Silver Sparrow - Review

The second book from my Winter Reading List brought me back to the familiar world of fiction, but I have never read anything like it before, and I doubt I will at any point in the future. Silver Sparrow broke my heart in the best way possible. I sat there with the book in my lap turned to the last page feeling like I was going to cry, but also feeling like I understood something about myself that I hadn't before.

Dana Yarboro is the narrator for the better portion of the book. We learn early on that she is a "secret." Her father has a wife and a child who must never know about Dana and her mother, and thus begins Dana's life, which is orchestrated to accommodate that secrecy. She is not able to take a job where her father's other daughter does. She must wait to find out where that daughter will go to high school before she knows if she can attend her top choice. The narrative created the feeling that Dana lives her life on her sister's leftovers, and the air of Dana's illegitimacy is a storm cloud that never strays far from over her head.

The only difficulty I had with the book was when the narrator shifted and we began to hear the story from Chaurisse's (the "legitimate" daughter's) point of view. I had a really hard time warming up to her. She was likeable enough, but Dana's pain came first, and that pain was such a tangible thing; it was difficult to empathize with someone who had any part of that pain, though I held her father more responsible than anyone.

I wonder about Dana from time to time like she is a real person. Is she ok? Why would her father say that to her? No one should have to grow up like that, and on and on. This is a book that lingers in the corners of your mind long after you've put it down. If you are looking for that kind of book, you need to read Silver Sparrow.

(1)ne Drop: Shifting the Lens on Race - Review

I have been a bit ambitious with my book lists in the past, and had some trouble getting through them, so I was incredibly surprised when I completed my Winter Reading List with just under a month until the start of spring. Looking back on it, I shouldn't have been that surprised. Winter is the perfect breeding ground for hours of uninterrupted reading. Really, what could be more perfect than to be snuggled in a comfy chair with a quilt pulled over your lap, mug of tea at your side, while nose deep in an amazing book? And this winter's books were just that: amazing.

I started winter with Dr. Yaba Blay's (1)ne drop: Shifting the Lens on Race. I don't often have non fiction titles on my reading lists. Every once in a while I'll read a piece of non-fiction that blows me away, but I am a fiction girl at heart. However, I stumbled upon the amazing Dr. Yaba Blay in an article about the Pretty Period project, a visual tribute to brown skin, and visional testimony of Black beauty, and I knew I needed to read her book. I am so happy that I did.

Nuances of identity and colorism are handled masterfully in this book. Blay weaves a page turning synopsis of the history of color classification in America, followed by a personal account of her own identity story, and then she spends the bulk of the book with pages and pages of people sharing their experiences with race and ethnicity all over the world.

This book really made me think more deeply not only about the way I choose to identify my race and ethnicity, but also the assumptions I make about other people I see in passing, and how those assumptions inform who I think they are... the snap judgements they lead to. This is the kind of book that warrants a second and a third read, as it allows for continual discovery. I devoured this book like I would a fast-paced thriller, and found myself hoping there would be a second volume one day.

The Secret Cover Reveal

I am so excited to be taking part in the cover reveal for the third book in Elizabeth Hunter's Irin Chronicles Trilogy, The Secret. I absolutely loved the first two books in this series. I wrote a review for The Scribe (the first book in the series) and have a review for the second book, which was on my Winter Reading list, coming soon.

You can learn more about the The Secret, and Elizabeth Hunter on Goodreads, and you can join Hunter's mailing list here.

Now without further ado! Here is the cover, a synopsis of what is sure to be an amazing book, and an exclusive teaser!

Only when the darkness falls can you see the light of the stars.

For thousands of years, the scribes and singers of the Irin race have existed to protect humanity and guard the gifts of the Forgiven. They have lived in the shadows. They have kept their secrets.

But the Irin aren’t the only race with secrets.

Ava and Malachi have found each other, but wounds as deep as theirs don’t heal overnight. While the Irin world struggles to correct the power imbalance left by the Rending of the Irina, Malachi and Ava struggle to connect their past with their present.

The Fallen may scheme, but Ava has found her power and refuses to be an angel’s pawn. And while Malachi may have forgotten his history, the scribe’s relentless search for answers leads both him and his mate to the heart of the Irin power structure in Vienna, where knowledge is guarded more closely than gold and those with power will do anything to keep it.

Malachi and Ava have survived the darkness, but will they ever discover its secrets? A powerful cabal of the Fallen may hold the answers, but to surrender them, it wants the Irin race to finally face their enemies. Both those coming from the outside, and those raging within.

THE SECRET is the third book in the contemporary fantasy series, the Irin Chronicles, and the conclusion of Ava and Malachi’s journey.

EXCLUSIVE TEASER

“What are you thinking?” she asked.

