Art & Activism Interview: Sarah Diemer

I am delighted to begin this new series of interviews and guest posts on art and activism. For those of you who don't know, I am doing a series of interviews and guest posts on the subject of art and activism--two topics very near and dear to my heart.

This first interview is with Sarah Diemer, who (whom?) I "met" online through a series of serendipitous connections. Actually, it was me clicking on links that led to links that led to her beautiful writing, then me clicking on "buy" and getting her book, The Dark Wife.

But before I go on and on (and on) as I am wont to do, here is Sarah in her own words!

NM: I was struck with how beautiful the language is in The Dark Wife. You have some gorgeous use of imagery and emotional layering. Can you give us a sense of what have you done to hone your craft? What would you say has been the most helpful method of improving your writing?

SD: Thank you so much, that is so kind of you to say. :) I was home-schooled my entire life, and wrote about five hours a day, every day, growing up. I read voraciously and was just so completely obsessed with the craft of writing from a very young age--I wasn't normal in that regard! *laughing* I was also co-leader of the writer's group in our city for...I think five years, six years? Working so closely with my peers and on so many different projects during that time really pushed me to be able to put out the best work I'm capable of, and to always reach for that level.

NM: Wow, that's a lot of writing! :) When did you first realize you wanted to write stories and have them published?

SD: I was six. I'd written a story about a unicorn--and illustrated it! I sat down with my little sister, who--at that time--was two, and I told her very, very seriously: I am going to be an author. *laughing* I still remember that ridiculous moment, this little girl I was, being so serious. I had that same moment again, a little more seriously, when I was twelve. I'd just written this TERRIBLE BOOK, a fictional account of WWII involving magic, and I told my mother, very seriously, "this is the first. I'm going to be a published author someday," and she knew I meant it.

NM: The Dark Wife is a retelling of the Demeter/Persephone myth. Can you tell us what led you to rewrite the story, and why you picked *this* story, in particular?

SD: As a Pagan woman, Persephone is my matron Goddess. I've been obsessed with her story since I was very small, but it upset me. She's kidnapped and raped and held against her will--hardly empowering stuff. As a lesbian woman, I began to reclaim the myth to something feminist, something that I could relate to. I truly believed that this story was open to new interpretation, that the story could and should be retold and reclaimed, so I set out to do it.

NM: I love that! I believe one key role of good fiction is the reshaping of imagination and retelling/reclaiming myths is so much a part of that. What are your thoughts about the future of publishing? Personally, I am very excited about the possibilities! :)

SD: I am, too! :) Now, more than ever before, as authors and writers, we have so many choices and so many opportunities before us. I believe that traditional publishing will never die, but I believe that the landscape of publishing before us is a new one of independent, self-publishing and traditional publishing working together. Times are changing, and it's exciting how much possibility is now presenting itself to us!

NM: I couldn't agree more. Do you have any tips or suggestions for writers who might want to go the indie publishing route, but don't know how, or are nervous to take the plunge?

SD: I always have a little difficulty answering this question, because I believe, whole-heartedly, in self-publishing, but I also don't want to sit here and yell through a megaphone that it's all tinsel and diamonds and step right up to your six figure publishing year of self-publishing bliss and unicorns. ;D Self-publishing is HARD work, and it requires a work-ethic that the puritans would have commended (oh, those puritans!), and a LOT of energy and tenacity. If you're the type of person who loves crunching numbers and designing book covers and talking about your book tirelessly and you have a very outgoing personality, you will do well with self publishing. If you're daunted by the idea of doing anything but writing/editing a book, self-publishing is not for you. So consider these things--if you believe in your story completely, think you have what it takes (and you MUST believe you can do it, what you believe is a self fulfilling prophecy in any creative endeavor!), then you do. Do it. :) Self-publishing has been the most rewarding thing I've ever done (and I lied--in my self-publishing, there ARE unicorns, but they're part of the stories. ;D).

NM: GREAT advice. Those are sage words of wisdom, dear readers. Sarah, do you think The Dark Wife could be used in a classroom setting? In what ways might the story be of use to educators?

SD: Absolutely! It's a feminist retelling of a very not-so-feminist myth, so educators could use it in feminist or mythological studies, the changing roles of women in history, or even in a creative sense, reclaiming myths and changing them to create something you can relate to. In a minority setting, it could be read and discussed, as to why it's important that queer stories are told, and why it's important that straight people read them (empathy toward minorities, etc.).

NM: You deal with some pretty heavy issues in The Dark Wife, and you might be aware that the topic of sex and violence in books for young adults is a hot button topic with passionate opinions on both sides. What are your thoughts on this?

SD: We were all young adults once, and we all know what we were thinking about/feeling. As as a lesbian teenager, I was one big roiling ball of hormones and angst and walking-drama-and-tragedy-my-straight-best-friend-will-never-know-I-love-her. Teenagers, gay and straight, use expletives, have sex, explore themselves with adventure and prose and story-telling and all of these wonderful things, and the stories that we put out that reflect them need to reflect the rich variedness of their experiences. Sex, swearing, etc. is part of the young adult experience, and they see violence in their everyday lives. If a story is stripped of the inherent truthiness of life, teenagers are going to notice, and it won't touch them. I want my stories to touch them, to reach them on the level that they're at, not try to sugar-coat their story.

NM: Speaking of speaking to teenagers, what has been the response to TDW from young readers?

