Witnessing History

There are no words to describe how I feel this morning so I'll simply post an email I sent to friends and family after the Iowa primary. We are witnessing history at this moment. Enough said.


Date: Thu, 3 Jan 2008 22:25:58 -0500
From: Me
To: Me
Subject: Primary Results - My thoughts

I haven't sent out one of my voting emails in a while. But, tonight, it feels appropriate I am thinking about my grandmother and what she would think if she were alive today.

When she died, my mom went through a lot of her papers and found some voting slips from the 40's and 50's. See, my grandmother voted in a time when Black people weren't supposed to. She wasn't highly educated or upper class. She was a maid, she caught the bus to the River Oaks area every day and worked in a white woman's kitchen. Voting was important enough to her that she was willing to PAY to exercise her right to vote. Poll taxes were 2.50 and she earned about 5.50 a day at the time. It is because of her that I will never take my right to vote for granted.

I think she's get a kick out of tonight's results. So, I don't care which candidate or party you support... please, support something. Be a part of the political process!

Michael Eric Dyson - Lunch Time Book Signing

Are you in the San Franciso Bay Area??

The Museum of the African Diaspora and Marcus Books present acclaimed public intellectual and bestselling author Michael Eric Dyson. Bring your brown bag lunch and join Professor Dyson for a lunchtime chat and book signing. Mr. Dyson will read excerpts from and sign copies of his latest book, April 4, 1968: Martin Luther King’s Death and How It Changed America.

Michael Eric Dyson was named by Ebony as one of the hundred most influential black Americans, is the author of sixteen books, including Holler if You Hear Me, Is Bill Cosby Right? and I May Not Get There With You: The True Martin Luther King Jr. in

April 30, 2008
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm Salon
Free with Museum Admission

Museum of the African Diaspora
685 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA

The Great Book List - Part 3

2007 - Book List (Partial)

Ralph Ellison For One More Day New England White Diva's Last Curtain Call What a Woman Wants The Measure of a Man Plain Truth My Sister's Keeper 10th Circle The Kite Runner 1000 Splendid Suns The Audicity of Hope T is For Trespass Friends: A Love Story Left To Tell

Red River They Tell Me of Home The Wave The Pact Nineteen Minutes Mercy Picture Perfect We'll Never Tell The Wicked The Known World No Girl Needs a Husband 7 Days a Week Passport Diaries If The Shoe Fits Every Man For Herself

The Great Book List - Part 2

The Original Old Girl wrote a post week that caught my eye. She kept a list of all the books she read in 2007 and shared the list with us. The Original Old Girl has an ecletic list. A little mystery, sci-fi, Christian lit, contemporary fiction... some good stuff.

That posted made me pause. I read a LOT, but I have never taken the time to review what I've read in any given period. So while I compose my own list, what do you think? What did you read last year? Last month even. Check back this weekend for BlackLiterature's Great Book List 2007.

Poem In Your Pocket Day

Calling all poets!

April is National Poetry Month. Help celebrate the first National Poem In Your Pocket Day by selecting a favorite poem and sharing it with co-workers, family, and friends on April 17.

From the Academy of American Poets "Poems from pockets will be unfolded throughout the day with events in parks, libraries, schools, workplaces, and bookstores. Create your own Poem In Your Pocket Day event usingnational ideas below or let us know how you will celebrate Poem In Your Pocket Day by emailing npm@poets.org."

You an find out more at Poets.org

Where Have They Been?

I know. This blog doesn't get updated that often. That doesn't mean I've stopped reading. Lately, I've been wondering what's happened to some of my favorite authors. I thought I would throw the question out to the group. If you know, please share.

BarbaraNeely: The Blanche White series. All I need to say is that I love this woman. Blanche is Black, sassy and determined. By the looks of her website, BarbaraNeely has a LOT of fans who would love to catch up with Blanche White. Check out BarbaraNeely's website for more info.

Gar Anthony Haywood: Author of the Aaron Gunner series and the Loudermilk mysteries. The Loudermilks are retirees cruising the country in their recreational vehice. Joe and Dottie always get their man. Gunner is a LA private eye in an urban, gritty sense.