He was thinking about Volund’s unexpected ability to invade his unconscious, but he didn’t want to bring it up. Luckily, his mind could turn to pleasant things very quickly when he was with her.

“Do you really want to know?”

“Yes. I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.”

It was true. Ava wasn’t a woman who felt the need to fill the air with chatter. He wondered if years of traveling alone had trained it out of her, or if the constant voices that had once plagued her were company enough.

“I am thinking… you’re very beautiful.”

He loved the slight flush she gave him when he complimented her. It made the offer of his praise all the more satisfying.

“You’re the only one who’s ever said that,” she said.

He was surprised, but not overly. Humans could be very superficial, and Ava’s physical features were not the most astonishing thing about her. Pretty, but not uncommonly so. Clear skin. Dark hair. Her eyes were the most arresting part of her face, but only other Irin would recognize the unusual shade of gold as anything more than light brown or amber. 

No, it wasn’t her physical features that were remarkable. And Malachi loved that only he saw the secret of his mate.

Her beauty lay in her mind and her heart. Quiet strength and resilient humor were not things valued enough by the world.

“Hmm.”

She gave him a quiet smile.

“You always did that,” she said. “Before. ‘Hmm.’ You’d be thinking something you didn’t want to say, but I knew it was about me when you would say, ‘Hmm.’”

“I often think about you.”

“That’s probably a good thing.”

They were sitting across from each other in the compartment. He put his foot on the edge of the bench beside her, enclosing them. Doing his best to block out the world. Ava set down her camera and slid a hand up his pant leg, her fingers playing along his skin.

“I think about you, too,” she said. “Some would say I’m obsessed.”

“And you take pictures of me when I sleep. I hear the clicking in my dreams. It’s borderline stalker behavior, really.”

“It’s settled then. We’re both certifiable.” 

LOOK OUT FOR MY REVIEW OF THE SINGER (BOOK TWO) AND THE SECRET WHICH WILL BE COMING SOON!!

Winter Reading List

I recognize that we are almost a month into winter and I am just now posting my reading list, but what can I say, the cold has made me sluggish. Also, writing AND reading a lot = a lot harder than one might think. I've come to find that 3 books a season are a pretty manageable number. If I get to more than that, hooray! If not, then at least I won't feel self-imposed guilt over not finishing my reading list. Sooo, on the winter line up we have:

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones is the one book that I didn't get to finish from my Fall Reading List, so I'm excited to startt the winter off with it.

(1)ne Drop: Shifting the Lens on Race by Yaba Blay, Ph.D. This book is stunning to look at. I can't wait to read it.

The Singer by Elizabeth Hunter is the second book in the Irin Chronicles. If you'd like to see how head over heels in love I was with the first book in this series, take a look.

It's gonna be a great Winter! Oh! And I love suggestions! So if you have any ideas for future book lists email me at info@sataynelms.com with the subject line "Book Suggestions."

Fall Book Reviews!

I almost made it through all the books on my book list this time! Yippee! Here are the reviews.

Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland

Misty Copeland's story is an extraordinary one. From bouncing from one home to another as her mother ended one relationship and started a new one to being the first Black soloist at the American Ballet Theatre in 20 years is just dizzying to read, nevermind live through. 

As the front cover suggests She overcame a great deal of adversity with admirable grace. However, as much as I enjoyed and appreciated reading Copeland's story, I did not feel the same way about her writing style. She jumps around in time A LOT. I was often left wondering where certain events occured within events she had previously discussed, but chronologically seemed to come later than a situation introduced pages later. It was distracting and I began to resent it, because it would yank me out of the rhythm and flow of her story.

All of that being said, her story is still one worth reading.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I have never read a book that made me despise both of its main characters the way I despised Nick and Amy, the highly dysfunctional coule at the center of this book. Now, let me be clear, this book was impeccably written. Flynn's attention to detail and intricate story development were amazing. Even my disgust with her main characters is a testament to her genius. I say that because, despite the fact that I had no investment in Nick or Amy as people and was often caught up in a debate with myself over who I disliked more, I was still inexplicably invested in the story. I still wanted and certainly at times felt I needed to know what was going to happen next. What a mesmerizing read!

Americanah by Chimamanda Adichie

What a beautiful book. You could easily finish Americanah in a single weekend, or a single evening if you had the time. It's just that compelling. But, something about it forces you to exercise restraint. The words beg to be drawn out and savored rather than chugged. Adichie bounces between past and present, America and Nigeria seamlessly. By  the end of the book you have the sense that you've known Ife and Obinze, the star crossed lovers that drive Americanah, for your entire life. It has been a long time since I have read a book that left me longing for more, and yet completely satisfied at the same time. Do yourself a favor and bump this book to the top of your reading list.