What I’m Reading This Month – March 2019
This month I’m picking back up some titles that have been on my To Read list, and my bookshelves, for far too long. Of this month’s five titles, some are for business, some are for pleasure, but all are guaranteed to be good reads.
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
Michelle Alexander
My academician confession is that I have not read Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. *insert look of shock* There I said it. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to read it. I think the timing of this book and the timing of my life didn’t leave room for me to read this groundbreaking book. But, this semester I assigned it in my Racial and Ethnic Minorities undergrad class, which leaves zero excuses for me not reading this book.
Nuevo South: Latinas/os, Asians, and the Remaking of Place
Perla M. Guerrero
While I was in graduate school at the University of Maryland, Perla Guerrero was (and still is) a professor in the American Studies Department. I had the great pleasure of hearing her give a book talk on Nuevo South: Latinas/os, Asians, and the Remaking of Place. As an Asian from the South, who learned almost nothing about the history of Asian communities in the South, I am always on the lookout for these stories. The history of Asians – and Latinas/os – in the South has been too often ignored, excluded, and misunderstood. This book seeks to change that.
Essential Essays Volume 2: Identity and Diaspora
Stuart Hall
Edited by David Morley
I was looking for more readings on identity and diaspora and wouldn’t you know this title magically appeared on an emailed list of new titles. I took that as I sign that I needed to grab this collection. Stuart Hall is a key intellectual shaping sociology and it is time that I returned to his theories, especially as I continue mapping out my own research on immigration, diaspora, and identity.
Little Fires Everywhere
Celeste Ng
After reading and absolutely loving Celeste Ng’s debut novel, Everything I Never Told You, I knew that I had to check out her next book – Little Fires Everywhere. I feel like I saw this title all over social media but that didn’t mean I had the time to read it. A couple weeks ago an Instagram friend (because isn’t that how we make friends these day?!) was giving away books and this was one of them. See social media friends are real friends because what’s realer than giving and receiving books.
A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose
Eckhart Tolle
Gifted to me by a dear friend last year as a graduation present, Eckhart Tolle’s much celebrated book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose, made the journey to Memphis with me but only recently got the undivided attention it deserved. Although I had attempted to read it previously, I guess I wasn’t ready for it yet. A few weeks ago, on my flight to Hawaii, I started reading it, and its message resonated with me. Sometimes we get to the texts when we can receive the message.