Hello Everyone. It’s June and that means it’s Read Caribbean Month. This was started 4 years ago by Cindy Allman (bookofcinz on Instagram) and it’s to celebrate Caribbean Literature.
Personally, I love Read Caribbean Month. It’s my Bookstagram Christmas. As someone whose only exposure to Caribbean books growing up was via school literature books, I now revel in breadth of subjects and in the fact I some access to the literature of my people. We still have ways to go but this month is for celebration so I hope you join me in Reading Caribbean this month and beyond.
If you don’t know where to start, I put together a list of my favorite Caribbean Novels currently to help you out. So here they are and a line on why I love each:
✨Queenie x Candace Carty-Williams – Because we should be able to be messy too.
✨The Wine of Astonishment x Earl Lovelace – I love how the Shouter Baptists took the white man’s religion and made it their own. And when they faced the ordinances, they fought to keep the faith. Also this was one of the books I read in high school that stayed with me.
✨My Fishy Stepmom x Shakirah Bourne – This book is a belly full of laughter from the first page. “Gal five” will always be iconic 😂
✨This One Sky Day x Leone Ross – All of my senses were immersed in the magic of this book. Reading it felt like floating on a cloud.
✨Augustown x Kei Miller – Augustown captures the social landscape of Jamaica perfectly even though the events of the Flying Preacherman, a real story might I add, took place over a 100 years ago.
✨Love After Love x Ingrid Persaud – A beautiful story about love and found family despite the ending (still have up the author for that).
✨American Street x Ibi Zoboi – I love new immigrant stories and I loved the way Zoboi weaved Haiti folklore through the book.
Q: What Caribbean book(s) have made an impact on you? (Even if you’re not an avid reader, we all read something in high school, so share below in the comments.)
Also for more Read Caribbean month information follow me on instagram @Latochareads where I am participating in a challenge for the month and check out the Read Caribbean hashtag .
Today marks two weeks since Bridgerton Season 2 graced our Netflix screens. During that time, I have watched the season twice and read The Viscount Who Loved Me, the book this season was based on. And now, I have lots of thoughts.
Before you go any further, I must warn there will be spoilers for both the show and the book.
In my opinion, the TV show is much better than the book. I loved this season, but that book was not it. A rare thing, however, hear me out.
Season 2 is much better than season 1. It has all the hallmarks of a Regency-era romance but is updated to suit the tastes of 2022’s audience. The looks, the almost touches, the actual touches, the restraint, the frustration, and the tension gave what needed to be given. And for that long wait, we were rewarded with a scorching first kiss a the end of episode 6 and an even hotter sex scene at the end of episode 7. This season proved that less is more. I loved it!
Now for the book. As already stated, I did not like it.
Here are my reasons in no particular order:
The marriage between Kate and Anthony, which happened about halfway through, felt forced and was a marriage of convenience. I don’t like that. I prefer people entering marriage because they actually want to. Not because they have to, to avoid scandal.
Anthony coerced Kate on their wedding night. She was unsure of having sex but instead of giving her a chance to voice and work through those concerns. He told her he can’t wait and repeated this until she gave in. Something the author made seem like was totally her choice, but without Anthony’s insistence, would she have?
After marriage, Kate loses her spark and passion and becomes a naive pushover. When people talk about their love for this book and Kate, they usually mention her wit and headstrong nature, but that disappears in the latter part of the book.
Why is the so-called hero kicking the heroine in the stomach?! We could have done without the physical violence in the scene in the study.
Penelope magically loses baby weight at 18?! Penelope’s and Colin’s story is coming up in book 4. Heaven forbid she is still fat. At least be straightforward in your fatphobia.
I think overall, my issues can be chalked up to time. This book came out in 2000, and things have changed tremendously since then; things that were acceptable can no longer fly. Plus, as a contemporary romance reader who is used to happy for now endings and lots of consent, this book would definitely not suit my taste. Overall, I give it 2.5/5 stars, and I’m glad the show writers upgraded this mess into something that was a pleasure to watch.
Now, given the problems I had with this book coupled with the sexual assault in book 1. How did Shonda Rhimes read this whole series and was like let’s turn it into a show?!
