The book centers around the lives of 3 mothers of: Malcom X, James Baldwin & Martin Luther King, Jr. Each woman lead a unique life & upbringing which shaped how they raised their sons. I learned a lot that I did not know about each woman. They themselves were steeped in social justice causes which were part of their households. Each woman also faces the challenges of raising a family during the Civil Rights Era. It important to continue to share &

Published in 2021 but the content is relevant more than ever. As well as rage inducing since the word “woman” is no longer allowed to be used in research at this moment in the US…as well as any disorders or words associated with women. Fun times. Anyhow Cleghorn details the plight of women in medicine & research for the last few hundred years. The frustrating part is women were finally being included in research & drug trails. Medicine & men

I loved Phoebe‘s dry wit & humor. Taking joy in your passions but also not having to stay the course in your life especially if it‘s not making you happy. I like the whole idea of finding joy in what brings you joy, not what society tells you will make you happy (young people & their obsession with perfection & an IG curated life). Speaking your mind & finding a sense of relief from not having to make everyone happy…all the time.

Last year we went to the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum & seeing the empty frames was a startling reminder of the theft. That was a heavily publicized theft. After finishing this book it made me start to wonder how many art galleries, especially smaller ones, have or have had art stolen? It‘s fascinating that this thief was able to steal close to $2 billion in art & it was years before he was caught. Although I‘m sure museums have much better

Last night on IG Tad Stoermer was discussing the recent book ban by the Naval Academy. He talked about how we have the power to continue to push back on the narrative. Use our power on social media to disrupt the algorithms. Keep reading & posting books that are banned. He said “No permission required. They erase. We restore.” #publichistory #resistancehistory #honesthistory #resistance #howrevolutionary

#realhistory Erasure of stories & history is becoming a real & scary thing in the US. There are many people in our society that have made significant contributions, not just white men. It‘s important to keep pushing back on this new narrative. Diversity makes us better, Equity makes us better, Inclusion makes us better.

I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by the author. Levings shares her experiences of being involved in the Protestant Reformer/Christian Fundamentalist church. She discusses her life of what it was like being married to a man that became deeply involved in these religious sects & raising children under the constraints that the church sets up. These churches are about control & abuse. The patriarchy & white supremacy are the dominant

I never thought of it this way. Such a great way to look at fiction in a more positive connotation. Going to use this more when discussing books with my kids.

Thank you Senator Cory Booker for your fortitude, strength & compassion. In the words of John Lewis, “Get in Good Trouble, Necessary Trouble.” #resist

I don‘t watch tv during the day but I had to turn on C-SPAN to watch Senator Cory Booker during his marathon resistance to what is happening. ✊🏻✊🏼✊🏽✊🏾✊🏿

Other page from the previous picture. I find that these are important stats to share since I don‘t think k that most anybody knows how our prisons are funded. My new fear after reading this book is that the current state is that people will be so desperate they will commit crimes & be put in jail. Which since most prisons are private, someone is making money off of people being in jail.

Title: bankrolling the carceral state

Title: extent of the carceral control

Did you know that 1 in 58 people in the US are part of the carceral system (that involves prison- over 1.4 million, probation, on parole or in a local jail)? How is this statistic not being shouted from the rooftops? This book is comprised of short essays by activists, researchers, prisoners themselves about the prison system in the US. There are discussions about ways to decrease police use by forming stronger communities, providing adequate

Yesterday my youngest participated in the school district‘s social studies & science fair. As soon as she saw the brochure she said she wanted to do it (so huge for a kid with lots of anxiety). She said she wanted to do her presentation on Mae Jemison. She‘s worked hard for the last few weeks. She was interviewed by teachers & high school students. One of the teachers thanked her for highlighting such an important person in history. When asked why

If women didn‘t already feel like everything in society was stacked against them, this book provides the concrete proof. Data heavy book but easy to read. Our society depends so much on women & all of their invisible labor. Women are 50% of the population but we continue to have laws made against us, not for us. “One recent quantitative data analysis has found ‘compelling evidence‘ that countries where women are kept out of positions of power &

😳 half way through & all I have to say is F the patriarchy

“One of the most effective ways to stop cultural change is to create a moral panic around it. Moral panics have been around since this country‘s inception. Since then, moral panics have been used as a tool to subvert & dismantle movements that the dominant caste views as a threat.” A very relevant book for the current political environment. Reading the obstacles that many have faced & overcome in our history gives me hope.

