Thursday, January 31, 2013

Social Justice Theme Read 2013 Kick-off


Welcome everyone to Resistance is Futile's Social Justice Theme Read 2013 Kickoff! *yay!* I have a whole pile of books that I want to read. I know I'm not going to get through them all, but I'm sure going to try! I'll be reviewing them as I finish them, all month long. 

 This post is my official link-collection post. Everyone who wants to participate can post a link to their movie / book review (or social justice commentary) in the comments section of this post. That way, I can collect everyone's reviews in a summary post at the end of the month. 

 Time-line

 2/1: Interview with Jeanette Windle, author of Congo Dawn. One copy of Congo Dawn will be given away to a lucky person!

 2/21: Discussion post for To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (book)

 2/25: Discussion post for Noughts and Crosses, by Malorie Blackman

 2/28: Discussion post for To Kill a Mockingbird (movie)

 Suggestions

 lists
Goodreads Listopia
CCBC Booklists
The Bellwether Prize

Non-Fiction books that I'm considering
Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention, by Manning Marable (race relations) - IN PROGRESS
The Road of Lost Innocence, by Somaly Mam (human trafficking)
The Autobiography of Malcolm X, by Malcolm X (race relations)
The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander (prisons)
Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich (poverty)
Mountains Beyond Mountains, by Tracy Kidder (medicine) - COMPLETE, AWAITING REVIEW
Half the Sky, by Nicholas D. Kristof (human trafficking)
Dead Man Walking, by Helen Prejean (prisons / death sentence)

 Fiction that I'm considering
Congo Dawn, by Jeanette Windle - REVIEW
Little Bee, by Chris Cleave
Running the Rift, by Naomi Benaron
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair
Bleak House, by Charles Dickens
The Girl Who Fell From the Sky, by Heidi W. Durrow
Mudbound, by Hillary Jordan
Roots, by Alex Haley

 Young Adult lit that I'm considering
Noughts and Crosses, by Malorie Blackman - REVIEW
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
Let the Circle Be Unbroken, by Mildred D Taylor - IN PROGRESS
Sold, by Patricia McCormick 
The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place, by E. L. Konigsburg

 Recomendations from my past


Non-fiction
The Rape of Nanking, by Iris Chang
The Lemon Tree, by Sandy Tolan
I Shall Not Hate, by Izzeldin Abuelaish


Fiction
A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens
Walks Alone, by Sandi Rog
The Yellow Wallpaper, by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Saving Hope, by Margaret Daley
Half of a Yellow Sun, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Help, by Kathryn Stockett


Children's / YA
Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry, by Mildred D Taylor
The Rock and the River, by Kekla Magoon
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy, by Gary D. Schmidt

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26 comments:

  1. Great list of books!

    The Jungle was interesting as it was one of the most melodramatic and over the top books that I have ever read. In an odd way that made it appealing to me.

    I see that you previously read The Rape of Nanking. Truly one of the most disturbing books that I ever read. I have read a fair share of works that describe human atrocities. That one tells some of the worst tales that I have ever heard.

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    1. Haha. Thanks for the warning about The Jungle being over the top. I think I'll enjoy it too. :)

      The Rape of Nanking was pretty brutal, and I think I would have put it down permanently if I weren't reading it with a group. It was a bit too much at times. Very brutal.

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  2. Sounds interesting, I look forward to those discussions and reading your reviews.

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  3. Me again. Just to let you know I'll be posting my book review of Weirdo, Mosher, Freak: The Murder Of Sophie Lancaster by Catherine Smyth on Pen and Paper on February the 20th. The true story of a young woman who was kicked to death (her boyfriend receiving life-threatening injuries) for her 'crime' of dressing differently.

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  4. Excellent list! I look forward to reading your reviews.

    This my review of Agnes Grey: http://readingagainsttheclock.blogspot.com.ar/2013/02/agnes-grey-by-anne-bronte.html

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    1. Got it! I'll check it out soon. (Running a bit behind, as you've probably gathered).

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  5. I've made a discovery: Sherlock Holmes is not only about solving mysteries! A Study in Scarlet has a very vivid portrayal of the Mormon society, which perverse social rules sometimes destroy lives, and The Sigh of Four transports us to the colonial India, where natives were usually treated like no people at all. I didn't expect this, but it seems both count for social justice theme!
    Reviews here: http://irrelevant-scribble.blogspot.cz/2013/02/a-study-in-scarlet-and-sign-of-four-by.html

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    1. Got it. Thanks! Be over there to look at it soon!

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  6. Here is my review of The Road of Lost Innocence by Somaly Mam. It is truly heartbreaking to read the story of these young women who are being sold into prostitution, often by their own families.
    http://goodbooksandacupoftea.blogspot.ca/2013/02/the-road-of-lost-innocence-by-somaly-mam.html

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    1. got it! be there to check it out soon!

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  7. I posted a review for the Social Justice Theme Read, which explores racial issues in the postwar US:

    http://bitterteaandmystery.blogspot.com/2013/02/devil-in-blue-dress-walter-mosley.html

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    1. Thanks! Got it! Be over there to check it out soon!

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  8. Here is my review of A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park, about a young boy who becomes one of the Lost Boys of Sudan and how years later he is able to bring assistance to the Sudan.
    http://goodbooksandacupoftea.blogspot.ca/2013/02/a-long-walk-to-water-by-linda-sue-park.html

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  9. I have not yet finished To kill a mocking bird and here is my review of Oliver Twist. http://myrandombookshelf.blogspot.in/2013/02/oliver-twist-charles-dickens.html

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  10. Here's my review of A Tale of Two Cities: http://readingagainsttheclock.blogspot.com.ar/2013/02/a-tale-of-two-cities-by-charles-dickens.html

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  11. Here is my review of "The Other Side of Paradise" by Staceyann Chin, about the authors experience of growing up poor and coming out as a lesbian in Jamaica.
    http://goodbooksandacupoftea.blogspot.ca/2013/02/the-other-side-of-paradise-by-staceyann.html

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  12. Here is my review of Frantz Fanon distrubing classic The Wretched of the Earth which discusses the impact of colonialism on the psyche of the people:

    http://inkquilletc.blogspot.in/2013/02/scars-and-chains-frantz-fanons-wretched.html

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  13. The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens: http://irrelevant-scribble.blogspot.cz/2013/03/the-old-curiosity-shop-by-charles.html
    Justice is restored in the end!

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    1. Got it! :) Congrats on finishing it. That one was a long haul for me, too.

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