Spring is here! And you know what that means?

Library sales!

I’m not sure about other parts of the country, but every spring, libraries throughout the Bay Area, and their sister organizations, Friends of the Library, hold huge book sales. The books are usually used and donated, but they’re very cheap. For instance, San Francisco’s sale at at the Festival Pavilion at Fort Mason, the mother library sale of them all with over 350,000 items, sells hardcover books for $3, paperbacks for $2, and audiobooks and DVDs for just $1. They also sell other reading paraphernalia, with all proceeds benefiting the library.

The sales usually last for a weekend, and many times the prices drop even lower right before the sale ends. I once showed up to a sale at the Montclair Library in Oakland 10 minutes before it ended and spent a whopping $5 total on two large grocery bags full of hardcover books.

I’ve probably purchased over 75 books from library sales, and maybe spent $50 in all for them. It’s a great way to start up or replenish your own personal library, and an even greater way to stock up on classic titles. The sales also include tons of children’s books so if you’re a teacher looking for more reading resources, or a parent who wants to shower their child with books, this is one of the least expensive ways to do so.

I spent $11.50 at the Albany Library sale for all of these last year.

A few tips:

• These aren’t the type of sales for you if you’re looking for rare titles, but if you’re goal is to stock up on mainstream novels and non-fiction, you’ll find tons of copies.
• Think of it as going to a flea market or yard sale. Even if you get 10-20 books, you’re not not likely to spend more than $20-$30.
• Cash is best since many libraries do not accept credit cards (though a lot are catching up with the times).
• If you see a title that is too damaged or used for your liking, keep looking. You’re bound to find more of the same title in better condition.
• Though I tend to support library sales all over, the sales with the books in the best condition are usually those in suburban areas.
• It’s similar to thrifting, so titles are rarely in any order other than by genre. Give yourself plenty of time to sort and sift. Browsing for ten minutes is not a good idea.
• Bring your own reusable shopping bag (or in my case, bring six lol)
• Bring a fellow bookworm with you, especially if you both have specific books that you’d like to find. It’s always best with an extra set of eyes.

My favorite Bay Area sales:

Albany – March 23, 10a-4p

San Francisco (Fort Mason) – April 3-7, 10a-6p

San Leandro  – April 6, 11a-4p

Walnut Creek – April 20^th, May 4^th, 10a-5p

Alameda – May 3-4, 9a-4p

For info about sales in your area, search your local library’s website, check out http://www.booksalefinder.com, or do a Google search for spring library sales in your city.

Talk about an emotional rollercoaster!

Aimee Bender’s writing is beautiful, but the story of little Rose Edelstein, who discovers right before her 8th birthday that whenever she eats, she can taste what the cook or food preparer or farmer is feeling: depression, anger, desperation, nervousness, happiness, delight; was rather heartbreaking. You really don’t want to eat your mother’s mashed potatoes, only to find out that she is restless and is fulfilling an emptiness by any means necessary. Not at 12 yrs old, you don’t.

Not only does Rose have to battle this strange, frightening condition that affects her every meal, she must also deal with a genius of an older brother who is also a weirdo and wants nothing to do with her, a restless mother who jumps from project to project and job to job, and a father who is physically home but mentally elsewhere, not quite  knowing how to fit into his household.

The writing in this novel is lovely, magical even. Bender made me want to reach through the page and hold Rose’s hand from grade school through young adulthood as she grappled with this strange and sometimes frightening condition, kept a secret from her family until they fall apart and she is left the strongest one standing.

I would recommend this to everyone, especially those interested in books with “Heroes” type characters.

Grade: A

 …Made her swallow hard to get rid of the saliva accumulating in her mouth as her attention turned to the man on the other side of the window and their eyes met through the window and he smiled at Nan and tipped his hat. He had the softest eyes she’d ever seen on a man, a sandy-toned complexion, a stevedore’s muscle-bound upper body that showed even through his suit-jacket, a good-quality seersucker. Plus he had black silky straight hair, meant she’d be spared the torture of the pressing comb should they be blessed to have a girl. She chided herself for letting her thoughts skip across seams that hadn’t been attached. Even as she felt such a swoon in her stomach that she had to put her hand to the counter to steady herself. Here were two signs at once, that this neighborhood might be getting ready to change over, that the man looking to help the change along, fine man, was outside smiling at her.

