Black Women in History: On the Bookshelf

 If I didn’t define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people’s fantasies for me and eaten alive. 

- Audre Lorde

I'm not lacking inspiration for the Black Women in History Post Series, however since there is consistent hammering, clanging, banging, and screaming coming from the apartment below and I am having trouble filtering out the noise, I am going to keep it simple today.  As I have stated in several of my post I have a goal of reading twenty-four books, by the end of the year.  While I am broadening my horizons, many of the books on my list come from Black Women authors, since they possess the voice that I can identify with most.

Today's post consist of a list of books that I have read or plan to read over the next year from some of my favorite black female authors....

Books that I have read by Black Women include

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Their Eyes Are Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston

Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison

Baileys Cafe by Gloria Naylor

Some love Some Pain Sometime by J. California Cooper
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is not Enough by Ntozake  Shange
Paradise by Toni Morrison

And a few more in-between that I can't recall right now.  I am currently in the process of finishing  The Street by Ann Petry and restarting Jazz by Toni Morrison. New to my list in no particular order-

Coal by Audre Lorde

Linden Hills by Gloria Naylor

The Narrows by Ann Petry

Mama Day by Gloria Naylor

The Women of Brewster Place by Gloria Naylor

The Men of Brewster Place by Gloria Naylor

The Chicken Chronicles: Sitting with the Angels Who Have Returned with My Memories: Glorious, Rufus, Gertrude Stein, Splendor, Hortensia, Agnes of God, the Gladyses, & Babe: A Memoir by Alice Walker

Maud Martha: A Novel by Gwendolyn Brooks

Blacks by Gwendolyn Brooks

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Letter to my Daughter by Maya Angelou

A Piece of Mine: Stories by J. California Cooper

Homemade Love by J. California Cooper

1996 by Gloria Naylor 

Linden Hills by Gloria Naylor

Some Soul to Keep by J. California Cooper

Some People, Some other Place  by J. California Cooper

The Wake of the Wind by J. California Cooper

In Search of Satisfaction by J. California Cooper

If I read this whole list I would exceed my goal.  I know Gloria Naylor, Ann Petry, Audre Lorde, Alice Walker, Gwendolyn Brooks, Maya Angelou, Zora Neal Hurston and J.California Cooper aren't the only Black Women authors out there, but I celebrate them today.  What not on my list are some good mystery stories or biographies, any recommendations?

Peace and Love,

Najeema Iman(Falling in love with good books)

Three books, three earrings, one thrifty family weekend

I woke up this morning with every intention of going to church. However, I guess since I actually got up an hour later than planned and we suffered a toddler meltdown that ended in a time out session, the universe had other plans. The lesson for today, I assume, is to go with the flow. Thing happen; no matter how much we plan sometimes, it doesn't always work out the way we intend. The fact is my house looks like a disaster zone, laundry has piled up and I think its coming after me; my husband and I need some one-on-one face time, and daddies' little girls want to play. I didn't make it to church today, but I am ministering to my family. It's the little things like making crescent dogs with your toddler, playing Scrabble, and vegging out on the couch watching a marathon of your favorite show with your spouse that matters most.

This weekend was fairly relaxing, especially since my husband finally got a few days off. We didn't accomplish everything that we wanted, but we had good quality family time and even caught up with a family friend. We ran a few errands, did a little thrifting, and picked up a few groceries for the week. Definitely in love with the spring trends as you may see from my numerous polyvore pins over the past couple of days, so I scooped up the earring pictured on the right.

I practiced what I preached and bought three books from the local libraries book store, Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan, Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, and the five people you meet in heaven by Mitch Albom.

My preference is usually African American authors such as Toni Morrison, Anne Petry, and Gloria Naylor, but I figured I would broaden my horizons this time around. These three books will help me play catch up, as I am three books behind on my goal of reading two books a month. This may not seem like a daunting task to many of you, but for a stay-at-home mother of two who barely finds time to fit in a shower, this is the challenge of a lifetime. Somewhere between diaper changes, physical therapy for the littlest in our clan, timeouts, and dishes, I hope to enjoy a few good books. How has your weekend been, what are you reading?

Peace and Love,

Najeema Iman, I AM Curly Locks

Blogsphere: Rhonda J. Smith featured in "Daily Guideposts: Your First Year of Motherhood"

One of my favorite bloggers, Rhonda J. Smith of Musing of a [Recovering] Strong Black Woman is being featured in a new book released April 1, 2011, Daily Guidepost: Your First Year of Motherhood.  Mrs. Smith is one of twenty one writers in this book that includes 366 devotionals to help mom's deal with the daily woes that family life can bring.  There is also a special section that talks about postpartum depression, lonliness, and maintaining a healthy marriage.

I haven't had the opportunity to purchase my copy yet, but I will definitely be hitting up Amazon sometime this week. But here's a message from Mrs. Smith,

"...I believe this is a must-have for new moms, and the universal themes in the devotionals benefit experienced moms and even those without children. So, please support this effort. Buy a book for you and someone you know. Tell others about it. It'll make a good baby shower or Mother's Day gift. Like the first weekend for new movies, the first few weeks for book sales are critical. So if you can, pick up the book within the next two weeks."

There you have it, a great buy for moms, moms-to-be, aunties, grandma's and all the ladies in between just in time for Mother's Day.

Peace and Love,

Najeema Iman I AM Curly Locks