3 new Black books to explore: nonfiction, memoir and poetry
4 min read
Three prominent Black writers have new books emerging this year. The trailblazing music editor and journalist Danyel Smith has written a memoir entitled, “Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop,” poet and Miles Davis biographer Quincy Troupe has released a comprehensive collection of his poetry, “Duende: Poems, 1966 – Now,” and The New York Times best-selling author Resmaa Menakem has written a new book that explores the January 6th Insurrection entitled, “The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating Our Nation’s Upheaval and Racial Reckoning.”
The books are, of course, diverse. But the thread that ties them together is each book’s ability to bring big ideas and topics (history of pop music, a large volume of poetry, and the tragedy of the insurrection) into coherence, and more importantly into a story. These three authors are experts in their field and are all deserving of their successful careers as published writers.
These books are recommended for readers who hope to connect more deeply with Black voices and unique perspectives on poetry, politics and arts and culture.
“Duende: Poems, 1966-Now” by Quincy Troupe
Troupe is a generous and gregarious poet in this giant offering that includes many new poems, as well as a selection chosen from across his eleven previously published volumes. What’s remarkable is the constancy, the energy, and how he’s always looking right at you in the here and now, and at the same time sees something over your shoulder that others don’t see yet, maybe a distant storm gathering over the waters, something we’re going to need to rise up and face soon enough. —Penguin Random House
“Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop” by Danyel Smith
A weaving of biography, criticism, and memoir, “Shine Bright” is Danyel Smith’s intimate history of Black women’s music as the foundational story of American pop. Smith has been writing this history for more than five years. But as a music fan, and then as an essayist, editor (Vibe, Billboard), and podcast host (Black Girl Songbook), she has been living this history since she was a latchkey kid listening to “Midnight Train to Georgia” on the family stereo. —Penguin Random House
“The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating Our Nation’s Upheaval and Racial Reckoning” by Resmaa Menakem
Through the coordinated repetition of lies, anti-democratic elements in American society are working to incite mass radicalization, widespread chaos, and a collective trauma response in tens of millions of American bodies. Currently, most of us are utterly unprepared for this potential mayhem. This book can help prepare us—and possibly prevent further destruction. In “The Quaking of America,” therapist and trauma specialist Resmaa Menakem takes readers through somatic processes addressing the growing threat of white-supremacist political violence. —Central Recovery Press
The trailblazing music editor and journalist Danyel Smith has written a memoir entitled, “Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop,” poet and Miles Davis biographer Quincy Troupe has released a comprehensive collection of his poetry, “Duende: Poems, 1966 – Now,” and The New York Times best-selling author Resmaa Menakem has written a new book that explores the January 6th Insurrection entitled, “The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating Our Nation’s Upheaval and Racial Reckoning.”
The books are, of course, diverse. But the thread that ties them together is each book’s ability to bring big ideas and topics (history of pop music, a large volume of poetry, and the tragedy of the insurrection) into coherence, and more importantly into a story. These three authors are experts in their field and are all deserving of their successful careers as published writers.
These books are recommended for readers who hope to connect more deeply with Black voices and unique perspectives on poetry, politics and arts and culture.
“Duende: Poems, 1966-Now” by Quincy Troupe
Troupe is a generous and gregarious poet in this giant offering that includes many new poems, as well as a selection chosen from across his eleven previously published volumes. What’s remarkable is the constancy, the energy, and how he’s always looking right at you in the here and now, and at the same time sees something over your shoulder that others don’t see yet, maybe a distant storm gathering over the waters, something we’re going to need to rise up and face soon enough. —Penguin Random House
“Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop” by Danyel Smith
A weaving of biography, criticism, and memoir, “Shine Bright” is Danyel Smith’s intimate history of Black women’s music as the foundational story of American pop. Smith has been writing this history for more than five years. But as a music fan, and then as an essayist, editor (Vibe, Billboard), and podcast host (Black Girl Songbook), she has been living this history since she was a latchkey kid listening to “Midnight Train to Georgia” on the family stereo. —Penguin Random House
“The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating Our Nation’s Upheaval and Racial Reckoning” by Resmaa Menakem
Through the coordinated repetition of lies, anti-democratic elements in American society are working to incite mass radicalization, widespread chaos, and a collective trauma response in tens of millions of American bodies. Currently, most of us are utterly unprepared for this potential mayhem. This book can help prepare us—and possibly prevent further destruction. In “The Quaking of America,” therapist and trauma specialist Resmaa Menakem takes readers through somatic processes addressing the growing threat of white-supremacist political violence. —Central Recovery Press
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