Black History Month

[Mandy Muffin]

February is Black History Month.  The black civil rights movement has probably been the single most societal change of my lifetime, so I am interested in learning more about the cultural and historical context of the movement.  I have generally selected a book fact/fiction to read each February. 

My past three choices have been:

2010 "The Help"

2011: "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" 

2012 "The Warmth of other Suns"  http://www.randomhouse.com/book/190696/the-warmth-of-other-suns-by-...  For the history buff this is a comprehensive look at the "great migration" of the black families from the South to Northern and Western cities.  For better or for worst, it is the defining migration of much of what has happened in American cities due to this influx, including our having a president who came from one such culture environment. 

This year I am reading "Black Like Me" which is out in a 50th anniversary edition. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0451234219/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?p...

Here is a list of 100 of the best African-American literature of the past century.  http://aalbc.com/books/thebesttitles.htm

[tnbopeep]

Goodness, I read "Black Like Me" years ago - maybe when it first came out. I remember it was very eye-opening and controversial when it came out. Not because of Black History Month, but because it was a Nook Free Friday book, I just finished "Bring On the Blessings" by Beverly Jenkins. It's certainly a light read but most enjoyable. First in a series that I'm going to continue. Premise is: woman finally divorces lousy husband & gets enormous settlement. She buys a town in Kansas that was settled by freed slaves right after the Civil War. True event - they were called "Dusters" or "Exodusters" even tho' the book is fiction. It did send me Googling to read up on it.

Anyway, she buys the town & since she's had good fortune, she uses the town to resettle foster families. Lots of good characters. It's maybe a cozy - I never know, but I do know it held my interest & will have me reading more.

Mandy Muffin, I like your idea of reading something relative to Black History Month. Think I'll do some investigating of something to read along those lines. I've already read your 2010 and 2011 choices and not sure I can handle your choice for this year!

Thanks for this post.

[Mandy Muffin]

There is always the classic, "Uncle Tom's Cabin."  I read an annotated commemorative edition a few years back that I thoroughly enjoyed as it has much of the history to accompany the text.  I have spent the lion's share of my life living on the Ohio River, in Cincinnati which was Harriot Beecher Stowe's home and in northern Kentucky, where much of the story takes place.  http://www.amazon.com/Annotated-Uncle-Toms-Cabin/dp/0393059464/ref=...  Your library may have a copy, as that's where I got mine.   

[rapa]

Currently, on my desk, I have a 1981 copy of Harriet Beecher Stowe's UNCLE TOM'S CABIN OR, LIFE AMONG THE LOWLY.  Bought it awhile back at a library book sale.

[Eaglewoman]

Last year we read Help and The Immortal Cells Of Henrieta Lack

[officerripley]

Another great read for Black History Month (or any time):  The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey by Walter Moseley (author of the Easy Rawlins mysteries).  From the New York Times review:  "Marooned in an apartment that overflows with mementos from the past, 91-year-old Ptolemy Grey is all but forgotten by his family and the world.  But when an unexpected opportunity arrives, everything changes for Ptolemy in ways as shocking and unanticipated as they are poignant and profound." 

Also available on Kindle; here's the amazon site for more info:  http://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Ptolemy-Grey/dp/B007SRW434/ref=sr_1...

[rapa]

I read The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey when it first came out as it was recommended by one of our BOOKOHOLIC members.  Excellent read!!!   Seem to recall that we discussed it in a group thread.

[Carci]

Thanks for the recommendation...  I just ordered it from the library.  My Mother will be 96 in March and has some good days and some bad days with her memory. Some days she is 'with it' and some days she isn't.  It bothers her immensely.  Maybe this book will help me understand what she is dealing with...

[Mudqueen]

I read that book and found it very interesting and enjoyable!

[Ursula]

Another excellent read for Black History month is Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II, by Douglas A. Blackmon.

http://www.amazon.com/Slavery-Another-Name-Re-Enslavement-Americans.... 

I found it to be quite an eye-opener.

[grammyk]

I read a lot of books that would be particularly applicable for Black History Month, and also have borrowed (and bought some) for my grandchildren; I think that it's always important to read about cultures and life experiences other than our own.  I just borrowed "The King Years:  Historic Moments in the Civil Rights Movement", a collection of selections from his "King Years Trilogy".  I have long wanted to read the trilogy but keep getting "interrupted" by new current books coming into the library so will start with this "highlight" book.  

You're right, Mandy, the Civil Rights Movement has been probably the biggest societal change in our lifetime though there is still a LONG way to go for racial equality.  I was in Washington DC in 1968 and remember seeing Resurrection City.  We also lived there for a summer in 1961; I remember realizing that most of the workers where we stayed had darker skin than ours - and also remember that my parents treated them no differently, a powerful lesson that I have always been grateful for.