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sinamile's review
5.0
ARC Review: Received for free via Netgalley for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
CW: racial slurs & racism (but this book is focused on things like that, so)
I don't know how to eloquently put into words how much I adore this book. How do I go about explaining to someone how this book has changed my views even more than before and for the better.
There were things within writing and characterization of the Black body that I thought I'd taken note of, that I thought I was 'woke' to, and yet, having read this book, I realise that there are still so many things I am unaware of, traps that I, an inspiring writer, fall into.
This books has given me so much food for thought, has made me think longer and harder about characterization of Black people and how we're made to view them, how years of looking at the Black body through the eyes of White creators has warped the way we look at ourselves, the way we create ourselves.
EYE... I am honestly lost for words but lawrd is this a read that is important for all races, because its not just the White gaze that can distort our views of Black people, but other races can also fall into the trap of turning Black characters into caricatures.
Wow. What a book!
PS. The author is also a Harry/Hermione shipper
CW: racial slurs & racism (but this book is focused on things like that, so)
I don't know how to eloquently put into words how much I adore this book. How do I go about explaining to someone how this book has changed my views even more than before and for the better.
There were things within writing and characterization of the Black body that I thought I'd taken note of, that I thought I was 'woke' to, and yet, having read this book, I realise that there are still so many things I am unaware of, traps that I, an inspiring writer, fall into.
This books has given me so much food for thought, has made me think longer and harder about characterization of Black people and how we're made to view them, how years of looking at the Black body through the eyes of White creators has warped the way we look at ourselves, the way we create ourselves.
EYE... I am honestly lost for words but lawrd is this a read that is important for all races, because its not just the White gaze that can distort our views of Black people, but other races can also fall into the trap of turning Black characters into caricatures.
Wow. What a book!
PS. The author is also a Harry/Hermione shipper
hb_bookworm's review
4.0
my first "scholarly" read in a while - I really enjoyed this fascinating look at the treatment of 3 Black girl characters in popular culture and the way they were cyclically mistreated, even when authors and showrunners patted themselves on the back for providing positive and even "radical" representation. I say 3, because I think the final chapter on Hermione and Angelina Johnson was more about the author's experience in the Harry Potter fandom - but this isn't a bad thing at all! I enjoyed the scholarly exploration of fandom culture, specifically from a Black feminist educator's perspective. It was kind of funny to hear tumblr quotes and tweets that I saw on their initial postings being cited in a work like this, but I enjoyed the depth of insight into fandom relationships with Black characters. Would absolutely love to read more from this author!
jjvaldezbooks's review
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
the intro is dense, especially if it's been a while since you've read an academic text
but keep going because the rest of the book is just stunning. this discussion of how "dark girls" are treated even in the most well meaning of fantasy is one I believe every author, teacher, and librarian should read and really spend some time digesting
also why did this woman get called out in the HP fandom for quoting a myth story in fanfiction but Queen Plagerism herself gets to have book deals based on her stolen work? (fuxk Cassie Claire fr)
but keep going because the rest of the book is just stunning. this discussion of how "dark girls" are treated even in the most well meaning of fantasy is one I believe every author, teacher, and librarian should read and really spend some time digesting
also why did this woman get called out in the HP fandom for quoting a myth story in fanfiction but Queen Plagerism herself gets to have book deals based on her stolen work? (fuxk Cassie Claire fr)
ceallaighsbooks's review
This book is too smart for me rn. Probably will pick it back up in Augustish.
uisimportant's review
Stopped reading this long time ago, just kept it on my reading shelf hoping that I would finish it eventually. I will pick this back up one day potentially for my grand. The author is someone that is major within my field of study, but I’m truly just not a nonfiction girl.