SD: It's been...wow. Outstanding. Staggering. Humbling. I have been told that this little story made a girl have hope about life again. I've been told that this one young girl now had the courage to come out--something she never thought she could do--because of THE DARK WIFE. One girl read it and said she finally believed she could find a girlfriend, could now find the courage to do it. It's given hope and courage and the belief in something better to young girls, and that of all of the responses and ways that it's changed MY life, is the most rewarding, the most amazing. That my book touched people on such a deep, changing level is the most wonderful thing I could ever know. I'm so grateful that these girls told me how much it meant to them, so grateful that they were so touched, and so deeply humbled that it helped them in any way.

NM: Where can readers purchase your books?

SD: You can get them on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Smashwords in both print and eReader versions. You can find all of the links on my site, http://www.oceanid.org

NM: If you had one message you could go back in time to give to your 17-year-old self, what would it be?

SD: You're gay, and you're a writer, and you're trying to do this crazy thing: write gay girl stories that everyone will love. People are telling you that's impossible, people are telling you that because you're gay, you're less than. None of this is true. Some day, you'll find out that your stories about gay girls will change lives, and you need to keep writing them, and you need to keep believing in yourself. You're gay and you're awesome and you need to remember that when everyone else tells you differently. (And that goes for every seventeen year old [or any age] gay boy or girl reading this. <3)

Cover Reveal!

So this is the cover for my new book, coming out in March, 2012. I am more excited and nervous about this one than I have been with any of my previous books, adult romances included.

I've put so much of everything that's important to me into this book and it was the hardest one I've ever written. For one, I wrote it during some of the toughest times Life has thrown my way, so far, as an adult. Finding the time, motivation, focus, and energy to write was often a mighty challenge in itself. And I've lost count of how many times I revised this novel from the ground up. I revised with an agent and two editors -- I'm talking tear-down-the-walls, clear-the-nether-regions, blast-through-rock revisions.

This book is my Little Engine That Could. It's the mountain I climbed because I loved it and because I wanted to see the view from its summit. I still haven't seen the view. I'm waiting for you to read it to complete the picture :).

ARCs should be available late December/early January. If you'd like a review copy, please email me and I'll put you on the list.

*And now, the cover...

*Designed by the fabulous Eithne Ni AnLuain

Jazz in Oz!

Jazz in Love is now distributed in Australia! So, so, SO excited about this...

It is here. And here. And here!

Interview With Sarah Jamila Stevenson

Today, I am thrilled to host Sarah Jamila Stevenson, author of The Latte Rebellion. I was looking forward to reading this book since I first heard about it and was delighted by the plot turns and the Created Normal of the world in the pages. In other words, the "normal" of this book is PoC, in varying shades and hues, all described in latte terms :D. So, without further rambling from me, here's Sarah, in her own words!

NM: I love that Asha doesn't really have any angst about being a latte - she embraces it and kind of sees it as the norm (and in the world of your story, it IS the norm). What was your own journey to self-acceptance like? Was it long like mine (that body image thing is a pain)? Or was it easy and more of a non-issue?

SJS: I think the key word there is "journey." I feel like the challenges of
journeying toward self-acceptance have changed for me over time, and I
guess I could say that the journey doesn't seem like it's over! As a
latte myself, I felt a lot more caught between cultures when I was
growing up than Asha does in THE LATTE REBELLION. I wanted to be--felt
like--a regular mainstream American teenager, but the Pakistani side
of my family didn't always understand that. I wanted to respect my
Pakistani half without it being the entirety of who I am, but it was
really hard to explain that to my family or my friends or my
classmates. Every once in a while I'd have a big argument with my dad
about, say, why I wanted to go to a school dance--he'd talk about how
unseemly and immodest it was, and admonish me not to dance while I was
there, and while I didn't want to upset him, I also wanted to go and
dance and have fun with my friends. Or we'd argue over why I didn't
want to go to Islamic Sunday school. It made me feel like a terrible
and selfish daughter, but it also infuriated me because I felt like my
views should be respected, too. So I had some anger and frustration
about my identity, until I was able to move away for college and
figure out who I was on my own.

Really, most of the time it was a non-issue. Usually, it wouldn't even
come up unless someone asked me "what are you?" and I'd have to sigh
and give them this long and complicated answer with 7 or 8
nationalities in it. I grew up in a pretty diverse area, so I didn't
feel like I was too unusual.

NM: As I was reading your book, I kept thinking, "Asha needs to hang out with
Sam and Jazz." If you could plan a hang-out date with the three of them, how
do you think it would go? What would they talk about? What would Asha
wear???

SJS: Hee! I love this question. I bet there would be a lot of commiserating
and eye-rolling over strict parents on the part of Asha and Jazz, who
would envy Sam because of her cool, with-it mom. Asha would get the
appropriate amount of sympathy and outrage over the towel-head
incident. She would bring the lattes. :) And, of course, she'd wear a
Latte Rebellion t-shirt and bring shirts for Jazz and Sam!

NM: You mention above that your father is Pakistani. Yet, in your
book it is Asha's mother who is South Asian. What went into your
decision to switch the parent from your own experience?

SJS: In part, it was a little mental trick to keep me from slipping into
the role of identifying too much with the character, and inadvertently
turning her into me or unconsciously modeling her parents after mine.
It was something that worried me a little. Asha and I have some things
in common, but she's definitely not a stand-in for me, and I didn't
even want to be tempted in that direction. I wanted her to be her own
person. And I wanted to challenge stereotypes a little by making her
father--who's NOT the South Asian parent--the strict one.