Valerie Wilson Wesley:
Tamara Haye was The female super sleuth in the mid-nineties. Smart, feminine, cool. It's good to see that she is still around. I would like to know what's happened to Penny Mickelbury, Pamela Thomas-Graham and Eleanor Taylor Bland.

Are you looking for updates from your favorite authors?

The Moments, the Minutes, the Hours

The Moments, the Minutes, the Hours by Jill Scott has just been released in paperback. This book of poetry is broken into sections Evil and Love, Haiku, Thinking, Sistahs, and Poetry for Poets.

This is not your typical coffeehouse spoken word poetry. Enjoy!

Product Description

Writing poems and keeping journal since 1991, Jill Scott now shares her personal poetry collection in The Moments, the Minutes, the Hours. Praised for her earthy, honestly erotic, soulful and very real lyrics, Jill Scott explores all the flavors of life, love, and self.

Of her music, Jill offers: "It's music. It's experiences. It's vulnerability. It's honesty. It's being a woman---an African American woman. Being a daughter, a sister, a grandchild and a Godmother. It's life. It's deeper than what I know. It's bigger than what I can see. I guess it's a dive into the human spirit." And the same will come forth in this never- before-seen collection of her poetry.

Pearl Cleage: Seen It All & Done the Rest

If you enjoyed Baby Brother's Blue or Babylon Sisters, you will enjoy Seen It All & Done the Rest; Pearl Cleage's trip back to Atlanta's West End.

For Josephine Evans, home was on the stages of the world where she spent thirty years establishing herself as one of the finest actresses of her generation. She had a perfect life and enough sense to live it to the hilt, but then a war she didn’t fully understand turned everything upside down, thrusting her into a role she never wanted and was not prepared to play. Suddenly the target of angry protests aimed at the country she had never really felt was her own, Josephine is forced to return to America to see if she can create a new definition of home.

Josephine struggles to reclaim her old life even as she scrambles to shape her new one. Hoping her friend Howard Denmond is as good as his word when he promises to engineer her triumphant return to the European stage, Josephine sets out to increase her nest egg by selling the house her mother willed her, only to find the long-neglected property has become home to squatters who have no intention of leaving.

But an unexpected reunion with an old friend offers Josephine a chance to set things right. As unscrupulous land developer gets serious about her plan to tear the community apart, Josephine finds herself playing the most important role of her life, showing her neighbors what courage really is and learning the true meaning of coming home.

A Letter From Karibu Books

STOP THE PRESSES.

Karibu Books is closing and I am shocked! Karibu was a place I visited when I made it to the DC area. A store after my heart, they had cool books, book signings and a cool vibe. It was a community, one that is missing in many parts of our country.

Hopefully, the closing is the result of management/ownership differences (as has been reported) rather than the business going under. Let's hope that Karibu is able to resurect itself.

If you are in the greater DC area, inventory is 50% off until Feb 10, 2008


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January 22, 2008

Dear Karibu Customers,

After 15 years of service within the Washington, DC metropolitan area, Karibu Books, a Black bookstore chain will be closing its doors. We sincerely thank each and every one of you for your patronage and support. We are optimistic that our mission to empower and educate through a comprehensive selection of books by and about people of African descent will continue to resonate within the communities we proudly served.

Since 1993, we have been blessed to help thousands of local, regional and national authors share their incredible stories of faith, hope, love, peace, politics and race. We can’t begin to express our gratitude for the countless authors who have graced our six stores and enriched our customers’ lives.

We will be closing our Security Square (Baltimore, MD) and Forestville locations on Sunday, January 27. The remaining locations, Bowie Town Center, The Mall at Prince Georges and Iverson Mall will close on Sunday, February 10. Our Pentagon City store is already closed.

Effective immediately, all inventory at all locations will be 50% off. All fixtures will also be available for purchase on February 10. See individual store managers for more information.

Again, we respectfully thank you for your loyalty, laughter and love.

Sincerely,
Simba Sana
CEO
Karibu Books