Bookish Liaisons – Page 4

The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein

November 6, 2018 RaeAnna

Read Yes
Length 331
Quick Review Race is a complicated issue in the United States. The Color of Law goes a long way to explaining some of the intricacies. I have heard nothing but good things, and I can’t agree more.

*The Color of Law* by Richard Rothstein || Romper

American history is riddled with inequality. Laws have been made and changed and changed and changed. Laws made in the name of “equality” have been instituted, and, yet, inequality thrives even today. Richard Rothstein unravels some of the assbackward, sorry, I mean, laws about equality in The Color of Law.

We have come a long way… ish. There is still so far to go. Discrimination doesn’t necessarily look the way it did 100 years ago or even 50 years ago, but it is still rampant. Rothstein, obviously, in The Color of Law that discrimination is and has been de jure. It may not have begun in the legal system, but the discrimination has been bolstered in the policy decisions of the federal, state, and local governments. These policies have reverberated throughout history and are still felt today.

One example, which spans several chapters in The Color of Law, talks about the housing situation. Housing is a necessity similar to air, nourishment, clothing, and puppy cuddles – wait, that may just be me. Housing discrimination has been in the legal system for… ever. Even when there were fewer or no laws explicitly denying certain people access to housing, there were laws allowing discrimination to continue. I would explain more, but it is a complicated topic to explain in a paragraph.

Basically, laws have kept people of color in particularly unpleasant and unequal circumstances through many routes.

If The Color of Law is your first read on the inequities of the American legal system and society in general towards people of color, you will definitely find many parts to be distressing. I do. Everytime, I delve into these topics, I am disturbed. I believe this is a good thing. Reading books about uncomfortable topics affects the way we see the world. As a white person, it’s very important to be aware of the difficulties people of other skin colors face.

I highly suggest reading The Color of Law. Today, Tuesday, November 6, 2018 is midterm elections. Our votes matter. Our votes matter to the country. Our votes matter to our friends and family. Our votes matter to people of color. When we vote, those votes allow people to make and decide on policies that will affect our lives, the country, and, in a way, the world. When we vote, we vote for people who will make this world a better or worse place. Books like The Color of Law help inform and influence the way we vote.

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Memorable Quotes:
“De facto segregation, we tell ourselves, has various causes.”
“Let bygones be bygones is not a legitimate approach if we wish to call ourselves a constitutional democracy.”

Title: The Color of Law
Author: Richard Rothstein
Publisher: Liveright Publishing Corporation
Copyright: 2017
ISBN: 9781631494536

Books, NonFiction

Code Girls by Liza Mundy

October 23, 2018 RaeAnna

Read Yes
Length 448
Quick Review Women are incredible, and they have been forever. During WWII, women were finally able to contribute and show their worth as code breakers. They were so integral to the war effort, for the first time in the United States, they were actively recruited.

I have been wanting to read Code Girls by Liza Mundy for awhile, but I have been busy reading other things. This has finally come to the top of my reading list. Women have often been underrated and underutilized throughout history. During WWII, women were finally able to prove their worth as all the men went off to war.

Code Breaking was not a field of prestige. In the United States, it was hardly a field of study at all. Women were able to participate in code breaking due to the lack of barriers. When WWII broke, there was a scarcity of men. The military looked to the prestigious women’s colleges and school teachers. These women were smart, unattached, and usually had sturdy moral centers. They moved to Washington, overcame numerous obstacles, worked hard, and proved trustworthy. These women proved to the military, men, and the country they could be just as vital to the war effort as the men.

Liza Mundy explores the history, the impact, and the women in Code Girls. I really loved this book. It wasn’t a dry read. The personal stories of the women involved were beautiful. These women were vivacious, smart, funny, and complicated. They yearned for the same things we yearn for today. These women were taking part in making history. They were paving the road for women to have independence, jobs, and money of their own. The Code Girls were the first generation of women to truly have independence in their own right.

Some of my favorite parts about in Code Girls was the innate feminism that comes with women paving the way. The war turned gender roles right around. The men were the ones itching to get married, while the women were turning them down to pursue careers and independence. There was a huge variation in acceptability between the Army and Navy code breaking units. For instance, pregnancy was not tolerated in the Navy even for married women. The Army cared not at all. It’s also interesting to think about the logistical mess that was happening. Housing, feeding, transporting an army of people new to Washington was a mess. I couldn’t help but feel bad for anyone in need of housing.

Code Girls is such an empowering book. If the women during WWII could find success in an openly hostile environment, than we can continue the fight for equality. I highly recommend!!!

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Memorable Quotes
“Women were more than placeholders for the men.”
“All the girls were writing letters, often to lots of soldiers, and many received three or four or five letters a day.”
“”It’s Q for communications; you know, the Navy can’t spell.””

Title: Code Girls
Author: Liza Mundy
Publisher: Hachette Books
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9780316352543

Blog + Dog

October 17, 2018October 17, 2018 RaeAnna

Hi I’m RaeAnna! I’m a freelancer and a blogger. This is Beauvoir, my dog; she goes by Beau. We’re almost inseparable. Why? Because!

