Every week I add a couple of novels, guides and poetry anthologies to my dad’s Amazon cart and hope he’ll buy them for me…haha just jokes. I find books through my favorite poets, social justice activists and political leaders on Twitter and I instantly include them in my growing list of must-reads. When I was at a local bookstore in Austin with my friend Stephanie, I picked up a few of the texts I’ve been wanting to read. I Am Not Your Negro is a collection of texts and interviews from James Baldwin, inspired by the film of the same title. Its director compiled the iconic leader’s words into a book that he hoped would be a perfect ‘last reader’ from the Baldwin. I’ve heard outstanding reviews about the film and the book looks just as incredible. Langston Hughes’ poem “Passing” was one of the pieces that inspired me to pursue poetry as my major focus. When I saw the Selected Poems of Langston Hughes, I knew I had to get it. One of my other favorite texts “I, Too” is also included in the book. The last collection I bought is from my beloved Sarah Kay entitled No Matter the Wreckage. Sarah is a phenomenal spoken word artist and this anthology of pieces will be a classic in my book collection.
