A Booklist
The truth hurts. The world is a hard and lonely place and nobody gets anything for free. And you know what else? One day, you and everyone you know is gonna die. – Huey Freeman.
This booklist’s theme is Catharsis. Some of my all time favorites dealing with oppression of people of color and women (mostly of color too). These books are dark, gritty, painful, and deal with trauma most of us have battled and dealt with. These are not books with happy endings and smiling Magical Negroes. They are chosen for their symbolism – the sheer amount of survival through the most despair-ridden circumstances. These are stories of people of the black diaspora in who seem to revolt, persevere, or reflect in some of the strongest, most emotional ways. There aren’t a lot of happy endings here – but there is a lot of hope. So here’s to hoping, these books can solicit a tinge of catharsis, help us work through rage, … or at least give us the good cry we all deserve. BE WARNED- many of these books have graphic instances of rape, violence, and foul language. I will note any standing triggers as best as I can.
ON BLACK SISTER’S STREET – CHIKA UNIGWE
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY: The story of four women drawn together in Antwerp’s prostitution district after leaving their homes and families in Africa to chase their dreams.
WHY IT’S AMAZING : All main characters are black women – hilarious black women. It’s nonlinear novel, so it’ll get your literary reading skills up in a Faulkner kind of way . A gorgeous story of black sisterhood & sexuality. Realistic Fiction.
TRIGGERS: rape, graphic descriptions of sex-work, solicitation of children/teens, pedophilia, incest, abuse of immigrants/human trafficking, abuse & violence against women.
THE BOOK OF HARLAN – BERNICE L. MACFADDEN
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY: A coming of age for an entire family, seeped in the jazz of the Harlem Renaissance, black masculinity, and the beginning of WWII.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: Harlan (the main character) shows some of the best writing of a growing black man I have ever read. The book opens a conversation of mulatto and mixed race identity in the Harlem Renaissance and blacks in Nazi Germany. Fictional, but based on real people and real events.
TRIGGERS: Nazis and WWII, torture of Jewish peoples in concentration camps, mental illness, violence.
BENITO CERENO – Herman Melville
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY (SORTA) – Now this one I’ll leave as a surprise. Let’s say that there’s this slave ship – and things are a bit fishy. Written by the legendary genius behind Moby Dick, Melville leads us on a tense ride on this ship that turns race and power on it’s head.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: The twist will have you YASSSSing a 160 year old story. And it’s by Melville so you can cite it for literally every essay or argument on race & power you will ever have. It’s a little dense, but that twist. It’s a short story, so you can probably PDF it for free.
Trigger: mild violence, suggested rape, descriptions of slavery.
MIDDLE PASSAGE – Charles Johnson
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY – Let’s say Benito Cereno is too wordy for you. Or let’s say you loved it so much you want Part 2. Consider Middle Passage. Again, like Benito Cereno, I won’t give away the twists and turns but this slave ship’s journey turns sour fast.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: Beautiful writing, beautiful narrative, and beautifully well-rounded characters. I’ll let this sentence persuade you: It’s the story of a black (mulatto) man, working on a slave ship, as he is stuck in the tension between his white crew and bosses & the kidnapped Africans.
TRIGGERS: violence, suggested rape, torture and descriptions of slavery, graphic bodily descriptions of blood, gore, and cannibalism.
THE BOOK OF NIGHT-WOMEN – MARLON JAMES
TWO SENTENCE SUMMARY – A Jamaican slave plantation spirals into chaos, madness, and darkness – as told by a young slave woman growing up in the midst of evil and violence. Slave women of the plantation, tired of the control and abuse of their bodies, become potent and powerful in their souls, minds, and spirits.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: You think this is a normal slave fiction until things get insa
ne – FAST. Come for the Jamaican patois and the best insults you have ever heard. Stay for the chaos, destruction, and evil that unravels. Skip it if you can’t handle extremely graphic violence or Jamaican patois/ West Indian English. Even the white people speak it.
TRIGGERS: extreme violence, graphic descriptions of slavery, moments of horror (I swear this book has jump-scares), rape, torture, violence against people of color and women, mental illness, drug abuse, and dark magic/Obeah/evil spirits.
HOMEGOING – YAA GYASI
THREE OR SO SENTENCE SUMMARY. You know when people say “The only difference between African-Americans, West Indians, and Africans is a boat stop?” Yes it’s problematic – but here are all the boat stops. This is the story of generation line of the 
black diaspora – from Africa to America with everything between. Each bridged by a new family member or kin – an entire ancestral line is recorded through centuries.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: This book can be about any black person or their ancestors, you will find yourself in these characters. You will also find yourself flipping back to see who is related to who. The explorations of female sexuality are mind blowing – and every character is a gem.
TRIGGERS: rape, human trafficking/slavery with mild violence, sexism, torture.
RUBY – Cynthia Bond
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY: Ruby came home to her Southern town decked out in glamour – but now she is the madwoman of the town, no one wants to deal with her and her dark energy except one special person.
WHY IT’S AMAZING: This book discusses black sexual offenders, pedophilia, deceivers in the church, black love, and mental illness in many, many layers. Ruby is a difficult, painful character – but it’s not to hard to see how gender shapes her world and her mind. Excellent for discussions on black female sexuality.
TRIGGERS: incest, pedophilia, dark magic, rape/ sexual abuse, mental illness and abuse of the mentally ill.
Happy reading!
– Leah [ˈliə ]
Leah is the Editor-in-Chief of Iambic. She is writer, visual artist, and word nerd. She enjoys coffee, animals, solitude, being right, and her West Indian heritage.