‘You courtin’?’ Goldie asked her then. ‘’Cause that Negro look like he could use some direction in life.’” pg. 38, Trading Dreams at Midnight by Diane McKinney-Whetstone

I judge books by their covers, so when I picked this up at the library, I almost put it back. I’m not here for the psychotic deranged eyes at the top. LOL But, Mat Johnson is a highly revered writer, hilarious on twitter, taught at VONA last year, and the book synopsis was intriguing, so I put my judging to the side.

The book was still crazy. As crazy as Mat intended it to be.

Three parolees, Cedric, Horus, and Bobby, are lured to Harlem to join Horizon Realty, run by former parole officer, now Congressman Marks and his side-kick, Lester (who from the description, seems to dress like Steve Harvey). Horizon is intent on revitalizing the once vibrant but now crumbling community. The ex-cons are expected to help new property owners move in, learn the ropes of real estate in Harlem, and eventually begin selling homes on their own. In turn, the man who does the best work will win a house in Harlem.

Sound too good to be true? Well, it is, and the men soon realize that winning the competition is not as easy as they thought it would be. Eventually, they notice certain Harlem residents, those who may tarnish the new Harlem image of clean, crime free neighborhoods, are being found dead every other day. The deaths are deemed accidental but, Cedric begins to think that something in the milk ain’t clean and is soon forced to grapple with his own involvement in the scandal.

I loved the book’s premise. Though it was humorous,  it had a lot of deep themes in it, notably gentrification (this time at the hands of bourgie Black folk), and the examination of the oft-times well-intentioned but out of touch middle class (who will do anything not to be lumped with in the same category as n****s).

Though it was a good novel overall, there were a few times when the story line lost me (especially when I was forced into Bobby or Cedric’s head), and during those times, I wanted the book to end quickly.

I’d recommend Hunting in Harlem to those  who enjoy gritty mysteries, and satirical views of Black life. I’m also pretty sure that men will enjoy Mat’s writing style.

Grade: C+

Ever read a superbly engaging book that you didn’t want to put down even though almost every single page made you want to slit your wrists?

Ralph Richard Banks tackles the question, “What are so many Black people single?” Statistics show that we’re the most unmarried race in the country, and Banks does a great job examining the reasons and issues within the Black community that have led to the marriage decline and the destruction of the family dynamic: high incarceration rates, man sharing (not here for that), lack of education, struggling economics, Black men preferring the single life, etc (oddly enough, homosexuality wasn’t mentioned…hmmm). A majority of Black women are faced with either “marrying down” (which comes with its own set of issues), or never marrying at all.

But many of us already know this. What set’s Banks’ book apart from every other book about Black relationships is his solution to the problem: Black women should consider interracial dating and marriage. Black women are more apt to marry down” than “marry out” but Banks believes that if more Black women were to open their hearts to other races, the marriage decline would come to a halt, or at least slow down.

I’m not completely sold on his solution, but the chapters on why Black women should become more open-minded when choosing a mate did change my perspective on dating others. I think though that the title is this book is very misleading. It is not so much about marriage being for white people, but more about Black women needing to venture outside of the race if they really want to get married. And though I am very much for women actively pursuing their own happiness and love, I kind of agreed with another reviewer of the book who felt that Black women are always told to do x,y,z to secure successful relationships, while Black men aren’t included in the discussion, or expected to participate in rectifying such a dire situation.

My book club had a grand time discussing this over empanadas and drinks, pushing our meeting an hour and 15 minutes over our usual time. It definitely provided for a hot conversation piece. I’d love though, to see what men think about the author’s conclusions.