My mom bought this for my daughter when she was visiting. The 9 year old at the end said, “is that all?” Although she is a child that likes to ignore me & her responsibilities like making her bed (similar to the book). I love Trevor Noah & the drawings were beautiful.

The 9 year old loved this one. I think this one might be my favorite of the series. The message of hope & protecting the environment resonates strong here. I really wish there was a Roz that could be out there to stop the destruction to our environment.

Low pick, only because I do love the Finley Donovan series. The story sets up how Vero meets Finley & her amateur sleuthing skills. If you‘re a FD fan then you might enjoy it. It‘s super short, a little over 2 hours on audio.

Looking for chapter book recommendations for an almost 10 year old girl. I want to continue to find more chapter books for my daughter with strong female characters. In this pre-handmaiden era I want her to continue to read more about strong girls/women, even better if by women. We have Enola Holmes, just finished Wild Robot series. She‘s a more advanced reader than her brothers were & loves reading. Pic of books for Easter -our bunny brings books

FYI Rock the Vote is providing free nonpartisan voting info to teachers, anyone. Knowledge is power https://www.rockthevote.org/programs-and-partner-resources/democracy-class/

“Which is why we must actively antiracist” (last line that got cut off). Ibram X. Kendi posted this the other day & it definitely needs to be repeating. What they are pushing so hard against is why we need to push back harder.

This. Every. Freakin. Day. This is how I feel every day. #ranttime

I know @AmyG posted this but wanted to repost because this is important. Also posting this link to contact your congressional person/senator https://oneclickpolitics.global.ssl.fastly.net/messages/edit?promo_id=23577

My mom has been visiting from NC. We went to downtown Frederick & of course had to visit the Curious Iguana. I of course picked up a few books that I don‘t really need but I‘m all for supporting my local bookstore. It was nice to see lots of people out shopping local yesterday

My daughter & I finished the second book of the series. She loves Roz & the continuation of her story. I still liked the first book more but it was still a good story. A big thumbs up from the 9 year old.

A low pick because I like the idea of rest as a form of resistance but the book was a bit repetitive. We live in the world of hustle culture which makes us believe that we are never doing enough & we‘ll never be good enough unless we‘re doing more. “We are going up against such violent systems in our attempt to disrupt & pushback: white supremacy, capitalism, ableism, patriarchy, classism, anti blackness, homophobia, etc.”

“Good intention is a hall pass through history, a sleeping pill that ensures the dream.” “Schools did not reveal truths, they concealed them.” Such a good book, as others have said. The audio is narrated by the author. Definitely an important book to understand how systemic racism continues to have a huge foothold in our society.

Happy International Women‘s Day, don‘t forget that feminism should be intersectional. Honor, Respect, Protect, Empower, Celebrate: Black Women, Trans Women, Indigenous Women, Palestinian Women, Queer Women, Disabled Women, Muslim Women, API Women, Jewish Women, Latina Women, ALL WOMEN.

#ranttime It was sad to see the USAID offices in DC today. It looks like they tried to rip the seals out of the windows.

We took a trek to the National African American Museum of History & Culture in DC today. We only made it through a few floors. It was a sobering & overwhelming experience. A must see if you go to DC. I of course had to get a book. This book has been on my to buy list because James Baldwin is one of my favorite people. They had a ton of books I could have bought.

4,218 books were banned in the 2023-2024 school year. It will more than likely get worse in the next year. Reading is power. As Ta-Nehsi Coats points out book bans are not only to stop kids from reading but it‘s to stop future authors & pushing back on the systems. https://pen.org/press-release/book-bans-in-schools-sweep-across-reading-levels-g...

“Oppressive power is preserved in the smoke and fog and sometimes it is smuggled in the unexamined shadows of the language of the oppressed themselves.” Ta-Nehisi Coates The Message If books weren‘t political they wouldn‘t be trying so hard to ban them. Especially books that challenge the norm & the “correct” narrative.