As much as I have enjoyed this season and am glad they got rid of the problematic parts, I have to ask, should these books have even been adapted in 2020?
And don’t even get me started on the issues of this color-conscious casting. They did better in season 2 by highlighting the Sharma’s Indian heritage and casting a dark skin woman as the lead, but there was still something to be desired. I will be watching season 3, so let’s see what happens.
Last thing, can someone call the queen of historical fiction (in my opinion) Beverly Jenkins? Please. Let’s get her way less problematic books featuring black people adapted. I even have the perfect series of hers in mind. See below 👇🏾
Q: What are your thoughts on Bridgerton, books, or series? Let me know down below in the comments.
I couldn’t resist putting in one more photo of Kate and Anthony. 😂 Until next time 👋🏾
A light, sweet story about love, friendship, self-discovery, and K-Pop.
Synopsis:
Jenny is an award-winning, classically trained cellist who has consistently chosen her music over fun or friendship. That is until she meets Jaewoo, a mysterious, handsome young man to whom she is immediately drawn. They spend one remarkable evening wandering through Los Angeles; the day before, Jaewoo must head back to Seoul.
With him being so far away, she decides to move on, but then Jenny and her mother move to Seoul to take care of her ailing grandmother. And guess who she meets at her new school, Jeawoo! And not only that, Jenny discovers that Jaewoo is a member of one of the biggest K-Pop bands in the world. And since he is an idol, that means no dating.
When the relationship means risking all that she and Jaewoo have worked for, Jenny has to decide how much she is willing to sacrifice for love. Can her musical aspirations coexist with romance and love?
Review:
This book felt like a mini-K-Drama, and I loved that. It was an easy, fast-paced read, and I found myself rooting for the main characters. I liked that the author highlighted the good and bad realities of being an idol, along with the sacrifice that goes into preparing to debut, and overall, the realities of being a musician and performer. I particularly enjoyed exploring Seoul through Jenny’s eyes and learning more about the school, idol life, and the food. I am always here for good descriptions of food!
I also enjoyed the romance between Jenny and Jaewoo. It was cute and was a great first love depiction. However, my favorite parts were when Sori and Nathaniel were on the page. They were interesting supporting characters whose stories I would love to see more of (like maybe a novella about them).
Also, I would love to see this be made into a series or tv movie. Where is Netflix, when you need them? Better yet call HBOMAX.
If you just want a book to chill out with, swoon a little and smile a lot, this is it.
Question: What was the last book you read that made you swoon, even a little? Let me know in the comments below
Happy June, and cheers to the summer! If you can go outside, big ups to you and the vaccine hoarding country where you reside. And to those of us still inside, living that curfew/lockdown life – better will come (I hope).
Despite all that is taking place in the world, I am very excited to embrace June as it’s Read Caribbean month. It is a month-long celebration of Caribbean Books and Caribbean Authors – in the region and the diaspora. Read Caribbean month was founded by Book of Cinz (a Caribbean bookstagrammer) 3 years ago, and the celebration is growing each year.
This month aims to encourage people to read books that are by Caribbean authors, set in the region, or are about the Caribbean.
For me, Read Caribbean is all day, every day. Since I have started to read regularly again, I have been making an effort to read Caribbean books. So in June, I plan to kick it up a notch and read only Caribbean books.
Now I don’t have a TBR (to be read) list to share as I have already established: I read based on vibes. Thus, reading lists usually get made and then ignored. The only book I know I am reading for sure is Augustown by Kei Miller, as it’s the May Book Club pick for Rebel Women Lit that’s meeting on Sunday. So in lieu of a TBR, I will share some of my favorite Caribbean books that I have read in the past year. I hope that you will check at least one of them out and join me in celebrating Caribbean Literature. Caribbean people deserve this space to center themselves and the region.
Love After Love – Ingrid Persaud (Note: I hate the ending of this book, but I cannot deny that it is a beautiful book, and the way the local dialect is presented, is superb. So still it made this list)
You can follow me and the readcaribbean hashtag on Instagram to keep up with all the month’s festivities. There is a photo challenge along with several panels.
