Who is your favorite Black Author ❓ And, in which genre ❓ Do you have any favorite book by a black author ❓❓❓
While I usually don't read Black authors due to their writing style being ahead of its time, 'Nightbloom' by Peace Adzo Medie stands out as a powerful exception. This book has made a significant impact on my life, showcasing the profound storytelling and unique perspectives that Black literature offers.
Name of Book: The Reformatory
Author: Tananarive Due
Publisher: Titan Books
Publication Date: Oct 31, 2023
No. of Pages: 578
Format: Digital
Gracetown, Florida
June 1950
Twelve-year-old Robbie Stephens, Jr., is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, a reformatory, for kicking the son of the largest landowner in town in defense of his older sister, Gloria. So begins Robbie’s journey further into the terrors of the Jim Crow South and the very real horror of the school they call The Reformatory.
Robbie has a talent for seeing ghosts, or haints. But what was once a comfort to him after the loss of his mother has become a window to the truth of what happens at the reformatory. Boys forced to work to remediate their so-called crimes have gone missing, but the haints Robbie sees hint at worse things. Through his friends Redbone and Blue, Robbie is learning not just the rules but how to survive. Meanwhile, Gloria is rallying every family member and connection in Florida to find a way to get Robbie out before it’s too late.
Tananarive Due is an American Book Award and NAACP Image Award–winning author, who was an executive producer on Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror for Shudder and teaches Afrofuturism and Black Horror at UCLA. She and her husband, science fiction author Steven Barnes, cowrote the graphic novel The Keeper and an episode for Season 2 of The Twilight Zone for Paramount Plus and Monkeypaw Productions. Due is the author of several novels and two short story collections, Ghost Summer: Stories and The Wishing Pool and Other Stories. She is also coauthor of a civil rights memoir, Freedom in the Family: A Mother-Daughter Memoir of the Fight for Civil Rights.
My Opinion
Tananarive Due's 'The Reformatory' delivers a powerful blend of horror and social commentary, focusing on the brutal racism faced by Black individuals in America. This gripping narrative explores the exploitation of Black people, with heart-wrenching incidents that highlight their unimaginable suffering at the hands of whites. Although I typically don't read Black authors, this book had a compelling influence on me. The horror elements were intense, but the racy and adventurous climax was my favorite part.
I picked up 'The Reformatory' expecting a horror story, and soon found myself fully engrossed. Every character left a lasting impression, with their suffering and emotions feeling so real that I was filled with anger at the sheer hatred shown towards a race based solely on skin color. This book undeniably deserves 5 stars for its impactful storytelling and thought-provoking themes. Definitely, the book deserves 5 stars.
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- Enjoyment ---------------- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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