NM: I read in Ari's interview with you that you did graduate work in
fiction writing, as did I. What would you say were the pros and cons
of doing an advanced degree in fiction writing? In retrospect, now
that you've seen your first book to publication, would you still have
gone that route?

SJS: I definitely would still have gone that route. Prior to my MFA, I
didn't have much knowledge of fiction writing except as an occasional
hobby--my undergraduate degree is in Art and Psychology. I desperately
needed the feedback and the additional background in literature and
craft. And what I've gotten out of it has been so much more than
that--specifically, a committed, diverse and very talented writing
group, and a far more critical eye about writing, both my own and
others'. As for the cons, I think they're the ones common to most
graduate programs, especially in the arts: personality conflicts, the
occasional teacher who played favorites, a relative lack of attention
to the realities of a career in the field. :) Overall, though, it was
a great experience--for me. I'm sure it's not the right route for
everyone, but I'm a school-loving nerd, so...

NM: What are you most proud of accomplishing so far? (This could be either
writing/publishing related, or otherwise general life related).

SJS: Getting my first novel published is definitely way up there! There was
a lot of pressure for success when I was growing up, perhaps
especially because I was younger than most people around me (I
graduated from high school at 16 and undergrad school at 20), and it's
a lot to live up to as an adult with the same advantages and
disadvantages as everyone else. Really, I think I'm the most proud of
having followed my dream of pursuing a career in the arts, despite
various naysayers and setbacks, rather than giving up and doing
something practical. :)

NM: I was very impressed to read somewhere that the doodling inside
the book was yours! As someone who is illustratively challenged, I find
this very impressive. Besides writing and doodling, what are other

ways you express your creativity?

SJS: Besides the graphic design I do as part of my day job, I still
consider visual art one of my vocations, so when I have time and
energy, I try to spend some time making artwork (generally drawing,
painting or printmaking). I can play the piano and sing a little,
though I wouldn't say I was either very creative or particularly
accomplished at it--I just enjoy it. I try to be a creative cook,
mainly because I like to eat yummy food, but again, I'm not going to
be on Iron Chef anytime soon!

Is it fair to say my messy office is one way I express my creativity??
Or is that just an excuse?

NM: What's next? Are you working on something new? I read that you are
fantasy/sci-fi fan - might we see something from you in that genre? :)

SJS: Yes, I love fantasy and sci-fi. I'm currently revising and trying to
find an agent for another YA novel, this one about a girl who develops
the power to hear thoughts in the wake of a family tragedy. (She's
also half South Asian! Go figure.) And I'm trying to get going on a
brand-new novel that's sort of a dystopian-ish steampunk-ish story of
intrigue. (That's all I can say about it for now. I'm still working on
the details and have only written about a page.)

NM: My friends and I sometimes daydream and share our Lofty Goals. Do you
have any Lofty Goals? Please share! These could be along the lines of "one
of my books gets a starred review in Kirkus," "I am asked to be a keynote
speaker at a national conference," "I set up a foundation to offer grants to
fiction writers of latte descent," or "PBS does a special on me and my
work."

SJS: I managed to reach one of my lofty goals, thanks to my book--I got to
be on NPR! It was a local NPR program, but still, that was one of my
lifelong dreams. :) A starred review in Kirkus sounds great, too! I
think the lofty goal that's always floating around in the back of my
head is to be some kind of Intellectual Icon. I'm not sure what that
entails, exactly, but hopefully it includes getting invited to TED
conferences and being consulted as an expert on some impressively
esoteric topic.

NM: I've had some of the TED fantasies, too! ;D Thank you so much,
Sarah, for stopping by!

LIVE-streamed Book Launch

My dear friend, Sheila Batacharya, is celebrating the launch of a book she co-edited about the 1997 murder of Reena Virk in British Columbia, Canada. Reena Virk was a Punjabi teen who was murdered by a group of teen girls (and one boy) she wanted desperately to be friends with.

Most of the media coverage focused on the "girl-violence" aspect of the case and all but ignored the glaring race and hetero-normative elements. The book is called Reena Virk - Critical Perspectives on a Canadian Murder and takes a closer look at some of the issues that went largely unreported in mainstream media coverage.

The book launch will be live-streamed from the Toronto Women's Bookstore tomorrow, Thursday, February 24th, from 6:30-8:30 pm EST. At 6:30 EST tomorrow, go to www.womensbookstore.com, or www.ashrouder.com. I will most definitely be watching.

Giveaway of L.K. Madigan's Books

The Debs are giving away tons of copies of L.K. Madigan's books, FLASH BURNOUT and THE MERMAID'S MIRROR. Each of us is buying a copy of both of Lisa's books and offering them to readers as a way to show our love and support for Lisa, and also to celebrate the wonderful books, themselves!

I've known Lisa (also known as L.K.) as fun, funny, irreverent and a lady who tells it like it is. Last week, she shared some "hard news" on her blog and we were all devastated. We love you, Lisa!

Please go and comment to win a copy of (the 2010 Morris Award winning) FLASH BURNOUT, or THE MERMAID'S MIRROR - your chances are really good. And please help spread the word about Lisa's amazing books. Tweet the giveaway, announce it on Facebook and tell your friends!

Me & L.A. Banks - That's How We Roll...

It looks like me and NY Times best-selling author, L.A. Banks, are going the same route with our books. I noticed her most recent release on Smashwords last night, which is the ebook distributor I'm going with, and saw that she listed herself as the publisher. I was so excited you do not even KNOW.