Hello people. I haven’t been on here in a minute. Things have been up and down lately. In April, I celebrated my 26th birthday (see a photo of me below), but I also had a flare-up for most of the month ( yay, rheumatoid arthritis). So I have been more tired than usual lately. Hopefully, things will be better in May and June.
Me look fine, talk truth
In terms of books, I read six books in April. This seems to be a trend with me. Reading 6 books a month. I think that’s a good number. Gives me time for my other hobbies, mainly rewatching Grey’s Anatomy. Alright back to the books. I read 2 romances, 2 Read Caribbean titles, a Romeo and Juliet adaptation, and a feminist non-fiction title. And yes, all were written by women. I don’t do it on purpose; I just read what I want but, I love this for me.
Romance Titles
Both the romance books I read were by Talia Hibbert. I love her work if that isn’t obvious by now, even though I side-eye the fact that most of her couples always feature a White man and a Black woman. Like hello, interracial couples come in many other forms.
That Kind of Guy is the final book in the Ravenswood series. It follows Rae, a 40-year-old divorcee who is an author. She is new to Ravenswood, where she meets and befriends Zach, a man who’s working through the fact that he is demi-sexual. They agree to fake date, and you know where that leads. I am not the biggest fan of the fake dating trope, however, it is not dragged out here, and this was the first book I’ve read with a main character that identifies under the ACE spectrum. I found that aspect of the story interesting.
The next book is Act Your Age, Eve Brown, the final book in the Brown Sisters Series. Eve is the youngest of the sisters, and sis is a bit chaotic. She ends up interviewing for a job at a B&B and ‘accidentally’ runs over the controlling owner Jacob. Which forces him to accept her help around the property and then nothing like close quarters to bring these enemies together. I really liked this book. It was cute, and Eve is lovable, giving her sister Chloe a run for her money as my favorite. This was one of my anticipated new releases for 2021, and it didn’t disappoint.
The story is about Josephine, whose world revolves around her love of cricket, her Dad, and her best friend, Ahkai. She wants to get on the cricket team at school however, the coach is against it because she’s a girl. In addition to that struggle, her Dad gets a new girlfriend, Mariss. Usually, Josephine can scare away her Dad’s love interests with her tricks, but Mariss is different. One would say a little fishy.
I love this book! It is hilarious and heartwarming. I found myself laughing out loud 2 pages in. The characters are all well written, and I could clearly see them and their idiosyncrasies in my head. Plus, the story is built around Bajan/Caribbean folklore.
You can read the rest of my review I posted on Instagram here. This is one I would highly recommend you check out. It was published by Blue Bayan Books, a publisher based right here in Jamaica.
Aycayia is a beautiful woman cursed to live as a mermaid who has been swimming the Caribbean sea for centuries, maybe even thousands of years. One day she hears David, a fisherman in his boat off Black Conch singing a song that enthralls her. She starts visiting David regularly, and one day she hears his boat engine. However, when she follows it, she ends up being caught and brought ashore by American tourists. The story is about Aycaycia as she becomes a woman again and gets involved with David.
I am still not sure about this one. I did not hate it, but I did not love it either. I need to think about it a bit more. One thing I know for sure is that the dynamic between the lovers rubbed me the wrong way.
The goal of this book is to give a succinct, easy-to-read overview of feminism. Hooks created something that could be read by anyone. The book explores: • what is feminism • the values and goals of the movement • how feminism has been distorted in mass media • how feminism benefits all human beings This is the second Bell Hooks work I have read, and I am beginning to see why she is often quoted in black intellectual spaces (particularly African American spaces). I am going to write a full review of this.
It is probably my favorite Shakespeare work. And I am always here for an adaptation of it. Our star-crossed lovers, Roma and Juliette, are the heirs to rival gangster enterprises in Shanghai. They are blood enemies who fell in love when they were 15 and dreamed of ending the blood feud. By 1926, three years later, it’s a kill-on-sight type of situation. However, the appearance of a mysterious madness causing people to rip their own throats out along with rumors of a monster forced them into an uneasy alliance. And on top of that, the foreigners (French, British, and Americans) are encroaching on Shanghai, doing what white people do – Colonize.
