Book Review: The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

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The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray is a historical fiction novel that spans many years and tells of the friendship between former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt and civil rights activist Mary McLeod Bethune. I don't know if I would have picked up this book if it hadn't been the August selection for one of the book clubs I belong to in my area because I don't read a lot of historical fiction. However, I am so glad that I read it and was able to learn many things I hadn't learned about in any of my history classes.  I don't recall learning anything about Mary McLeod Bethune, and she is an important part of American history. The things she helped spearhead to provide African American people equal rights is quite impressive. One of the things I was horrified to learn about is Franklin D. Roosevelt's resistance to stop lynchings because he was afraid of losing the Southern Democrats backing for his New Deal Bill. Another thing that I fo...
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Book Review: Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

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book review kindred octavia e butler

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler is the first science fiction novel written by a Black woman and is part memoir, part fantasy, and part historical fiction. The book opens with Dana, an African American woman in 1976 Los Angeles, California, who is transported back to 1815 Maryland and saves a drowning white boy.  However, she finds herself fearing for her life when the boys father, a slave owner, is pointing his shotgun at her.

This is a novel that was selected by the book club I belong to for our September Book Club Meeting.  I had heard of Kindred but had no idea what it was about.  I don't read a lot of science fiction because I typically don't enjoy it.  However, I was pleasantly surprised how intriguing the story was, and it sucked me in from the start.

Well-written.  Engaging.  Unputdownable.  These are just some of the words that I'd use to describe Octavia E. Butler's Kindred.  I find myself still thinking about the book long after finishing it.  The characters were brought to life so well that I felt I was right there with them.  The author does a phenomenal job at showing the reader what slavery was like and what might happen if a Black person from today's time was sucked into an America that still had slavery.  Although this is a work of fiction, it feels like it really happened mostly because of the situations being very real things that took place in American history.  Additional themes in this novel include racism, rape, and suicide.

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler has definitely stood the test of time.  It's hard to believe that it was published a little over 43 years ago.  I give it five out of five stars, and I'll definitely be reading the author's other works.


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