Grade: B

…Couldn’t go through another tryst with a married man. In the best of times he’d provide her a furnished studio with a river view in a piano-lobby building; an allowance so that she could shop well, take all the courses she wanted, enjoy movies and music and books, surround herself with quality things… All she had to do in exchange was to keep herself pretty and inhabitable so that he could move into her like he would into a house as the Patti Labelle song goes. That’s all she had to do. But she was tired. Tired of feigning desire, tired of lapping her sustenance like a lost dog from any man with the smell of meat on his hand.” – pg. 266, Trading Dreams at Midnight by Dianne McKinney-Whetstone

This book bore a hole into my TBR list for years. My mother ranted and raved about how much she enjoyed the movie forever and a day, but I still hadn’t seen it. When I realized it was based on a best-selling book, I promised myself I’d read the book first.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is the story of Savannah, Georgia. John Berendt is sent to the southern town to write an article about its charm, and he soon falls in love with it and its inhabitants. He spends much of the beginning of the book getting the reader acquainted with the city, it’s past and present splendor. He then takes you along on a journey as he meets the town’s outlandish citizens, like Joe who moves into abandoned mansions (without paying for them) and throws outlandish all night parties every night; Emma, the lady of six thousand songs who sings at every single event, holy or whoreish, in the state; the Lady Chablis, the hilariously outrageous drag queen; and Minerva, a voodoo priestess.

There were many more characters from the town sprinkled throughout the book, all of them outspoken and a bit crazy, but still very entertaining. The book picks up speed when wealthy antiques dealer, Jim Williams, is accused of murdering known bad boy, Danny Hansford, in his extravagant mansion. It doesn’t help that Jim is a Savannah transplant (an outsider) who has had a few run-ins with his neighbors concerning new housing developments in the lower income (read: Black) part of town. The murder and subsequent trial splits the town in two, and John Berendt is there to record it all.

The book was charming just like I imagine the town the story is based on to be, however, I ran into two somewhat small issues. Though the book was published in 1996, the author still seemed to take an us versus them approach in writing of the Black part of town. As a reader who reads mostly authors of color, it was somewhat startling to see Black people referred to as a separate entity, as if they weren’t integrated into the Savannah society. I did appreciate him attending and writing in detail of the debutante ball put on by the Alphas, which gave a glimpse of Black life other than the poor and destitute, creating somewhat of a balance, but other than that, we seemed to only come up when referring to poverty.

I also thought the book was far too long. In the second half, it turned into a murder mystery, a very juicy murder mystery that eventually took entirely too long to wrap up. I understand this is a true story and all sides had to be told, but there were times when I became exasperated at how long it took to find out what really happened between Jim Williams and Danny Hansford.

The quirky townspeople helped make this a very entertaining read. I’d recommend this to those interested in southern towns, narrative non-fiction, and those who enjoy a good true to life murder mystery. I can also see this making for a good book club selection.

Grade: B

 

“Our focus is on the War on Drugs. The reason is simple: Convictions for drug offenses are the single most important cause of the explosion in incarceration rates in the United States. Drug offenses alone account for two-thirds of the rise in the federal inmate population and more than half of the rise in state prisoners between 1985 and 2000. Approximately a half-million people are in prison or jail for a drug offense today, compared to an estimated 41,100 in 1980—an increase of 1,100 percent. Drug arrests have tripled since 1980. As a result, more than 31 million people have been arrested for drug offenses since the drug war began. Nothing has contributed more to the systematic mass incarceration rate of people of color in the United States than the War on Drugs.” – Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. Jan 2012

I’ve been an Ernest J. Gaines fanatic since I fell in love with his words when reading A Gathering of Old Men sometime in my early 20s. Since I’ve been on a mission to read a lot of the lesser known works by my favorite authors, I picked up Catherine Carmier, Gaines’ first published novel (1964).

It is the 1960s and son of the south, Jackson Guerin, returns to Louisiana to visit the aunt who raised him. Jackson has spent some time being educated in San Francisco. He returns to the country under the impression that he will stay and teach, but once he arrives, he realizes that his education and aspirations make it hard to fit in with the slow moving, hard laboring, church going folks that he grew up with. Except for Catherine Carmier. Catherine is a beauty, but her Creole heritage makes her off limits to Jackson, and any other man that is interested, for her father Raoul has decided that she is forever bound to him and will literally fight any man to the death for her honor. Jackson is so enamored with Catherine that he is willing to risk it all to get her to leave with him. But does Catherine love Jackson enough to leave her family behind for him?