This book delivers! I loved reading it. It has enemies to lovers, gangsters, monsters, commentary on western imperialism, and complicated family dynamics. The author took the core parts of R&J and freshly repackaged them. There is a ball, tragedy, romance, and all the melodrama that is a Shakespeare production. It has a sequel that comes out in the fall. I am excited, to say the least.
If you have made this far. Thank you! I know this one was longer than usual.
What have you been reading lately? Let me know in the comments. And follow me on Instagram for more bookish content. Walk good, until next time.
I have no clue what happened in March. It was all a blur. And I think that’s for the best. So I read six books last month, with three of them being Read Caribbean titles, two were romance, and the last one was my nonfiction read for March. And all were written by women. ( I love that for me!)
We all have those aunties, not related, just women of a certain age in our communities that look out for everyone and each other. This book explored that tradition as we follow Chris on his journey to healing after an unspeakable tragedy. The book is told from the various perspectives of the many people that support him along this journey. A Million Aunties is about community, love, and family (blood and found).
I enjoyed this book very much. It was tragic, tender, and beautiful. The characters felt very real and relatable. I loved all the art references. I would highly recommend it.
Stanford Solomon is a 69-year-old Jamaican man living in Harlem. He is a father, a grandfather, a husband, and a business owner. However, Stanford has a secret that he has been keeping for the last thirty years. Stanford Solomon is not his real name. His real name is Abel Paisley, a man who faked his death and stole his dead friend’s (Stanford) identity. Abel, now nearing the end, decided to come clean to his offspring about this. These Ghosts are Family, Maisy Day’s debut, explores the ramifications of Abel’s deceit.
Polar Vortex is about the relationship between Priya (a Trini woman) and her wife, Alex. They reside in the Canadian countryside, enjoying seemly domestic bliss when out of the blue Priya announces that her old friend Prakash is coming to visit for a weekend. And with this announcement, the cracks in their relationship begin to show.
These characters are messy! This was a reread for me and, I enjoyed it, even more, the second time around. If you love romantic drama, pick this up.
These are book 1.5 and book 2 in the Ravenswood series. These characters were introduced in a Girl Like Her (read that in February).
Damaged Goods follows Laura the ex-wife of Daniel (the villain in Book 1) as she rekindles the romance with her first love, Samir. While Untouchable follows Hannah Kabbah, Ruth’s sister from book 1.
I’m a sucker for these contemporary romance novels, and Talia Hibbert doesn’t disappoint. That’s why she is a fav.
As the title suggests, Hooks decide to tackle the subject of love. When it comes to love, mass media tends to show depictions of romantic love. In this work, Hooks aims to explore love beyond romance and endorses the idea that love is an ethic we should practice in all aspects of our lives. In each chapter, she explores a different aspect. Some topics include self-love, childhood love, and communal love.
I will be writing a review of this in my next post. But in the meantime, I will say that this an impactful read, and I would recommend you read it for yourselves.
So that was my March in books. Let’s see what April brings. What the last book you read? Let me know in the comments.
My February pick was Midnight Furies: The Deadly Legacy of India’s Partition. A historical account of the conflict that occurred upon the simultaneous liberation of India and creation of Pakistan, plus a look at the lasting impacts of these events. I chose this one as India is a country that interests me, and I want to learn more about it.
Confession time: I did not finish this. I found the subject matter and writing engaging. However, for reasons explained below, I decided to take a break and, I have yet to pick it back up.
Here are my thoughts on what I have read so far.
The Historical Context
Midnight Furies described the events surrounding the Partition of India and Pakistan in 1947. Up to 1947, before independence from Britain, India and Pakistan were one nation with Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, and other religious minorities living together. Amid all the changes, the Muslims worried that they would not be treated fairly in an independent India as they were a minority. The solution to this problem was for the Muslim population to carve out their own country. The chosen areas were Western and Eastern Punjab, where the Muslim population was already the majority. This new nation became Pakistan.
That is the simple, sanitized version. However, this was a complicated, ugly, violent, sectarian conflict. By the end of the main period of violence that took place over the summer and fall of 1947, estimates are that 15 million people relocated, and approximately 1 to 2 million people were dead.
The Good
Nasid Hajari is good writer. He took a historical period and presented it as a non-fiction page-turner. I was engaged and wanted to know more and more about the events as they transpired.
