The November selection for Centering BIPOC Voices is a novel you won’t want to miss. “The Sentence” by Louise Erdrich offers a narrative with compelling characters and her characteristic focus on Native Americans keeping their culture alive through community. “The Sentence” begins on All Souls’ Day 2019 and ends on All Souls’ Day 2020. In those 12 months Tookie’s life takes on new dimensions as she copes with the ghosts of her past, and a ghost that seems to want to inhabit her body. Integral to the story, too, are the tragic events of that year — the murder of George Floyd, Minneapolis unrest, and a raging pandemic. 

November, and the waning of another year, might seem a still distant horizon, but it’s not too early to get your copy of “The Sentence”. The book is available online in eBook, audio, and print versions. Read the book, and plan to join the discussion on Saturday, November 12, at 3:30 pm on Zoom. For more information about joining any of the monthly discussions, contact Maggie Bowden at BIPOC.books@uutallahassee.org.

October’s book, “Asian American Histories of the United States” by Catherine Ceniza Choy inspired lively discussion, with discussants saying they were newly introduced to many facets of our shared history. It is always the goal of our reading selections for Centering BIPOC Voices to enlarge our understanding of racism and oppression and so help us develop as anti-racists. 

Nine Months of Reading with Centering BIPOC Voices

We’ve mapped out our reading for October through June, and hope that everyone will join us in making discoveries and connections with the books, ourselves, and each other.  Every newsletter will contain more information about the books as the reading dates draw close. This list contains links to a review of the titled volume. Follow the links to learn more about every book that interests you.

October:  “Asian American Histories of the United States” by Catherine Ceniza Choy

November:  “The Sentence” by Louise Erdrich

December:  “Just Us: An American Conversation” by Claudine Rankine

January:  “South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation” 

                by Imani Perry 

February: “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi

March: “Chokehold: Policing Black Men” by Paul Butler

April:  “Carry” by Toni Jensen

May: “Open Season: Legalized Genocide of Colored People” by Ben Crumps

June: “The Heart of a Woman” by Maya Angelou