Gaines is said to have written a novel in his teenaged years that was rejected by publishers. He was so distraught that he burned the manuscript. This story is said to be the story that he burned, having decided to re-write it from scratch after he attended college. Can you imagine re-writing an entire book?

In reading this book, it is obvious that Catherine Carmier is a first novel, not as polished and riveting as Gaines’ later work. But it is still a good story focusing on issues within southern communities that many may night be familiar with: creole separatism and colorism, and the prodigal son being too learned to fit in with his family. It is also somewhat dramatic, at some points reminding me of a daytime soap opera.

I’d recommend this novel to fans of Gaines’ writing and those who are interested in old school southern literature.

Grade: B

“Love is divine only and difficult always. If you think it is easy you are a fool.” – Paradise, Toni Morrison

As we approach the trillionth year that I have been single on Valentine’s Day, it is safe to say that I have mastered the “difficult always” description that Toni Morrison used to so brilliantly expound on love. It’s elusive, slippery, tricky and disrespectful to my ovaries. It is funny though because even while ToMo says that love is difficult always, and my own life experience seems to be proof that she is correct, I really don’t want to believe it. Or, I’d prefer to believe that it is difficult once you have a firm grasp on it. I, on the other hand, haven’t been able to even get close enough to breathe it’s air and tap it on its shoulder, let alone wrap my fingers around it and claim it as my own.

And as with most things that are difficult in my life, I have set it to the side, ignored it, and concentrated on the things that come easy. But my friends and associates say that turning my back on love has made me boring: I’m all books and writing and church and that’s about it. I used to be filled with raucous dating stories, quick to dial them up with a “Guuurrl, guess what he did tonight….” monologue. Then there were the “Awwww, he was so sweet yesterday when he…” stories, and the “This fool is crazy” rants and the…well, you get the picture. There was a lot more to talk about when there were men in my life. Now I’m  mostly all business, with a little bit of short news about my latest crushes, and sizzling online love affair with David Banner (don’t hate).

I am ok with that, content even, and I hope that those around me find a way to embrace the new terminally single Nakia. Love is a wonderful thing, but it is also something that shouldn’t be played with, especially not in the way that I played with it in the past. So I’m sitting on the sidelines until I:

• Finish School – school is my number one priority, so my time is limited. I’d hate to start anything with anyone when I know that I can’t give it my all. 
• Heal From Past Hurt – this speaks for itself. My side eye is aimed at every man in the world who breathes my way. Ain’t nobody got time to be dealing with a woman with trust issues, though, and I’m kind  enough not to unleash that burden onto the brothas (or others*) of the world. You’re welcome.
• Find What I Want – some people say Black women are too picky, but I actually think I’m not picky enough. Having high standards in Oakland/the Bay Area is a heavy cross to bear, but when my pastor preached on love this past Sunday from Proverbs 4:23, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life”, that was just the push I needed to get a tad bit judgier about who I allow into my life and my heart.
• Let It Find Me – and by find me, I mean love needs to chase me down the street, put me in a headlock, and steal my car keys. And then I want it to stare me in the face, gently grab my hand, and say, “Come, walk with me for a while.” In other words, I need to be sure that it is there, that it is genuine, that it is tangible, that it is not fly by night, that it is mine.

Though, I don’t believe that there is anything as exciting as a kiss from a chocolate, thicker than two snickers, chiseled cheek bone, well defined arms having man named David, who knows how to read, is at least 5 inches taller than me, and can make me laugh, I’m making the best of what I have until I’m ready. For now, my books will keep me warm at night, and my days will be busy concentrating on the other parts of my life that are simple and bring me joy.

Like ribs. And new episodes of Love & Hip Hop.

Happy early Valentine’s Day, yall!

*My book club is reading Is Marriage for White People: How the African American Marriage Decline Affects Everyone by Ralph Richard Banks, and it’s making me second guess my loyalty to the brothas so much so that I might end up solely dating Samoans and Navajo Indians. I’m serious.