If you're interested in the ebook for JAZZ, it's available right now, here, and will soon go live on the Barnes & Noble and Borders online sites, as well as the Sony and Apple eBook stores within the next few weeks. The print version is on its way and should be available for purchase by mid-January (or sooner).

So exciting! Go, Ms. Banks! It looks like sisters ARE doing it for themselves *grin* (okay, that was cheesy). I'm going to buy her book for sure, and so should you. :)

Favourite Quotes

A couple of *great* quotes this week . . .

This has to be one of my absolute most favouritest quotes of all time:

"The lack of regard for YA fiction in the mainstream isn't an altogether bad thing. There's something to be said for living in a disreputable, ghettoized bohemia . . . . There's a lot of room for artistic, political and commercial expectation over here in low-stakes land, the same way that there was so much room for experimentation in other ghettos, from hip-hop to roleplaying games to dime-novels. Sure, we're vulnerable to moral panics about corrupting youth (a phenomenon as old as Socrates, and a charge that has been leveled at everything from the waltz to the jukebox), but if you're upsetting that kind of person, you're probably doing something right.

Risk-taking behavior — including ill-advised social, sexual, and substance adventures — are characteristic of youth itself . . . . However, the frightened and easily offended are doing a better job than they ever have of collapsing the horizons of young people, denying them the pleasures of gathering in public or online for fear of meteor-strike-rare lurid pedophile bogeymen, or on the pretense of fighting gangs or school shootings or some other tabloid horror. Literature may be the last escape available to young people today. It's an honor to be writing for them. " -- Cory Doctorow

And this is one I swiped off CrazyQuilts, the blog of one of our favourite blogging librarians:

"I'm tired of YA books that stereotype teens of color and continually cast them as victims. Too often, whether the teen be Asian or Middle Eastern they are first or second generation with immigrant issues or retelling traditional stories. Blacks and Latino/as are urban dwellers with violent anger issues and Natives are silently stereotyped, too. No doubt we need to meet students where they are and validate their existence, however not all teens of any one ethnic group have the exact same experience. Even those who live marginalized lives deserve to see other possibilities for themselves and White readers need to see people of color in equitable situations." -- Edi Campbell

Honouring June Jordan

In honour of the re-release of HIS OWN WHERE, which I reviewed here, I'm going to put up quotes from the inimitable June Jordan. These are quotes that meant a great deal to me when I first read them. I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Jordan in the early 1990's, when she visited Toronto and did a reading for Sister Vision Press - a feminist press started and run by women of colour for "challenging and provocative" works written by women of colour. I was young and learning and seeing so many things for the first time. Jordan awed me and blew me away. Her passion, her sense of rhythm, and her absolute, radiating love was what drew me in. I'll never forget that reading. The call for action and change that rose through her depths and made it's impact in that room full of women and men, white and PoC, het and LGBTQ was critical for me during my formative years as a writer and activist. You are greatly missed, Ms. Jordan, but your legacy lives on.

"My life seems to be an increasing revelation of the intimate face of universal struggle. You begin with your family and the kids on the block, and next you open your eyes to what you call your people, and that leads you into land reform into Black English into Angola leads you back to your own bed where you lie by yourself, wondering if you deserve to be peaceful, or trusted or desired or left to the freedom of your own unfaltering heart. And the scale shrinks to the size of a skull: your own interior cage. And then if you’re lucky, and I have been lucky, everything comes back to you. And then you know why one of the freedom fighters in the sixties, a young Black woman interviewed shortly after she was beaten up for riding near the front of the interstate bus––you know why she said, ‘We are all so very happy’? It’s because it’s on. All of us and me by myself: we’re on."
-- from the foreword to Civil Wars, 1980, by June Jordan

"Our own shadows disappear as the feet of thousands
by the tens of thousands pound the fallow land
into new dust that
rising like a marvelous pollen will be
fertile
even as the first woman whispering
imagination to the trees around her made
for righteous fruit
from such deliberate defense of life
as no other still
will claim inferior to any other safety
in the world
[. . .]
And who will join this standing up
and the ones who stood without sweet company
will sing and sing
back into the mountains and
if necessary
even under the sea:

we are the ones we have been waiting for."

Go to JuneJordan.com for more info on Ms. Jordan and her work. Also, look for posts this week by Ari of Reading in Color and on The Rejectionist blog featuring quotes and reviews of HIS OWN WHERE.

TELL US WE'RE HOME by Marina Budhos

I received a copy of TELL US WE'RE HOME from Atheneum/Simon & Schuster and couldn't wait to crack it open. The story is a twist on the usual teen girl friendship novel - in this tale, the protagonists are Jaya, Maria, and Lola, eighth-grade daughters of maids and nannies in an affluent New Jersey suburb.

This is the paragraph that made my eyes sting:

Lola began to weep. This was it, the steely truth of her life. What she had been fighting ever since they'd come to America. This was a lonely land of firsts, where no one, not even your parents, could help you cross over. And she had no choice but to do it by herself . . . You pushed ahead, in the chilling rain, hoping you didn't die from being first.

That paragraph resonated deeply for me. Maybe because I am one of those "firsts" and know the cutting truth of those words. But also maybe because it is true for so many who've landed on these shores as strangers in a strange land.

Budhos touches on so many issues in this novel of social and personal awakening - the fallacy of the American dream, the myth of meritocracy, entitlement, class-based arrogance/ignorance, and xenophobia, just to start.

