Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week.
Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists
It’s been ages since I’ve participated in this meme, but it’s lovely to see that it’s still around. You’ve probably noticed it’s been a bit more quiet around here and many know I’m one step away from graduating, but I need to concentrate on studying and so I thought I’ll leave you with bookish envy until I return August 4th.
Usually, I don’t get that many books in my mailbox but this week has been lovely and added three exciting works to my shelves:
The Feminist Bookstore Movement: Lesbian Antiracism and Feminist Accountability (Kristen Hogan)
From the 1970s through the 1990s more than one hundred feminist bookstores built a transnational network that helped shape some of feminism’s most complex conversations. Kristen Hogan traces the feminist bookstore movement’s rise and eventual fall, restoring its radical work to public feminist memory. The bookwomen at the heart of this story mostly lesbians and including women of color measured their success not by profit, but by developing theories and practices of lesbian antiracism and feminist accountability. (Amazon)
On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life (Sara Ahmed)
What does diversity do? What are we doing when we use the language of diversity? Sara Ahmed offers an account of the diversity world based on interviews with diversity practitioners in higher education, as well as her own experience of doing diversity work. Diversity is an ordinary even unremarkable feature of institutional life. And yet, diversity practitioners often experience institutions as resistant to their work, as captured through their use of the metaphor of the “brick wall.” On Being Included offers an explanation of this apparent paradox. It explores the gap between symbolic commitments to diversity and the experience of those who embody diversity. (Goodreads)
The Underground Railroad (Colson Whitehead)
Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hellish for all slaves, but Cora is an outcast even among her fellow Africans, and she is coming into womanhood; even greater pain awaits. Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her of the Underground Railroad and they plot their escape. (Goodreads)
The first two books I splurged on when Duke UP had a 50% sale and I’ve been wanting them for quite some time. Sara Ahmed is one of my favorite activist academics even if she is intimidatingly smart and I love the intro. Hogan’s books sounds amazing and it’s a topic I wish I knew more about. It’s written by a white woman but I’ll be interested to see how she works the antiracism angle. And finally @BlackBrainFood (must follow for amazing tweets on Black culture) over on twitter send me their copy of Whitehead’s new book, I’m so excited to read this!
Which books are new on your shelves? Bought or otherwise acquired.
The Inderground Railroad is on my TBR as well! Good luck with finishing up school and graduation! See you in a few weeks 😊
Thanks so much!😳 Yay, hope you’ll enjoy the new Whitehead!
I hope they all exceed your expectations.
Wonderful surprises in your mailbox, Bina! I so want to read The Feminist Bookstore Movement! Happy reading! Wish you all the best for your exams! Advance Congratulations on you graduation 🙂
Thank you, Vishy!! Doesn’t the book sound amazing? I’ll be sure to blog about it, have high hopes for it!
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts, Bina. Happy reading 🙂
Your books remind me of days gone by, and all that we did to fight for freedom and empowerment. Let’s not lose that energy! Thanks for sharing.
Here are MY WEEKLY UPDATES
Thanks for stopping by! Yeah they’re definitely great books about activism and help keep me going.
Great mailbox. Enjoy! 2 Kids and Tired Books MM
Wait, how did you get BlackBrainFood to mail you a copy! I’m not envious…just curious!
You’re almost done with school (for now?)! So excited for you. I wish you the best, Bina. You deserve much success and prosperity. ❤ 😀
Heh I didn’t, they just offered because I tweeted sth bout wanting to read the book. You meet the nicest people on twitter!
Aww thanks so much, Naz!! Bit scared for the scary unemployment time but I’ll keep busy. Haha yeah no, I think I’m definitely done with school now😂
The first two books are being added to my TBR! I didn’t get any books this week, though, sadly.
Hope you’ll enjoy them, Ceillie! I hardly ever have new books either, but hope some come your way soon!😃
I have 2 books about Rasputin coming soon and I’m super-duper excited for them! I can’t wait!
Yay, enjoy your new books!🙌
On Being Included sounds wonderful! New to my shelves this week (though I swear I rarely acquire more than one book in a month!) are a nice new hardback copy of a Diana Wynne Jones book I super love, and a book that my friend got for me at a reading earlier this month all about a lady who is friends with Zora Neale Hurston. V. promising.
Heh I rarely buy more than one in a month either. Ooh DWJ is always worth a splurge and now I am super curious about the Hurston’s friend book!!😍
All of these books sounds interesting! Especially the feminist bookstore movement one. You got some great books Bina. 🙂
Thanks, Rachel! Very excited about Feminist Bookstore Movement and will hopefully write a gushing review 😃
My most recent book purchase was Lindy West’s Shrill: Notes From a Loud Woman for my book group! Can’t wait to read it.
That’s awesome that you got a copy of Whitehead’s Underground Railroad! I am looking forward to that. Good luck finishing your studies!
Thanks so much!😳 Yes I’m so excited for the new Whitehead! And I’ve heard such good things about Shrill, happy reading and look forward to your thoughts! It sounds like something I might enjoy too.
Awesome titles – I’d like to read all of them, but only the Underground Railroad was on my radar.
Thanks for stopping by! Hope you’ll enjoy these books if you get to them, so far I love everything about them😃
Great post.you were right about the envy.I have never received anything nice like books in my mailbox:-( Great new additions though and all the best with your studies!
Thank you!! Aww I get that, I hardly ever get to buy new books either. But hope something lands in your mailbox soon!! 🙂
On Being Included sounds super interesting! Great finds!
Thanks! Ahmed is amazing! 🙂
Graduation! OMG. So exciting! And congrats!
Thanks so much!!!😳 So happy to have graduated and have time to fun read now.
Fun read! You’re going to love doing that so much hahahahaha. YAY.