Books, Fiction, NonFiction

American Indian Stories by Zitkála-Šá

Worth A Read Absolutely
Length 320
Quick Review Zitkála-Šá uses her experience as Sioux woman to write nonfiction stories, short stories, and poems to fight for change and equality long before the fight received any recognition.

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Contemplating American Indian Stories by Zitkála-Šá in Houston, Texas. | Sweater | Jeans | Boots | Socks |
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American Indian Stories by Zitkála-Šá.

November is National Native American Heritage Month, and I never knew that until this year when I looked up to see if they had a month… Suffice to say, we could do better educating the people of this country about the indigenous people who lived here long before we barged in and stole their land. I don’t know very much about native culture or history, so I definitely need to do better. After reading Zitkála-Šá’s American Indian Stories, I need to make more of an effort to read and appreciate Native American literature and writing. 

There’s a shitty irony in the fact American Indian Stories is written in English, the language of the colonizer. Zitkála-Šá writes about her life and tells stories inspired by her people, but in order to get published or reach a wide audience, she had to write in English. A language she was not raised speaking and struggled to learn in a harsh and cruel environment. 

American Indian Stories paints a beautiful and heartbreaking picture of a land and a close knit community ingrained with caring for the needs of others, respect each other, and being a part of nature. It’s more than a book about being a native child and woman; it’s about her journey into activism. From being a young child chasing her own shadow on the plains to a child angrily hiding from a haircut or ruining turnips for dinner in the city, she pushed back and followed her own path. 

The writing is beautiful. Even when the stories are being told from a child’s perspective, they are poignant, “I sank deep into the corner of my seat, for I resented being watched.” or “”… for now I was only one of many little animals driven by a herder.” The contrast between home on the plains and living in a boarding house in the city is stark. In the modern world full of sound, lights, technology, and people, I didn’t think about the sensory attack it was for her to move into a bustling city. Her inability to move or feel the breeze from the plains would have been stifling in its own right. The language and style Zitkála-Šá utilizes throughout American Indian Stories changes to punctuate the emotions she or her characters were going through. Life on the plains was illustrated with long and flowing syntax to the point of being lackadaisical. Her experiences in the boarding house and among white people changed the style into short sentences with precise punctuation, which only reveals a small part of the tension, anxiety, anger, and sadness she must have been feeling at the time.

Zitkála-Šá depicts strong people and characters in her book. The most interesting and abundant characters are strong women. She was an incredibly strong woman herself. She was a writer, musician, activist, politician, and more, so it should be no surprise, her characters are independent women. In “A Warrior’s Daughter,” she shows a woman can be brutal warriors, saviors, and gentle all at the same time. They don’t have to choose between being strong and vulnerable or a warrior and a wife; women are capable of great things simultaneously.

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Contemplating American Indian Stories by Zitkála-Šá in Houston, Texas. | Sweater | Jeans | Boots | Socks |

As a native Midwesterner from a neighboring state to Zitkála-Šá’s home state of South Dakota, her descriptions of nature resonate with my history. The land she ran across as a child is the same land I did. There are stark differences, of course. As a child standing on a hill looking at the rolling fields and feeling a sense of belonging and freedom, we were the same for a moment. These shared histories and emotional memories are what connect us as humans across differences and time. She was born 115 year before I was into a very different life and way of life, but her home is my home. Reading her childhood memories of South Dakota in American Indian Stories felt like reading my own childhood memories of Iowa. 

Through so much of this book, I kept thinking What the fuck, white people??? As a linguist – and probably as an intersectional human being – I can’t fathom thinking corporal punishment will make children suddenly speak a foreign language. The whole boarding house situation was appalling. There was no understanding of children or their needs, let alone the needs of children from different backgrounds, cultures, and languages. It broke my heart. I knew what happened and went on, but it’s another thing to read someone’s experiences.  

American Indian Stories is a beautiful book. It’s small. It has an incredible emotional depth full of meaning and insight into our past as Americans and what has been done. It is heartbreaking and relatable because her experiences are human. Zitkála-Šá calls out the wrongs she and her people faced a century ago, but those wrongs continue to be done. 

Memorable Quotes
“The most gruesome conflict, make no mistake, was within the self, in the individual heart that was, at one time, culturally defined by connection to others.” Forward by Layli Long Soldier
“They treated my best judgement, poor as it was, with the utmost respect.”

bisous und обьятий,
RaeAnna

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Title: American Indian Stories
Author: Zitkála-Šá
Publisher: Modern Library (Penguin Random House)
Copyright: 2019
ISBN: 9781984854216

Books, Fiction

Passing by Nella Larsen

Worth A Read YES
Length 301
Quick Review Irene Redfield is a proud black woman living in the 1920s. She runs into a childhood friend, who no longer identifies as black. 