Honestly. This is our usual! (Don’t those pumpkin scones look delicious?)

Being a freelancer and blogger means, for me, I work from home. It’s a great gig. I have pretty much zero complaints. My constant companion and the being I spend 90% of my time with is Beau. I absolutely love being a stay at home dog mom. It’s the dream. (Actually, it’s been a huge blessing after rescuing Beau, which I’ll explain another time.)

My life is very dog centered. I have always been surrounded by dogs, but Beau is my first dog on my own as an adult. There’s a certain bond that comes with being the sole financial benefactor, health manager, food distributor, love giver, exercise provider, leisure planner, plaything procurer, and everything else she could possibly need. Yes. I am the crazy dog lady. No shame. I have a bunch of mugs to help with the announcements.

I blog about books and travel and food. I love these things very much. Something has been missing from the narrative. The mundane. I want to start writing about the things which make my heart sing on a daily basis. The things that are important to the essence of my being. I want to bring you into the beautiful ordinary of the things that wouldn’t necessarily be highlighted on Instagram. These things are no less spectacular and perfect. I don’t need an oceanfront mansion in Miami or a mountaintop waterfall behind me to have a great blog post. Those are awesome and fill my heart with joy, but it’s not my daily life.

My day consists of working, blogging (also work), and my dog. Those three things are constants. I also realized: Beau rarely shows up in my posts. What??? She’s always with me. How is she almost completely absent from my digital footprint? Time to make a change.

After discussing with my best friend, Wednesdays will be, henceforth, Blog + Dog days. I’m going to write about the ordinary things Beau and I do together. I’ll probably share some tidbits on our favorite toys, our heartworm adventure, being a rescue mom, traveling with a big dog, and everything in between. It’s a crazy dog life, but it’s my crazy dog life. I love it! Hopefully my photogenic boxer-mix will bring a smile to your face every Wednesday!

Feel free to drop a comment with requests or suggestions! I’m always looking for new things to write about or fun adventures to go on with my white shadow.

xoxo!
Beau and RaeAnna

I love her kisses more than people kisses. Also look at those pumpkin scones!

Books, NonFiction

To Obama by Jeanne Marie Laskas

October 12, 2018October 14, 2018 RaeAnna

Read YESSS!!!
Length 352
Quick Review A snapshot into the hearts of America. Oh my goodness. I cried so much. Filled with real letters from real Americans with real joys, worries, sorrows, and more. It’s hard not to be affected by it.

Up until reading To Obama by Jeanne Marie Laskas, I had never even thought of writing to the president. I always was under the impression of “what’s the point?” Up until President Obama, there probably wasn’t much of a point. There was no system.

When Obama walked into the White House, he made sure the mail was a priority. It was a way for him to connect to his people. The mail room was a mess. He decided he wanted to read ten letters a day, which became known as 10LAD. Over time, everyone in the White House was reading the mail, and if they weren’t, they wanted to be. A system was quickly put in place to read and reply to the mail. Occasionally, Obama would reply to a letter writer himself. The letters people sent in would be read and would even affect policy.

The people in the mail room were important, and their job was not easy. They were on the receiving end of every feeling America was having. Their job was not only to process the mail but to process American emotions. They read, they filed, they reported, they responded, they bonded. The workers became close because their experience was a unique one. I wish I could describe it to you, but you should just read To Obama.

There are samples of letters throughout the book. They are so moving. They express feelings and opinions on all sides of the political spectrum. What you believed didn’t matter; what did matter was that Obama believed each and every person mattered. That was the driving force behind the mail room: you matter. It was evident. To Obama was a mantra for so many people. Small children wrote in asking for help on their homework. Partners wrote in expressing their gratitude for the ability to finally marry. Conservatives wrote with disgust. Democrats wrote out of disappointment. Families from 9/11 wrote out of exhaustion. People wrote for so many reasons. Why? Because they felt like they mattered.

Laskas focused on several letter writers from various backgrounds who wrote for different reasons. This cemented the mission of the mail room in reality, in how it touched people’s lives, in the ways it helped people. Laskas also focused on the people who ran the mail room because they were the ones who kept it going.

It was so well written. I rarely cry over books. I pretty much cried the entirety of To Obama. There is so much pain and happiness and success and failure within the pages. It takes snapshots of American flowing with so much raw emotions. It’s hard not to be overwhelmed taking it all in. I ended up having to read for an hour at a time, so I could take in what I just read. I’m an empath, as so many bookworms are, and it’s an intense read. Considering the outcome of the election, this was an interesting book to take in.

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Memorable Quotes
“Little hard data exists about constituent mail from previous administrations.”
“little by little, voice by voice, the mail could drive actual policy decisions.”

Title: To Obama, With love, joy, anger, and hope
Author: Jeanne Marie Laskas
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9780525509387

Travel, Travel Guides

Charleston, South Carolina

October 6, 2018October 4, 2018 RaeAnna

When I first knew I was going on vacation, I wanted to go to Charleston. Everyone talks about how amazing it is. I had never been. Fixing that was high on my list of things to do. With Hurricane Florence landing, my plans got thrown up in the air, and Charleston was thrown out of the non-plan. UNTIL! My flight was delayed four days. Charleston was stuck back into the non-plan because Alex and I didn’t want to spend five days in hurricane wasteland, I mean, Jacksonville, North Carolina. Charleston, why not?

