issue. Your heels are dug in, your back is straight, and your resolve is steely. You have a plan and you’ll keep it, and see it to the end no matter what happens. As in the new book “New Prize for These Eyes” by Juan Williams, there are some who’ve gone before you but your effort is what matters now. History disagrees on the exact catalyst for the civil rights movement, but Juan Williams says that “the second Civil…
Throughout history, when decisions were needed, the answer has often been “no.” No, certain people don’t get the same education as others. No, there is no such thing as equality. No, voting can be denied and no, the laws are different, depending on the color of one’s skin. And in the new book, “Resist!” by Rita Omokha, no, those things have not been accepted meekly. In 1995, after she and her brothers traveled from their native Nigeria to join their mother at her new home in the South Bronx, young Rita Omokha’s eyes were opened. She quickly understood that the…