The prologue of the book read like the introduction to a thriller novel. The chapters devoted to Nehru (1st Prime Minister of India) and Jinnah (founding father of Pakistan) were solid character studies. Hajari painted a striking picture of the nature of these men. He illustrated clearly how their constitutions lent themselves to the conflict.
The Bad
The reason I liked this was the same reason I had to stop. The vividness of descriptions was too much for me. In the last few years, I found myself examing violence in media more closely as my tolerance for it has gone down tremendously. I barely even watch cop/procedurals anymore. So reading about all the gruesome things that took place in this conflict was a lot for me. Hence the break.
It also does not help that in real life that we are bombarded by death constantly(pandemic plus just living in Jamaica). And to top it off, the book even has a few pictures that I made the mistake of looking on. Speaking of which, why were those pictures shown so casually.
Wrap Up
So, I am going to be better in March. I started All About Love: New Visions by Bell Hooks in preparation for Rebel Women Lit’s book club. Also, I still plan to read Mariah Carey’s biography. Let’s see what happens. I will let you all know next month.
Until then, continue to read and read widely. And stay safe especially those of us in Jamaica, things are ghastly in these times.
Stanford Solomon is a 69-year-old Jamaican man living in Harlem. He is a father, a grandfather, a husband, and a business owner. However, Stanford has a secret that he has been keeping for the last thirty years. Stanford Solomon is not his real name. His real name is Abel Paisley, a man who faked his death and stole his dead friend’s (Stanford) identity. Abel, now nearing the end, decided to come clean to his offspring about this.
These Ghosts are Family, Maisy Day’s debut, explores the ramifications of Abel’s deceit. Day examines the impact on those closest to him while at the same time showing how the ghost of colonialism haunts the Paisley family across 200 years.
The Good
It was easy to get into each family member’s situation and see how the trauma shifted from one generation to the next. The trauma is the duppy that haunting these people, and in some cases, they don’t even realize it. And for those who do, the realization is devastating. For me, the story of Louise, in particular, was very impactful, which I don’t think is an accident. Her experience and discovery of her true heritage is the first manifestation of generational horror passed down the Paisley family line.
The Bad/Annoying
The number of times I had to consult the family tree at the beginning of the book was obscene. It was a bit of a task to keep track of all the family members. And since I was reading an ebook, the need to keep going back probably annoyed me even more than if I had a hard copy.
Now on to the more substantial issue. I think Day tried to do too much with the story. From the blurb, I went with the expectation that the book would dig into the implications of Abel’s deception and weave his deceit into the overall history of his family. And yes, I got that but, I wanted more. By telling such an expansive story, some parts barely scratched the surface. There were themes introduced but then seemingly dropped.
It felt more like a collection of short stories than a complete novel.
Takeaways
In Jamaica, we like to pretend that colonialization and enslavement was this thing that happened eons ago and that we are over it. Out Of Many…, you know the rest. However, Day reminds in this novel its lies. You see that reddish hair and freckled skin that the Paisley family possesses, what we would term as ‘pretty hair’ and ‘brown/nice skin’ in contemporary Jamaica; it’s rooted in sexual violence, exploitation, torture, and death.
Whiteness is a hell of a drug, as an over 90% black country idolize the parts of our ancestry that mildly putting is unsavory while at times severely underappreciating the resilience and resistance of our Afro-Ancestory that made sure we survived to make it to 2021.
I hope you will check this one out and let me know what you think.
So February, the month of love, black history, the beginning of lent and, the start of carnival season (I would kill to go to a fete right now). I hope it was a great one for you. It was a bit of a so-so month for me. Lots of rumination and rants took place. In terms of reading, I finished six books, 4 of which were romance. These romances have been holding me down and providing me with a much-needed escape. Here’s a summary below:
The Old West Series revolves around the life and loves of a black family living in Western Territories from around the 1860s to 1880s. The first book is about Rhine and Eddy, with the subsequent two books set 15 years later featuring their nieces Portia and Reagan. The series overall is solid. I enjoyed the historical setting very much. This one is a reminder that the first cowboys were BLACK.
