What we’re about
This is a book club for Black women interested in reading and discussing books written by Black women (including but not limited to American, Caribbean, African, and European authors). I started this group to bring together people who love to read and who want to build a community focused on discovering, discussing, and celebrating the literature of Black women writers from across the African diaspora. We read literary fiction and nonfiction. We will meet monthly for book discussions at various locations across the city.
Upcoming events (3)
See all- #90: A Renaissance of Our Own by Rachel CargleLink visible for attendees
Rachel Cargle will join us for the last half hour of this virtual meeting! Zoom information will be sent in April.
There are breaking points in all our lives when we realize that the way things have been done before just don’t work for us anymore, be it the way we approach our relationships, our belief systems, our work, our education, even our rest. For activist, philanthropist, and CEO Rachel E. Cargle, reimagining—the act of creating in our minds that which does not exist but that we believe can and should—has been a lifelong process. Reimagining served as the most powerful catalyst for Cargle’s personal transformation from a small-town Christian wife to an incisive queer feminist voice of a generation.
In A Renaissance of Our Own, we witness the sometimes painful but always inspiring breaking points in Cargle’s life that fostered a truer identity. These defining moments offer a blueprint for how we must all use our imagination—the space that sees beyond limits—to live in alignment with our highest values and to craft a world independent of oppressive structures, both personal and societal. Cargle now invites you to acknowledge ways of being that stem from societal expectations instead of your personal truth, and to embark on a renaissance of your own. She provides the very tools and prompts that she used to unearth her own truth, tools that opened her up to being a more authentic feminist and purpose-driven matriarchal leader.
A Renaissance of Our Own gives us the courage to look at the world and say “I want something different.” It serves as a reminder of the power and possibility of reimagining a life that feels right, all the way down to the marrow of your bones.
A Renaissance of Our Own will be available in paperback on March 26th. Purchase your copy here: https://bookshop.org/a/25397/9780593134740 (affiliate link)
- #88b: Parable of the Talents by Octavia ButlerAlmendro Cafe, Chicago, IL
Join us for a special bonus discussion of Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler.
About the book: In 2032, Lauren Olamina has survived the destruction of her home and family, and realized her vision of a peaceful community in northern California based on her newly founded faith, Earthseed. The fledgling community provides refuge for outcasts facing persecution after the election of an ultra-conservative president who vows to "make America great again." In an increasingly divided and dangerous nation, Lauren's subversive colony—a minority religious faction led by a young black woman—becomes a target for President Jarret's reign of terror and oppression.
Years later, Asha Vere reads the journals of a mother she never knew, Lauren Olamina. As she searches for answers about her own past, she also struggles to reconcile with the legacy of a mother caught between her duty to her chosen family and her calling to lead humankind into a better future.
Buy the book on Bookshop (affiliate link) or at your favorite independent bookstore.
- #91: Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? by Lizzie Damilola BlackburnLink visible for attendees
Author Lizzie Damilola Blackburn will join us for this virtual book club meeting! We are partnering with DMV-based Cozy Girl Book Club (@cozygirlbookclub) for this discussion. RSVP here to receive the Zoom information.
About the book: Yinka's Nigerian aunties frequently pray for her delivery from singledom, her work friends think she's too traditional (she's saving herself for marriage!), her girlfriends think she needs to get over her ex already, and the men in her life...well, that's a whole other story. But Yinka herself has always believed that true love will find her when the time is right.
Still, when her cousin gets engaged, Yinka commences Operation Find-A-Date for Rachel's Wedding. Aided by a spreadsheet and her best friend, Yinka is determined to succeed. Will Yinka find herself a huzband? And what if the thing she really needs to find is herself?
Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? is a fresh, uplifting story of an unconventional heroine who bravely asks the questions we all have about love. Wry, moving, irresistible, this is a love story that makes you smile but also makes you think—and explores what it means to find your way between two cultures, both of which are yours.
Buy the book on Bookshop.org (affiliate link).