Charleston is stunning. It reminded me of New Orleans. A North Carolina, smaller version of New Orleans. It’s charming with a flair of its own. I had no idea what there was to do in Charleston. I hadn’t worried about it because Charleston was no longer in the non-plan. We arrived, and had no idea what to do. Other than, it’s pretty!

Charleston is gorgeous! We weren’t there very long. Hardly a day and a half. I could have walked around forever basking in the glory. You know those photographs were the sun halos around things like buildings or treats or boats, etc. Well that’s how Charleston feels. It feels like the sun is haloing everything in cozy warmth.

Alex and I had lunch at Brown Dog Deli before walking around downtown. There was a really beautiful graveyard. I wish I could tell you where, but I can’t. We stopped by the Historic City Market in the French Quarter. It didn’t feel very historic because they were kind and air conditioned the place.

I love baked goods. I kept seeing mention of Sugar Bakeshop on the famous Cannon Street. The cupcakes are soooooooo yummy. I loved it. It’s cute. It’s tasty. There’s an adorable courtyard. The iced tea is also fabulous. They use paper straws. Saving the world one straw at a time!!!

The next and last day, we woke up, had brunch, and headed to do the one thing everyone said we had to do in Charleston. The Angel Oak. It’s a 400 year old oak tree. It’s imposing and beautiful. It’s not technically located in Charleston, but it’s worth the 15 minute drive. There is absolutely nothing else around it, so it is the destination.

After seeing the tree, Alex and I went to the Waterfront Park. It’s so pretty. There are fountains that invite you to wade. It’s the perfect thing to help relax and cool off in the southern heat. The Pineapple Fountain is super cute. Kids and grown-ups and dogs alike wade into the cool water for the perfect Instagram moment. The park overlooks the bay; aka, why it’s called waterfront. We stood and watched dolphins swim. There is something magical about dolphins in the wild. I can’t explain it. I just love it.

Charleston is a town with so much to offer. You kind of have to have an idea of what you’re doing or what you want to do. I had no idea about either. I would love to go back now that I know what there is to do.

Books, Fiction

How to Love a Jamaican by Alexia Arthurs

October 5, 2018March 29, 2019 RaeAnna

Worth a Read Yes
Length 256
Quick Review In How to Love a Jamaican, Alexia Arthurs compiles a book full of resonating short stories. I can’t stop thinking about the various characters and stories she tells.

Reading *How to Love a Jamaican* by Alexia Arthurs.

Alexia Arthurs was born and raised in Jamaica before emigrating to New York with her family at 12. These experiences are highlighted in her collection of short stories How to Love a Jamaican, which was published earlier this year. I was drawn to her stories because she attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and I’m from Iowa. I always root for people who have a connection to Iowa. Although, I have no idea if she liked her time in Iowa or not.

She starts of her book with a bang. Immediately she captured my attention. Even though I’m not black or Jamaican, I can completely identify with the story about friendship and college. It is incredibly relatable. I was taken by the sentiment: “I don’t know why more love stories aren’t written about platonic intimacy.” Boom. Feels were hit. I had to finish the book in one sitting; I was so captivated by her words.

Jamaica, immigration, and family are almost characters in their own right as they wind their way through How to Love a Jamaican. Each story fleshes out their entities more and more fully. Jamaica is ever present in the story and the characters minds, which extends to the reader.

Arthurs has a fabulous voice in these stories. It is personal and warm. Even when the topic is racism or immigration, there is always a warmth to her tone. This warmth, I can only assume, stems from a deep affection and desire to help effect change. There is a certain amount of nostalgia within the collection.

The stories are told from various perspectives. Depending on the story, the narrator is male or female. In some stories, there is a first person or third person point-of-view. It was done really well.

Two things I loved most about the stories are a constant search for belonging as well as a tension between the younger and older, or “country,” generations. They are very much part of the human experience. I believe everyone feels alone or out of place in the world. The feeling that the older generation just doesn’t get it is human. We all have grandparents or aunts or parents or friends’ parents who are out of touch with the norm of today.

There are so many things I loved reading in How to Love a Jamaican. It’s so exciting to read an author from a culture, which is probably known more for their bobsled team, than almost anything else. I just get excited when women of color win. This book is for sure a win. It was so good.

One story really hit home for me. The Ghost of Jia Yi is set in Iowa. (Yay Iowa.) It was eery. In the story, a college-aged woman is killed in Iowa. One of her classmates, the protagonist, ruminates on it. This was eery because two young women in college were murdered in Iowa over the past two months. One woman was murdered in my hometown. Very sad.

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Memorable Quotes
“I don’t know why more love stories aren’t written about platonic intimacy.”
“Iowa isn’t the kind of place Jamaicans talk about when they talk about America.”

Title: How to Love a Jamaican
Author: Alexia Arthurs
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9781524799205

xoxo! Beau and RaeAnna

xoxo!
Beau and RaeAnna