Question: If enough folk turn their backs on Black History Month because they’re sick of it being the “only” time anyone pays attention to anything African-American related, will it actually make people pay more attention to us the other 11 months of the year? Answer: NO Fact: The contributions African Americans continue to make to [ Read the full article… ]
Category: General
Brown Book Review: My Own Worst Frenemy
I’d ask where books like My Own Worst Frenemy were when I was a young reader, but I already know the answer – they didn’t exist. It’s why I started writing YA, in the first place. Reviewing books like Reid’s first in the Langdon Prep series is bittersweet for me. On one hand I feel [ Read the full article… ]
Fans Live Here
Witnessing the pure unadulterated love from fans for the authors and their work makes managing The Brown Bookshelf so much fun. Sometimes the joy of reading can be lost in the hand wringing about the industry. Seeing fans come out for authors and books they love keeps things in perspective. Well, over the years, we’ve [ Read the full article… ]
Dueling Wild Nights
Though I never had one myself, I think every teen deserves one adventurous wild night out, Ferris Bueller or Sleepover-style (for the Lindsey Lohan generation). For the uninitiated, the wild night out is pure unadulterated no parents, throw caution to the wind and live like there’s no tomorrow adventure. The theme is as old as [ Read the full article… ]
Character Chick To the Rescue
She flew the night skies seeking YA books that contained characters that looked like her, sounded like her and lived the life she lived wrapped in suburbia’s blanket – a warm, comforting sameness that belies the silent struggle that is the everyday existence of a person of color. Flowing effortlessly as the only or one [ Read the full article… ]
Thisclose To Being YA
The pastor of my church has invited the young adults of the church to sup with him, a special dinner for those ages…wait for it, 18-40. Really? 40? “Young” adults? So I’m literally thisclose to being considered a young adult in the eyes of God. Pah! While I may be considered young compared to someone [ Read the full article… ]
Why We Write Kid Lit
As promised, in honor of National Day On Writing, the BBS family shares why we write for the kiddies and teens. WHY I WRITE by Tameka Fryer Brown Author of Around Our Way (PB) I write to express my thoughts, my feelings, my beliefs— Poignant or not, Sleeve-worn or not, Endorsed by the general masses [ Read the full article… ]
National Day On Writing 2011
There’s a day for everything. Literally. Some days it’s exhausting. I mean I can barely keep up with whether it’s Monday versus Wednesday…well actually that’s not true. Mondays vibe is way different. Still, from National Ice Cream day to Kiss a Pig in Purple, there seems to be a day to honor every possible human [ Read the full article… ]