The girls' relationship with one another is sweet, but I was most won over by the relationships between the mothers and daughters. All girls are either fatherless, or un-fathered (under-fathered?). The plight of single mothers carrying the full emotional and financial burden of raising their children in a new land that cuts them little to no slack is heart-breaking. Not to mention that these same women must often neglect their own children's needs to tend to the needs and whims of their employers' children (or parents, as the case may be).

Budhos handles these issues with a light, deft touch. And everything is not wrapped up with a pretty bow at the end, either. It is left exactly as Life leaves things - untidy. But TELL US WE'RE HOME  is a satisfying read for both teen readers and adults alike. Pick up a copy now here, or at Indiebound. And visit Marina's site for more info about her and her other works.

HIS OWN WHERE, by June Jordan

The Feminist Press recently sent me a review copy of HIS OWN WHERE by June Jordan. The book was first published in 1971 and was a finalist for the National Book Award. It was the first book written "entirely in Black English." The Feminist Press is reissuing the novel-in-poetry on May 25th and if you don't pick up a copy, you'll be missing out on one of the best YA novels written by one of the master wordsmiths of our time.

HIS OWN WHERE is about Buddy, a young black man in America. It's a tender love story told in language that is stripped down to simple, bold, and beautiful truth:

His mother hungering for order among things themselves, for space she could admire, simply hungering and gone. Where did she go, and Buddy wondering about this last disorder she did not repair. This disordering of life of marriage of her motherhood. Strange lovely woman warm and hungering and gone.

It is a rare and loving depiction of black masculinity - Buddy is sensitive, protective (of love, of vulnerability), nurturing, creative, communicative. He has a loving relationship with is father. Together, they tear down the insides of the home they live in and build it back up so they can breathe...so they can feel free:

Buddy father clean the house down to the linoleum. Remove the moldings. Take away the window drapes and teach him, Buddy, how to calculate essentials how to calculate one table and two chairs, four plates, two mugs. Together they build shelves and stain them. Throw out the cabinets and bureaus opening and closing like a bank. His father teach him hammering and saws and measuring and workshop science. House be like a workshop where men live creating how they live.[...] On duty in the night his father dream and draw the next plan for the next day, working the house into a dream they can manage with their hands.

Jordan paints an unflinching portrait of life in small, cramped homes, parents working day and night for bare essentials, the restriction of movement in the urban landscape, and the desperate need for mobility, growth, expansion. And then, of course, there is teen love and sexual awakening in the midst of it all...

Buddy could never get over this difference between women and their daughters. Like this nurse, this obnoxious, nosy woman who spoke to him like that when they were strangers, she was the mother of his Angela. She was the mother of the girl Buddy felt guilty to be so aware of there right where his father lay, his face asleep, his life dying.

I read this book in one big gulp because I couldn't put it down. Not because of the plot (it's not one of those, "OMG, what happens next?!?!" books), but because of the language. Because of the Truth in its words. Because Jordan left her heart in those pages. And it saddens me that books like these often aren't seen as "lead" titles, or "big sellers" - if they manage to even become published at all.

I wonder what would happen if books like HIS OWN WHERE were published with the enthusiasm of something like the Twilight series. If as much money were thrown behind them and as much buzz were generated. Would we start to see copycats of revolutionary books by black authors? Would there be series after series of books about sensitive, loving, young black men who are gardeners and carpenters, builders and protectors, creators and lovers? Could you imagine . . . ? Books upon books of black and brown people reshaping their landscapes, tearing down and rebuilding the walls holding them in . . . Seriously, could you imagine . . . ?

I would like to get this book as much exposure as possible. If you are a blogger and/or reviewer with a large readership, please email me. I will send you my copy as long as you agree to review/blog about the book and create as much buzz about it as you can in a timely manner (remember, pub date is May 25th...so, within the next month or two).

Everyone else: BUY THIS BOOK.

Support New York Area Public Libraries!

I'm reposting a note from a fierce librarian who put this appeal on a listserv we are both on. Many thanks to the wonderful Yesha Naik for bringing much needed attention to such an important issue!

"please consider supporting your local library and libraries in two ways:
1-- Monetary support -- yes, *donate*, (money, not books!) please

How to donate---- (the following are three Separate library systems. Yes,
really!:-) )

A. Brooklyn Public Library -
http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/support/donor/
B. New York Public Library - http://www.nypl.org/support
C. Queens Public -
https://secure2.convio.net/

qlf/site/Donation2?df_id=1420&1420.donation=form1

2. Political support - free to you, yet sends a strong message to
politicians that this is a crucial service that* cannot* be cut.

*How* to send a message:----
A. http://www.petitiononline.com/nyclibs/petition.html
B. http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/support/shelves/
C.
http://blog.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/post/2010/03/18/Keep-Your-Library-Open!.aspx
D. http://www.savequeenslibrary.org/
E. http://www.nypl.org/locations/tid/8/node/31430

Here's *why *you should help:
In case you'd like to know, here are ways (with example links) in which NY
area public libraries support their communities, besides providing access to
free books and internet access:
1. free ESOL classes -
http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/literacy/esol.jsp,
http://www.nypl.org/events/classes/esol
2. free GED/ pre GED classes -
http://www.queenslibrary.org/index.aspx?page_nm=Adult+Literacy+-+ABE+Classes
3. free Job search help - http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/ejic.jsp
4. free computer classes for senior citizens -
http://www.nypl.org/events/classes/2010/01/19/adult-computer-class
5. free computer classes for immigrants (in their native languages) -
http://www.nypl.org/help/community-outreach/immigrant-services
6. free programs for babies, toddlers, preschoolers and their parents -
http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/first5years/
7. free afterschool programs for teens (like Creative Writing workshops,
TeenTime) - http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/teens/
8. free afterschool programs for kids (like Arts and Crafts, Gaming) -
http://www.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/kids/
9. free access for incarcerated citizens who desire to read but are not
allowed access unless a librarian visits with a floating collection -
http://www.nypl.org/help/community-outreach/correctional-services-program
10. and More...."

