TW: Physical abuse, domestic abuse, emotional abuse National Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey has written a brave and telling account of her stepfather’s systematic emotional and physical abuse and murder of her mother, a social worker. Perhaps the most chilling part of the book is the transcript of her stepfather’s last phone call, discovered by the author …
Caste is an essential read, a lucid, no-holds-barred examination of race, our nation’s history, and the rigid caste system that has been such a destructive force to individuals, communities, and our democracy. Most people think of caste as a foreign system found in places like India. But Wilkerson, through her research, insight, and immersion, argues …
While still a teenager, abolitionist Harriet Tubman received a head injury that left her with pain, dizziness, and visions. Coates reimagines her visions as something more. This tale of Hiram Walker, and enslaved half-white, half-black child of a slave and a plantation owner in the Antebellum South, weaves subtle magical realism into life as he …
Extremely powerful saga! “Fox” grew up in an environment that led to petty crime, just to survive. While locked up he’s convicted of murder, but is innocent, and spends 40 years in solitary confinement. This is a story about institutionalized racism and inhumane conditions, but also about hope, and his unbreakable spirit and remaining sane, …
Eli Saslow pens a riveting tale of the White Nationalist, Derek Black, who was tapped as the “heir apparent” to the leadership of the KKK, but eventually rejected that role. Growing up, Derek’s father was a grand wizard for the KKK, and his mother was once married to David Duke. Accepting this political stance was …
The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association, a trade association of independent booksellers, publishers, authors, and librarians, announced the 2019 Northwest Book Awards Shortlist, selected by a committee of independent booksellers from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska. From more than 400 nominations, the committee chose the following 12 finalists, written or illustrated by creators from the …
A bare-knuckled love letter steeped in fatherly wisdom written to Coates’s son that rendered me speechless, angry, and hopeful. Coates writes with an urgency and a sensitivity that begs to be shared with those looking toward a future in which systemic oppression has no home in this country. –Blair, Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, WA Find …
A striking look at how anti-immigrant hate and a lust for profit revived the KKK in the ’20s and ’30s. Striking parallels to the anti-immigrant movement of today. It will make you think. –Bruce DeLaney, Rediscovered Books, Boise, ID Find history that resonates at Rediscovered Books and other independent bookstores. This is available now in …
University of Oregon professor Michael Copperman recalls his experiences serving with Teach For America in the Mississippi Delta. Copperman’s descriptive prose walks the reader through two years teaching the fourth grade in one of the poorest and most educationally disadvantaged regions in the United States. His language allows the harsh realities of educational inequality, institutional …
When Michael Copperman left Stanford University for the Mississippi Delta in 2002, he imagined he would lift underprivileged children from the narrow horizons of rural poverty. Well-meaning but naïve, the Asian American from the West Coast soon lost his bearings in a world divided between black and white. He had no idea how to manage a classroom or help …
