Diverse Reading

Diversathon Wrap up!

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Hi folks!

Diverseathon is well and truly over but I’ve been laid low with headaches. So, better late than never, here is my wrap up post!!

Binti:Home was so good. I had forgotten how much I loved the characters and the world building and the way Okorafor combined that with the linking to the very clay of Binti’s home. I think this is out today in the US, so have at it people!


I have seen some scathing reviews of this book, but I absolutely loved it. There is no plot to speak of, and the narrative meanders all over the place. If you like complicated, flawed characters, and lots of social commentary and observations, this is the book for you. This is my first Zadie Smith and I’m looking forward to picking up more of her work.

I really enjoyed Woodson’s memoir in verse that is Brown Girl Dreaming. I do tend to struggle with poetry, and I would love to read more about Woodson’s life and experiences.


Ellen van Neerven is an Australian Indigenous author. This collection of stories experiments with traditional story telling and adds elements of magical realism. I really enjoyed this collection of stories – Water was by far my favourite, with it’s exploration of an alternate future with plant people.

I also started Fledgling by Octavia Butler. Butler plus vampires can only equal awesome.


How was your Diverseathon? Did it go according to plan? Did you discover any new authors that you want to tell the world about? Are you planning to keep up your diverse reading? Let me know!

24 in 48 Wrap up

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How was your 24 in 48? Are you still going?

I didn’t make it to 24 hours, but I’m pretty happy with my new PB!


I finished Binti:Home which was great, and made it about halfway through Swing Time.

Swing Time is just such an unusual book. I’ve not read any Zadie Smith before. Most book have a pretty predictable narrative structure, but I’m not sure where this one is going. I’m enjoying the journey though.

The Diverseathon is still continuing of course, so happy diverse reading everyone!

24 in 48 Day 2 and Diverseathon

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Welcome to day 2 of the 24 in 48 from the beautiful city of Brisbane. I’m happy to report that the horribly hot weather we’ve been having finally broke yesterday, which means I actually slept last night. Yay!!

I’ve done a considerable bit of snacking from this one after Stay With Me broke my heart last night.


Turns out all my diverse books on audio are probably going to make me cry, so I decided to chillax with some grammar. 🤘🏽I am really enjoying this because the author ( who also narrates the audio) is comparing English grammar and syntax to so many other languages in order to demonstrate some of the weird shit our language does.

I’ve had to do some adulting this morning, so I’m a bit behind. Plans for today:

I’m so incredibly happy to have been granted access to Binti: Home by Netgalley. It’s due out in just over a week.

How is your challenge going? What your favourite read so far?

Diverseathon!

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Did you know there was a Diverseathon? I didn’t!

Thanks to Naz at Read Diverse Books for posting about the Diverseathon and getting me clued in!

It’s pretty laid back with no real challenges – just read as many books as you can between January 22 and January 29. If you’re participating in the 24 in 48 readathon, why not load up your reading list with Diverse books? 

You can find out more information by checking out @diverseathon on Twitter, and if you’re stuck for titles, check the #ownvoices tag on Twitter as well.

Here’s what I’m planning to read.


I’m pretty excited to read this one – it’s part of both my Litsy A to Z and my Reading Around the World challenge. Plus Dr Heiss is going to be giving a talk and signing books at my favourite indie store at the beginning of February so I definitely need this finished.


This one is from my Netgalley queue and I’m really looking forward to it. 
 

Hooray for fortuitously timed library holds coming in. I have this on audio, so this will be my commute listen. I’ve seen some very different reviews of this one, so I’m interested to see what it’s all about.

And if I get the time:


Anh Do is known for his comedy here in Australia, but his journey to get here wasn’t easy. I’m sure a lot of Aussies don’t realise that he came as a refugee by boat (a group of people who are currently treated despicably by the Australian government and media). I’m sure this will be both an interesting and difficult read.

Are you going to join the Diverseathon?? You know you want to!!