Books I've Cherished

I'm following Zetta's lead and taking the Diversity Roll Call: Paradigm Shifts assignment posted over at Color Online:

Several books come immediately to mind when I think of works that shifted the way I see things--that made an impact on my life's decisions: SISTER OUTSIDER, by Audre Lorde; THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET, by Sandra Cisneros; MEAN SPIRIT, by Linda Hogan; WOMAN ON THE EDGE OF TIME, by Marge Piercy; The FREE RENUNCIATES trilogy by Marion Zimmer Bradley; SHATTERED GLASS, by Elaine Bergstrom; and WILD SEED, by Octavia Butler.

All of these are adult books that were written before there was a category for YA. But I certainly read them when I was a YA, and they had a tremendous impact on who I became and how I saw the world around me.

SISTER OUTSIDER began my journey into looking at the world through a Black feminist lens. It opened me up to works by June Jordan, bell hooks, Dionne Brand, Cherie Moraga, Joy Kagawa, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Jeanette Winterson, Dorothy Allison, the rest of Ms. Lorde's writings, and many other unapologetic feminists of colour -- women whose words gave me ways to express aspects of myself I'd never thought could be valued.

THE HOUSE ON MANGO STREET was the first book I read in print that seemed so utterly accessible. It showed me my heart, my innermost thoughts and feelings on a page where someone else wrote the words. I was simply amazed that this was possible. I loved the characters in this book -- felt like I knew them; that most of them were family.

MEAN SPIRIT blew my world apart. The writing, the magnitude and scope of the events Ms. Hogan described, and the sheer devastation of what this particular community experienced was a shattering revelation. I had read lots of non-fiction about the history of the Americas, and spent long nights chatting with First Nations friends and colleagues, and I thought I was pretty knowledgeable on the issues and topics. But when I read this book, I realized what a difference it makes reading about these types of events through story. Through fiction. And through the eyes of characters that live and breathe on the page. It was an ambitious undertaking, and Ms. Hogan did it masterfully. In my opinion, this book is one of the most brilliant and under-valued gems of fiction--multicultural or otherwise. It should be a MUST READ in every class that looks at literature by marginalized voices, and any and every class that studies American history.

WOMAN ON THE EDGE OF TIME was shoved into my hands by a close friend. "READ THIS," she said. And I did, non-stop from the moment I opened the book. I had never read a work of feminist science-fiction before this book. I was amazed at Ms. Piercy's imagination, and her feminist commentary woven throughout the narrative. It was the first time I discovered that feminism and a social commentary could be merged with not only fiction (I'd discovered this with Audre Lorde's book), but with science-fiction. I was hooked.

The FREE RENUNCIATES trilogy and SHATTERED GLASS were books I read rather close together. Like Piercy's novel, both of these books showed me how magical feminism threaded through fantasy could be for young readers like myself. It was the first time I was seeing kick-ass heroines who needed no saving, who were out there finding their own destinies and who were shaping the world around them. SHATTERED GLASS was the first feminist vampire novel I'd ever read. The protagonist was a strong woman who was unashamed of her own sexuality and sensuality, and matched the men around her in power and ability. The concepts Ms. Bergstrom used in this novel, i.e. "vegetarian" vampires (who don't prey on humans) are the same ones Meyers later used in her mega-hit series.

And last (but certainly not least!), is Butler's WILD SEED. This book was a merging of all of the above, and really set the bar for every feminist, socially conscious fantasy/sci-fi novel I've read since. I found this book at a center for LGBTQ folks during a meeting, and started flipping through. By the end of the meeting, I was a third of the way through and could not put it down. I smuggled it home, read it that night, then smuggled it back the next day. Bad, I know. But such is the power of Ms. Butler's work. In WILD SEED, I saw characters and story and socially conscious narrative elevated to well beyond an art. I was completely absorbed in the story of these two "lovers." Their story was as epic and sweeping as any romance novel or Bollywood film, but there were layers of profound insight and revelations that struck at the very core of my belief systems. It's a book and experience I've absolutely cherished.

All of these books and authors have influenced my own work in some way. I am indebted to all of them, and so many others for breaking ground, fighting tirelessly to make way so that stories like mine and those of other marginalized voices could make their way into the world.

Protecting Kids Through Honest Dialogue

A Facebook friend posted this link to her profile. It was devastating to go through some of the posts on the organization's blog and see just how prevalent child sexual abuse is in India, and the possible reasons for that. I know it's far higher everywhere than most people think, but every time I read/hear of a new case where a child is silenced or shut down, or a perpetrator is let off the hook with nothing more than a slap on the wrist, it tears me apart.

