Melissa!!!! (The last poster)
You won the autographed copy of Carleen Brice's new novel, Children of the Waters!
Please send Carleen an email with your mailing address to Carleen@CarleenBrice.com. Mention the Meltingpot and she'll send you your copy right away.
For the rest of you, thanks for posting your comments, and I should be (fingers crossed) back online tomorrow.
Thank you for your patience.
Peace!
Showing posts with label Carleen Brice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carleen Brice. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, December 22, 2008
Happy Holidays: The Meltingpot Is on Vacation
Dear Meltingpot Readers,
I'd like to thank you for your continued support through 2008. I love blogging knowing people are actually reading what I have to say. It's great to see your comments and they inspire me to be an even better blogger, which I plan to do in 2009. More interviews, more book reviews and more observations of this fabulous Meltingpot we're living in today.
So, it sounds like I'm preparing for a goodbye, which I am. We're going to Spain for the holidays and I don't know if I'll have access to the internet on a regular basis. In the meantime, please check out my friend Rose-Anne's new blog called Currents Between Shores. She's a Haitian-American, married to a German, living in Berlin raising three boys. She's a great journalist and a keen observer of race and culture. Her blog is truly fascinating. Check it out if you have a chance.
And then, if you want to get really freaked out, angry and perhaps inspired to action, go check out my new favorite blog by author Carleen Brice. To promote her idea of National Buy A Book by a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month, Brice penned a great editorial for the Washington Post and in response she received over 100 emails, most of them negative. I cried when I read how many White people claim they don't read books by Black authors because Black people only write about slavery and sex and that we whine and complain too much. Or that we just don't know how to write very well which is why we struggle at the bookstores. (Can you see the steam coming out of my ears?) If you have a chance, please visit Carleen's site, read the article and comments and then talk amongst yourselves. But I'm warning you, it isn't pretty. Have a big swig of Pepto-Bismal before reading.
And finally, I can't say goodbye without mentioning my new baby, ?RU. In the upcoming year, we're hoping to grow our line of clothing dedicated to folks who don't feel they fit into a single identity box. Check us out at whatrugear.com and feel free (please) to leave us a message and tell us what you think of what we're offering so far, and what you'd like to see in the future.
Thanks and here's to a healthy and happy holiday season!
Peace!
p.s. I'll be back to the blogosphere on January 5, 2009
I'd like to thank you for your continued support through 2008. I love blogging knowing people are actually reading what I have to say. It's great to see your comments and they inspire me to be an even better blogger, which I plan to do in 2009. More interviews, more book reviews and more observations of this fabulous Meltingpot we're living in today.
So, it sounds like I'm preparing for a goodbye, which I am. We're going to Spain for the holidays and I don't know if I'll have access to the internet on a regular basis. In the meantime, please check out my friend Rose-Anne's new blog called Currents Between Shores. She's a Haitian-American, married to a German, living in Berlin raising three boys. She's a great journalist and a keen observer of race and culture. Her blog is truly fascinating. Check it out if you have a chance.
And then, if you want to get really freaked out, angry and perhaps inspired to action, go check out my new favorite blog by author Carleen Brice. To promote her idea of National Buy A Book by a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month, Brice penned a great editorial for the Washington Post and in response she received over 100 emails, most of them negative. I cried when I read how many White people claim they don't read books by Black authors because Black people only write about slavery and sex and that we whine and complain too much. Or that we just don't know how to write very well which is why we struggle at the bookstores. (Can you see the steam coming out of my ears?) If you have a chance, please visit Carleen's site, read the article and comments and then talk amongst yourselves. But I'm warning you, it isn't pretty. Have a big swig of Pepto-Bismal before reading.
And finally, I can't say goodbye without mentioning my new baby, ?RU. In the upcoming year, we're hoping to grow our line of clothing dedicated to folks who don't feel they fit into a single identity box. Check us out at whatrugear.com and feel free (please) to leave us a message and tell us what you think of what we're offering so far, and what you'd like to see in the future.
Thanks and here's to a healthy and happy holiday season!
Peace!
p.s. I'll be back to the blogosphere on January 5, 2009
Friday, November 21, 2008
White People, Black Books
Happy Friday Meltingpot Readers,
I just stumbled upon the most hilarious and yet spot on new blog, created by one of my new favorite authors,Carleen Brice. The blog is called White Readers Meet Black Authors and it is Brice's answer to the racial divide between, well duh, Black authors and White readers. In her own words, here's why she started the blog:
" It seems silly, but apparently White people often feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about checking out the African-American section of the bookstore. I’m trying to think of ways to let them know they’re more than welcome to peruse our books. Times are tough for all authors and Black authors can’t afford to have such a significant section of the market ignorant about what we’re offering."
