Harriet Jacobs. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Published in 1861, this is an autobiographical novel that Jacobs published under the pen name "Linda Brent." The manuscript was edited by Lydia Maria Child, a popular white female novelist in the sentimental style.
Octavia Butler. Kindred. First published in 1979, this is a time-travel novel by Butler, the most well-known African American woman writing science fiction. The “present” of the novel is 1976, and the “past” is in the nineteenth century.
Nora Okja Keller. Comfort Woman. Keller’s is a mother-daughter novel, where the chapters jump back and forth between Becca, who is mixed-heritage Anglo and Korean, an American citizen growing up in Hawaii, and her mother, called Akiko, who grew up during the Japanese occupation of Korea which only ended in World War II.
Linda Hogan. Solar Storms. Linda Hogan is a Chickasaw writer who has published several novels and books of poetry. Solar Storms is set in a native community north of Minnesota and takes place in the early 1970s. It draws our attention to the James Bay Hydroelectric project in Canada, and its affect on First Nations peoples.
Alicia Gaspar de Alba. Desert Blood. This is a mystery novel which draws our attention to the murders of women in Juárez, Mexico (across the border from El Paso, Texas). The accidental detective is Ivon Villa, a Chicana lesbian who is supposed to be writing her dissertation.
Maythee Rojas, Women of Color and Feminism. Which I'm a few pages into and loving.
Marysol Asencio, Ed., Latina/o Sexualities: Probing, Powers, Passions, Practices, and Policies. Which I haven't started yet, but it's brand new, which is pretty cool.
And then the normal slew of ereserves readings, and two pretty good looking anthologies that I'll only be reading a couple selections from.
It's shaping up to be a good semester, I think. If you follow my Tumblr you'll probably be seeing some quotes popping up from these now and again, because, like the one I was reading last night: "Coalition Politics: Turning the Century" by Bernice Johnson Reagon, just made me want to throw quotes around all over the place, so, if they're all that good you might be getting some of that sporadically.
Last but not least, Grad school app goes in on Monday and next month the app for a fellowship I'm seriously considering is due, so, busy busy busy... But if you miss me I can often be found on Tumblr or Twitter. :)