When I worked at the Children's Aid Society years ago, I went to court with a pre-teen who had been repeatedly abused by her father since she was about six. She had run away and was staying with her older sister (who accompanied us to court). The courts made the pre-teen return home to her father because her statement "lacked credibility." While it's possible she was making it all up, and I suppose she could have doctored the photos of scars and bruises, and her sister's testimony could have been in conspiracy, the evidence that children do not make this sh*t up if nothing is happening in the home is overwhelming. My kids make stuff up all the time. But this kind of stuff never even enters their radar.

I've been thinking a lot about protecting my kids and everything that means. I know some people think that protecting children means keeping certain books, films, etc. away from them. If the books are ADULT books, I agree with that. But if the books openly discuss issues in an age-appropriate way, I don't think they should be kept from the children they are meant to educate. I do think parents and care-givers have a responsibility to discuss the material with their children, however. Reading materials are not a substitute for discussion.

As someone who grew up in a home where NOTHING related to sex or the body was discussed openly, I have to say that open and honest dialogue around these types of things (in a non-threatening, age-appropriate way!) has to be one of the single most important protections for our kids.

Here are some helpful, non-threatening books I've found that address various issues kids may face -- from trauma to protecting themselves from unwanted touch:

A Terrible Thing Happened
Please Tell: A Child's Story About Sexual Abuse
My Body Is Private
Your Body Belongs to You
The Right Touch
I Said No!
Some Parts Are Not For Sharing

If you know of other great books or resources, please leave them in the comments.

Salon Article on White-Washing

Great article on salon.com about the Magic Under Glass controversy (a historical YA by Jaclyn Dolamore), featuring quotes from our own Ari of Reading In Color. Glad Salon took up the issue.

I feel for the author--her first book, no less--who is the one caught in the middle of all this. I remember that feeling of getting an offer after so many rejections, so many years of slogging, and thinking, "YES, finally!" Only to be mired in something like this? Ugh.

I have more to blog about, but wanted to put that up before the day got away from me.

Yearning for Freedom; and Some News!

So many things to blog about today. I was originally going to come here and do a post about my thoughts on the film Amelia, which I saw last night. But because there are other, more timely issues to blog about, I'll just give you a quick summary:

To put it in a nutshell, it was an interesting film. I was mildly interested in watching it at first--not sure which aspect of Ms. Earhart's life would be broached and/or sensationalized. But when I found out that Mira Nair directed it, I was immediately more interested. I kept thinking, as I watched, about how colonization is so much more than the invasion of nations. It is the thorough and devastating invasion of bodies, minds, and souls. Specifically, I thought about the colonization of women's bodies, minds, and souls.

Amelia Earhart was a wealthy white woman who ran with the politically elite. Her husband was George Putnam, as in G.P. Putnam & Sons--the mega-publisher. Earhart had dinner with the Roosevelts. She could afford flying lessons. And yet, she was still a woman in a patriarchal, sexist world. She was still often treated like a child (something PoC encounter on a regular basis), and many decisions were made for her by the men in her life, often "for her own good." She bucked many conventions of her time and she yearned to be free. Something so many of us can relate to.

What caught me by surprise was how sad I was at the end. I knew what the ending was, and history has recorded how Ms. Earhart died, and still, I could not stop the flow of tears. Here is my favourite quote from the movie: "Everyone has oceans to fly, as long as you have the heart to do it. Is it reckless? Maybe. But what do dreams know of boundaries?" --Amelia Earhart, 1897-1937.

Another quote that has resonated for me on this particular day is "Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle." That one is from Martin Luther King, Jr. And how ironic that today I should read about yet another furor, online, over the whitewashing of a book cover. Once again, it is the Bloomsbury team, deciding that a cover with a white model depicting a protagonist who is "brown-skinned" will sell more books, that is at issue. Several posts have been written on the topic already: Ari's heartfelt, powerful open letter, Susan's post/s, and the post and ensuing discussion over at The Story Siren.

I agree with Zetta's sentiment on her blog, "I don’t have time to respond to all the ignorant remarks...", particularly because there are so many. But I do LOVE that there are bloggers out there who see this issue as something that affects them, and are taking it on themselves, or as allies. Brava to you! The only thing that really irked me in the comments I read was the suggestion that those who are outraged about the cover should somehow be "nicer" in their outrage. Let me just point out that sometimes PoC, women, LGBTQ folks, the working class, and other people who've had their voices marginalized, get angry. When you're being battered on a daily basis, you're bound to get a little pissed. And then, if you see people you love--your little brother, your cousin, your mom, your child, your grandpa--relentlessly battered as well, you'll not likely reach out lovingly, softly, compassionately, to "teach" someone that their silence is not only NOT helping you, but that it is helping to keep the very systems in place that bruise and batter you every single day. To tell people who've had long histories of violence, subjugation, brutality, colonization, and/or slavery, that it would be better for them to be "nice" about their pain and outrage at being erased yet again -- because they might hurt someone else's feelings, otherwise -- is really another way of saying "shut up." It truly is. Audre Lorde's famous quote, "Your silence will not protect you" comes to mind; the extension of that being, "Your silence will not help others."

The other thing I wanted to blog about today, that I really shouldn't put last -- but I've written this post in the order things happened today -- is this: some of you know that I am writing in another genre under a pen name. Well, today, I received an offer for my first full-length novel in that genre, and I couldn't be more delighted. I will not reveal my pen name on this blog, nor provide any more information than I just did, but suffice it to say that if you do discover my alternate identity, I will not deny it's me :).

Wishing you all a thoughtful, reflective MLK, Jr. Day as we celebrate one man's message and his life's work.