Do you hear that? That's me giving Ms. Brice a round of applause for taking action against such a ridiculous practice of literary segregation. From the booksellers to the book buyers, folks have to know that a story well-written can be enjoyed by anyone. I mean do you have to be Japanese to sob over Memoirs of a Geisha? (Heck, even the author isn't Japanese). No. Must a person hail from San Juan to pick up When I was Puerto Rican by Esmerelda Santiago? Claro que no! So why can't White (or Asian or Latino etc) people read works by Black authors? It is silly, right?
To get the ball rolling and to prod us all along, Brice has declared December, just in time for the holidays, as National Buy a Book by a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month. And anything by Toni Morrison doesn't count because White people already read her books.
Check out Brice's new blog for suggestions of books by Black authors that White people might like.
Just wondering if anybody out there is willing to admit why they stay away from Black authors? Or maybe you're not afraid and read them all the time. Do you feel uncomfortable going to the Black section at the bookstore or library? Do you feel that book buying is a segregated business?
Holla back with your thoughts.
Peace!
I just stumbled upon the most hilarious and yet spot on new blog, created by one of my new favorite authors,Carleen Brice. The blog is called White Readers Meet Black Authors and it is Brice's answer to the racial divide between, well duh, Black authors and White readers. In her own words, here's why she started the blog:
" It seems silly, but apparently White people often feel uncomfortable or embarrassed about checking out the African-American section of the bookstore. I’m trying to think of ways to let them know they’re more than welcome to peruse our books. Times are tough for all authors and Black authors can’t afford to have such a significant section of the market ignorant about what we’re offering."
Do you hear that? That's me giving Ms. Brice a round of applause for taking action against such a ridiculous practice of literary segregation. From the booksellers to the book buyers, folks have to know that a story well-written can be enjoyed by anyone. I mean do you have to be Japanese to sob over Memoirs of a Geisha? (Heck, even the author isn't Japanese). No. Must a person hail from San Juan to pick up When I was Puerto Rican by Esmerelda Santiago? Claro que no! So why can't White (or Asian or Latino etc) people read works by Black authors? It is silly, right?
To get the ball rolling and to prod us all along, Brice has declared December, just in time for the holidays, as National Buy a Book by a Black Author and Give it to Somebody Not Black Month. And anything by Toni Morrison doesn't count because White people already read her books.
Check out Brice's new blog for suggestions of books by Black authors that White people might like.
Just wondering if anybody out there is willing to admit why they stay away from Black authors? Or maybe you're not afraid and read them all the time. Do you feel uncomfortable going to the Black section at the bookstore or library? Do you feel that book buying is a segregated business?
Holla back with your thoughts.
Peace!
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
One to Watch!
Hello Meltingpot Readers,
You know we slipped into August and I didn't even notice I'd made it to the end of my Blog-o-rama. Minus my sick days I managed to blog Monday - Friday for a month. I have to admit, it wasn't easy and I don't think I'll maintain the pace, but I did enjoy the challenge. I'll def. try to post more regularly now, but I am going to take a wee break here in August as I try to figure out how I want to revamp my site a bit. No major face lift or Botox injections, just some link updates and technological advances (I still don't know what RSS feed means or how to make it happen. But as cyberGod is my witness, I will figure it out).
In the meantime, as summer is coming to a close I am trying to enjoy every last minute of it, now that I can finally draw a breath without collapsing into a coughing fit. I went to the bookstore the other day and bought Carleen Brice's debut novel Orange Mint and Honey. For me buying a novel just for the heck of it is what summer is all about. Orange Mint and Honey is a delicious little novel about a mother and daughter who are trying to repair their very damaged relationship. It's about forgiveness and love and all of that other good stuff that makes us human. The book is really well written and the story is so fresh, but what I really appreciated the most about the book is that the characters, most of them African-American, were unique individuals not stereotypes. The fact that they were Black seemed incidental to the story. Instead of making the book about Black people and their problems, Brice crafted a compelling story about the human condition.
In addition, the Meltingpot in me loved the story because it was set in Colorado, a state I never considered relevant for colored people. Yet Brice makes Denver sound like it has its own meltingpot situation going on full force. Now I want to go check it out. The things you learn.
Brice's next book, due out in July 2009, is about two sisters, one biracial, the other White who were separated by adoption and meet up again in adulthood. You know we can't wait to get our hands on that one. So keep your eyes on Carleen Brice. She's one to watch!
Peace!
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