The basic gist of the story is that a new guy moves to a small town and is smitten with his neighbor. The story features a neuro-diverse character that was well written and dimensional, in my opinion. I think this is something Talia does very well. She makes her characters whole people who are more than their racial background or abilities.
Love After Love is a captivating exploration of love in some of the many forms it can take, including familial, romantic, friendship, and even mania. Also, this is set in Trinidad and is a Read Caribbean title. It was by far my favorite for the month despite the ending. Mr. Chetan is a real one and deserved better.
One of the books I was very excited to read this year. It is about Deka, a teenage girl who lives in Oyera. A land where all girls must go through a purity ritual at the age of sixteen and, if you are deemed impure, the consequences can be deadly. It was good but a little disappointing. I am working on a review to post.
Currently Reading
These are the ones I plan to finish in March. Let’s see if that happens.
Midnight Furies – Nisid Hajari (February’s Non-Fiction Challenge Pick. I’ll post an update next week)
These Ghosts Are Family – Maisy Card
Book of the Little Axe – Lauren Francis Sharma
Unfinished (and will not be going back)
Next Year in Havana – Chanel Cleeton
This book is about a Cuban-American woman. She travels to Cuba to learn more about her family history after the death of her grandmother. And on her trip, she unearths a family secret, buried since the revolution.
This one I chose because the cover was pretty. I didn’t even read the blurb, a big mistake. After reading the first few pages, I realized the book was about a planter class family who fled Cuba after the revolution in 1959. I have no sympathy for rabid capitalists, but I said let me continue. However, the author mentioned Columbus, who described the island as “the most beautiful land human eyes had ever seen”; this line triggered me so, I stopped. In the future, I will at least read the blurb. Lesson learned.
What was February like for you? What books did you read? Let me know in the comments below. Remember to follow me on Instagram or Twitter. I am trying to be more active on bookstagram, but frankly, I prefer Twitter. I post lots of book-ish content over there; however, it’s mixed in everything else, so considered yourself informed.
I hope March is a great month for all of us. Stay safe, social-distance, wear a mask, sanitize obsessively and last but not least continue to read more and read more widely.
“I hate it here,” I say this about my country almost every day. I don’t want to hate it here. I don’t even want to love it either. I only want a little contentment now and then. But there’s none to be had. Every day it’s another thing, and the bar is in hell.
Well, today, I am here to talk about the fact that the National Water Commission. A government-ish agency that is currently conducting a disconnection drive in several communities across the island.
Let’s put this in context. Today is February 19, 2021. The active case numbers for covid-19 are currently 7,156 (see MOH covid-19 management data) with a daily positivity rate of 23.6%. Several hospitals are at 100% capacity with regards to the number of covid beds. There are multiple workplace clusters, including a few government offices. Yet, the government refuses to mandate a work-from-home order. WFH should not be a suggestion. And it is within these state of affairs, the drives are taking place.
It is universally acknowledged that sanitization is an important aspect of reducing disease transmission. Our authorities endorse this. They recommend following protocols such as washing hands and cleaning/sanitizing our homes regularly (see screenshots of the MOH website below). But then in the same breath, they allow the disconnection drives to continue. Can someone please make it make sense.
Screenshots of the Ministry of Health website homepage
This is probably not even the best way to raise awareness however, I will keep calling the BS out on my platforms. I am sick and tired of being sick and tired. It’s time to make some noise in whatever way I can.
NB: I refer to it as a ‘government-ish’ agency as NWC receives no money from the government for its operating expenses. Yet, one goal of the agency is to be profitable enough to contribute to government coffers in the future.
What now? If you’re having issues with the NWC, you could take some of the following actions:
Contact NWC customer service department.
Reach out to the Office of Utility Regulations (OUR).
Engage your political representatives. Tenement Yaad Media has the contact information for all members of parliament listed on their website. In addition, you can contact your local government representative at the Parish Council.
Last but not least, make use of the media, both traditional and social.
If you’re like me, a lifelong cynic, you may not want to reach out but these avanues are here so use them. Change has to start somewhere.
Now I am going to read a romance novel and not think of any of this for a few days. Cheers to reading and reading more widely. Have a good weekend!
Latocha Reads 