Scary Penguins

Okay, so here's what sometimes happens:

A writer writes a book that takes many years. She writes a book like the one she would have wanted to read when she was a teenager. She wants a book that speaks to the real lives of children and teens. She knows there are holes out there on bookshelves and children and teens who are like she was are desperate for the Truth, desperate for someone to tell them what's really going on and maybe show them ways to look at it, ways to be in it, or to get out of it . . . but mostly show them that they are not alone or weird or alien.

She spends another few years finding an agent who connects with her work. They work together to find a perfect editor and publisher fit for both the book and the author. The book gets acquired by an editor and publisher who believe in the book and think it's an important addition to their list. Everyone celebrates. Much hard work goes into creating the cover, finding the perfect artist and designer, choosing the font, designing the pages, editing, editing again, proof-reading, copy-editing . . .

And just before you turn completely gray, the book makes it out into the world. There is more celebrating. You get great reviews, readers email you telling you how amazing it is to see a reflection of their realities within the pages of a book. That they know SOOO many others who will be relieved/grateful that a book like this exists. That we need more depictions out there of what REALLY EXISTS IN OUR WORLD for readers to see. That there are kids and teens out there who are desperate to know that they are natural, normal, beautiful, love-able, important, worthy, and deserving, JUST AS THEY ARE. And that they are not alone, even if their parents won't talk to them about anything, or if their parents aren't around, or if they simply have nowhere to turn to.

And then, someone, somewhere in a part of the country, decides that your book is immoral. That it could damage their kids and other people's kids. And, instead of making sure they keep the book away from their kids, they launch a campaign to keep the book away FROM ALL KIDS. They work hard to make sure the book is taken off library shelves, out of schools, and that authors who write those kinds of books are not allowed anywhere in the vicinity of the school or the library. They cancel school and library visits from these authors because they are "protecting the children."

At this point, you might be wondering why this post is entitled Scary Penguins. It is because of this story I read in the BBC News about a children's book, And Tango Makes Three, that has had the most ban requests. It is a book based on the true story of two male penguins in the Central Park Zoo who partnered together to hatch a baby penguin. The book has been banned because it is "anti-ethnic, anti-family, homosexuality, religious viewpoint, and unsuited to age group." (Aside: Excuse me, but anti-ethnic??? Could someone please tell me what ethnicity penguins usually are?)

This has nothing to do with protecting anyone. It is about fear. As Ellen Hopkins put it so beautifully in her manifesto, it is about fear of ideas. Fear of opening doors and asking questions and challenging status quos. Why not talk to your kids? Why not have a discussion? Why not use these books as starting points to actually interact with children and teens about important issues that they see all the time, all around them? Our kids know far more than we think they know. And if they're not talking to us about things, they're getting their information from other sources. Wouldn't you want to be part of that conversation?

Other books that have been banned in previous years are:
The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling
Beloved, by Toni Morrison
The Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson
The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton
A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L'Engle

There are more titles here.

Go buy a banned book today. And, even better, invite the author of a banned book to speak at your school or library.

ETA: More of my thoughts on book banning, as well as other Simon and Schuster authors such as Ellen Hopkins, are up here.

Mayra Lazara Dole Gets Down To The Bone

Hispanic Heritage month goes until October 15th. In honour of the vast and deep tradition of Hispanic and Latino literature, I wanted to post about a wonderful novel I just finished reading: DOWN TO THE BONE, by Mayra Lazara Dole.

I am afraid I now have this lingering sadness -- the kind you get after leaving the warmth of the Caribbean to go back to February in the Northeast. Ms. Dole is the queen of setting. I felt like I lived there on that Miami strip with Papaya's and Cha Cha's restaurant and the smell of the sea and the sun burning the fog away. And the food! I was hungry the whole time I was reading!

In DOWN TO THE BONE, Dole explores issues of sexuality, gender, class, religion and spirituality, and family and community using a deft, but subtle touch. Laura, the Cuban-American protagonist, is immensely likable, and her best friend, Soli, is utterly adorable. I loved that Soli was not introduced like: HERE IS THE BLACK FRIEND. She was Soli, first. Then, through Dole's sensitive and quiet, but evocative descriptions, we get a full picture of Soli as an Afro-Latina. Likewise, with Gisela and Viva (I won't tell you who these characters are--you will have to read the book!).

I was quite impressed with Dole's stellar portrayal of the complexity of spirituality without ever becoming heavy-handed or didactic. There was the incident that got Laura kicked out of Catholic school (the teacher read a love letter to Laura from her girlfriend OUT LOUD TO THE WHOLE CLASS) and her mother's response to it (think: "immoral," "sinner," etc.); then there is the religion that best friend Soli's mother practices (metaphysical and all about love); and, of course, Laura's own views on how the world/god works (she refers to "Sacred Nature"). Such a wonderful way to weave in differing perspectives on religion and spirituality!

One thing, though: I am glad that I did not realize there was a glossary of terms in the back. That would have annoyed me from the beginning. I didn't find the Spanish words jarring in the least -- it would've been more jarring to stop the flow of words and flip to the back for a meaning every time there was a non-English word. I don't speak Spanish fluently, but I loved reading the rhythm of the words and saying them out loud when I was alone*.

DOWN TO THE BONE was a totally fun read, full of heart, angst, and love. Laura is beautifully flawed, tender, but tough, and you can't help but want her to find true love and live happily ever after. If you haven't read it already, get it here! And if you have, get it for a friend :).

*Yes, these are the things I do when I am alone.