I‘m trying to gain a deeper appreciation for poetry. I I really enjoyed this small book of poetry. Smith writes about the joys and hardships of being a parent. The worry that all parents have about their kids growing up, but especially for Black boys. Some of his reflections are on historical places & reflecting on Americas past with the enslavement of others. I‘m a fan of Smith‘s writing in general & enjoyed his collection of poems.

I still liked her first book more but this one kept my mind off things for a few days. Most of the characters were a bit unlikable. I do like that Audrain is not afraid to highlight the difficult parts of raising kids. The hard part of being a mom but wanting to have a successful career. How parents sometimes don‘t know how to navigate a relationship with their child when their child is not what they expected. The difficulties of marriage, feeling

The DoD has pulled this book from DoD schools pending a “compliance review.” Disclaimer: I have never read this book, have no interest in reading it. There are much better books to discuss life in the Appalachians.

I was at my daughter‘s school today & I was so happy to see this display up. I need to email the principal to thank her & that I support the administration‘s work. Black history is everyone‘s history

Still can‘t believe that this is where we‘re at in this country & this is really happening. I‘m hoping this is somehow repealed because it‘s still so mind boggling

Because I feel spreading important info is more important now than ever, I wanted to send out an FYI. Your representatives will be in their home town this coming week. You can see if they are having a town hall. At this point it feels like our representatives aren‘t listening (mine in MD are but my mom lives in NC & her rep has basically said to stop bellyaching). Last I checked we‘re still a democracy & our representatives work for us

Girls should continue to be encouraged to pursue careers in science and STEM. As you can see I have a daughter that dreams of being an astronaut. She said in a future letter to herself that she wants to be an engineer, the astronaut that is there to fix any problems on the space shuttle. We talk a lot about the long & hard road of becoming an astronaut (which will now be harder with recent roll backs in women being able to have an equitable space

In case some did not know the National Science Foundation has been instructed to re-review every grant, paper, document that lists any of these words. If one of these words are found you will no longer receive funding through the government. This applies not only to medical research but psychology, sociology, environmental, anything. The NIH has said that only about 15% of science will now be funded. We are talking about massive progress in

I loved this book. I grew up in an extremely small town (technically so small it‘s a borough) in NJ in the 80-90s. This was before the internet & I had no clue that people like Hanna existed. When I went to college I watched Mad Love & they featured 7 Year B!tch, I was in love. I loved Nirvana & Smashing Pumpkins but this was girls playing punk music. I didn‘t find Bikini Kill till I was a little older. The younger me wishes that she knew about

I have watched a few One Tree Hill episodes (mainly on streaming during late nights when my kids were babies). I listened to the audio read by the author. It is fascinating to hear how easily she was able to get sucked in & manipulated by this cult. It‘s sad to hear how much she has lost & sacrifices she still has had to make & still make to keep her daughter safe. I‘m happy that she is able to tell her story & be brave to make others aware.

Another important book in the understanding of mental health & racism‘s history in the US. The book is based on the Crownsville State Hospital in MD. Racism still continues to have a big impact on medical & mental health for many people in the US. There continues to be a shortage of psychiatrists & psychologists in the US in general. There are even fewer Black therapists, which continues to make mental health disproportionate for many.

It‘s taken me a while to get through this one. I think the hesitancy was from people feeling that it was a little heavy handed. I finished last week & I think it was exactly what I needed to read at this time. I feel right now as so many people are being attacked & watching lawmakers wanting to dismantle rights & try to rewrite LGBTQ+ people‘s place in US history, daily life, everything. The importance of love & acceptance is the message we need.

I never read Huck Finn or Tom Swayer growing up (we had a parent that liked to make sure different books were banned in middle school, this was in the early 90s in a tiny town in NJ). Anyhow I really loved this one. I really enjoyed the audio version. I really loved hearing James‘s side of the story. It‘s always difficult to confront the past history of the US but so important (especially now more than ever) to hear everyone‘s story & history.

I read this with my 9 year old. We both loved the story. We watched the movie over the weekend (a big thumbs up from the 9 & even the 15 year old). I liked the movie but liked the book more. We have borrowed the next 2 books from the library to continue following Roz‘s adventures.