 

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Passing by Nella Larsen | Dress | Belt | Watch | Shoes 

Some books stay with you long after you read them; Passing by Nella Larsen is one of those books. There’s really nothing I dislike about this book. Small and powerful, this 1920s novel holds up ninety years later.

Irene Redfield and Clare Bellew grew up in the same neighborhood in Chicago before losing touch. They are both black women living in the 1920s with families when they meet again in a whites only establishment. The difference is: Irene is living her life as a black woman, but Clare is passing in the world as a white woman. The novel continues filled with familial, women’s, cultural, racial issues and more. There is never a dull moment in Irene’s life or mental state. 

Passing is told in three parts from Irene’s perspective. Irene is smart, independent, and empathetic but also a product of her time and culture. There is so much emotional variance and abundance throughout the work. Irene is a black woman living in a white world but far more happy in her oppressed circumstances than Clare, who is living as a white woman in a white world with the constant fear of being exposed and a hunger for a community with a shared background. Larsen has so much insight into the human psyche surpassing yet encompassing race.   

Nella Larsen is a beloved author of the Harlem Renaissance. Passing is one of her most well-known works published in 1929. A lot of things have changed in ninety years, but we definitely do not live in a post racial world. So many things ring true in this novel. The conversations held in white living rooms feel like something my racist/bigoted family members might say. Questions along the lines of “Oh! And your husband, is he – is he – er – dark, too?” are still uttered by people trying to be tactful but falling absolutely short. 

Larsen’s use of language and punctuation is incredible. It’s one of those books you want to sit with letting the words roll through your mind reveling in the meaning and feeling of it all. Authors often use punctuation without thinking about it or having fun with it, but Passing has fun with punctuation using it to make points “And the eyes were magnificent! dark, sometimes absolutely black lashes.” I love her usage of commas; they help bring the reader into the angry, confused psyche of Irene

I have so many things to say about Passing. The ending is incredible. The entire book is an incredible piece of literature. I can see why Modern Library included it in its inaugural Torchbearers series. 

Memorable Quotes
“Nevertheless, Irene felt, in turn, anger, scorn, and fear slide over her.”
“Why, simply because of Clare Kendry, who had exposed her to such torment, had she failed to take up the defence of the race to which she belonged?”
“”It’s easy for a Negro to ‘pass’ for white. But I don’t think it would be so simple for a white person to ‘pass’ for coloured.””

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Title: Passing
Author: Nella Larsen
Publisher: Modern Library (Penguin Random House)
Copyright: 2019
ISBN: 9780375758133

Books, NonFiction

Impeachment

Read Yes
Length 192
Quick Review I probably recommend everything Jon Meacham touches. Impeachment is a tiny book jam-packed full of interesting facts about a well known word yet unfamiliar process.

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Impeachment

Impeachment is a word thrown around often lately in the United States. The political climate makes a tornado look calm right now. In Impeachment by Jon Meacham, Peter Baker, Timothy Naftali, and Jeffrey A. Engel explore the evocative word in the Constitution, history, and looking towards the future.

Impeachment is split into four main parts plus an Introduction and conclusion. Jeffrey A. Engel explains the historical context of impeachment in the first part of the book. The Constitution lays out the foundation of impeachment. The founders or framers were hesitant to give any one person an exorbitant amount of power in order to avoid monarchy issues. George Washington was the perfect choice for the first presidency because he displayed “virtue enough to withstand the lure of tyranny.” He was chosen to set an example for all who followed because honor dictated his every move. He would always act in the best interest of the country, “Washington’s sense of duty eventually overcame his desire for tranquility.” I found this section to be the most intriguing because it is the foundation for all actions following. Jon Meacham examines the impeachment of Andrew Jackson. To oversimplify history: he was impeached because a) he wasn’t Abraham Lincoln b) he didn’t play nice with the other political party. Richard Nixon was covered by Timothy Naftali. I think that can easily be summed up by Watergate. Oh, and he quit to save face. Peter Baker discussed Bill Clinton lying about an affair.

 

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Impeachment

There has never been a president ousted from office. Nixon would have been, absolutely; however he quit before that could happen. There have been three impeachments. Because impeachment basically means trial. Common misconception.

I really enjoyed reading Impeachment. It’s always interesting to read collaborative works. The voices change with the authors, but they all work together to create a cohesive piece. These four men are wonderful writers and historians. I, of course, do enjoy their slant.

In the conclusion, there is a decent amount of discussion about the possibility of Trump being impeached. At the very least, there is acknowledgement of the word being thrown around heavily in the last election and current presidency. There is an under current of the thought that a vote on November 6th is a vote to impeach Trump or not.

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Memorable Quotes
“Those who study history are also destined to repeat it. But we are less surprised.”

Title: Impeachment; An American History
Author: Jon Meacham, Peter Baker, Timothy Naftali, Jeffrey A. Engel
Publisher: Modern Library
Copyright: 2018
ISBN: 9781984853783