Litsy A to Z Challenge 2017

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So while I’m talking about fabulous things on Litsy, this Challenge has been floating around. There are a number of takes on it but I’ve gone A to Z by title only. I’m also pretty jazzed as this is an entirely diverse list.

Here goes:

  • An Ishmael of Syria – Asaad Alomohammad
  • Barbed Wire and Cherry Blossoms – Dr Anita Heiss
  • The Cypress Tree – Kamin Mohammadi 
  • Dust – Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor
  • Every Secret Thing – Marie Munkara
  • Follow the Rabbit Proof Fence – Doris Pilkington
  • The Girl with 7 Names – Hyeonseo Lee
  • Honor – Elif Shafak 
  • The Interpreter of Maladies – Jhumpa Lahiri
  • Jinangga – Monty Walgar 
  • The Kadaitcha Sung – Sam Watson
  • Left to Tell – Immaculee Ilibagiza
  • The Museum of Abandoned Secrets – Oksana Zabuzhko
  • Not Quite Men, No Longer Boys – K.C. Laughton
  • Oreo – Fran Ross
  • The People of Forever Are Not Afraid – Shani Boianju
  • Quiet Violence of Dreams – K Sello Duiker
  • Rainy Season – Nnanaziri Ihejirika
  • The Spider King’s Daughter – Chibundu Onuzo
  • Twisted – Jessica Zafra
  • Under the Udala Trees – Chinelo Okparanta
  • The Vegetarian – Han Kang 
  • We Need New Names – NoViolet Bulawayo
  • Xala – Ousmane Sembene 
  • You Can’t Touch My Hair – Phoebe Robinson
  • Zubaida’s Window – Iqbal Al-Qazwini

Join me with an A to Z list of your own! Let me know what you think you’ll include!!

Diversity Challenge – Words Without Borders

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I’m thrilled with the response to my Diversity Challenge – thank you everyone for being so encouraging! It’s also great to hear that reading widely is something people are trying to do more of.

I’ve set up a new page which you can access from the menu on the left where I will keep tabs on my research and progress.

I also wanted to share with you this wonderful website that I found today – Words Without Borders. This website has book reviews of foreign language books translated into English, short pieces of fiction and looks like a great resource for those  who are looking to expand their reading horizons but are unsure where to start. I hope you will check it out!

Diversity Challenge – Reading Around the World

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Reading diversely is very important to me – there are so many people with awesome stories to tell that don’t get as much exposure as they should because they aren’t white and straight. And sometimes white people think they are the best placed to be telling stories of people who aren’t white even though they don’t have those lived experiences.

I try hard to read people who aren’t straight white and male, and sometimes I succeed at that better than others. 

A lovely person who I follow on Litsy posted a link to this amazing story about Ann Morgan, who decided to read a book from every country in the world. In the article there is a link to her world map, where she has linked to the book she has read for that country.

What a great idea!!

I’ve decided to follow in Ann’s footsteps and try to take a similar journey. I’m going to start in 2017, which will give me time to get my Netgalley queue under control and to do some planning and gather resources. It will be a interesting challenge – especially trying to find translations from some smaller countries into English – but I’m going to give it a red hot crack.

I feel like this is a great opportunity to be exposed to new authors and cultures and learn a lot about the world – which is why I’ve always loved reading in the first place. 

I had considered using books I’ve read previously to get a bit of a head start, but on further contemplation I’ve decided to start afresh on January 1 and try to read modern fiction and non fiction preferably on this journey. (For example, I’ve read Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky, but nothing modern from Russia.)

I’m also not going to give myself a time limit – my TBR is pretty big and I’ll still be reading new releases so this will be an ongoing challenge, probably covering at least a couple of years.

So, dear reader, I have two things to ask.

Does anyone want to join me?

Do you have suggestions or recommendations? I known there are a bunch of you who are not situated in the west, and I’d be very interest to hear from you!