I took a look at my reading list so far this year to see how many books I’d read by Black authors. I’ve read 42 books. And only two of them by were by Black authors:
- Juliet Takes A Breath by Gabby Rivera
- 26 Marathons by Meb Keflezighi
This is a personal call out. As much as I diversify my reading list with queer authors and there are more non-Black authors of color on my list, I have still been predominately reading about white experiences.
Those two books I did read were great, by the way, and represent my general reading interests perfectly: queer YA books & books about running.
It comes back to intention. You have to think about what you’re consuming and reading and make a point to read diversely or you stay stuck in your own bubble. I am glaringly guilty of this. Upon one two-second google search, I found a list from last year of LGBTQ books by Black authors. Two on that list I did read last year — This Is Kind of An Epic Love Story and Running With Lions. And here’s a few more from this year’s list (in which I’ve read zero), including one called Cinderella Is Dead which sounds right up my alley.
I’m going to try to do better.
With Love,
Natalie