Gwendolyn Brooks Conference

This weekend is the weekend of the 17th annual Gwendolyn Brooks Conference on Black Literature and Creative Writing. My father and I attended the event as book vendors. We were there last year, but this year we were fortunate enough to be set up adjacent to the speakers in the Rotunda, the main room in the alumni union.

Hip Hop and social justice were the main event for today. A panel of speakers, including Donda West, mother of Kanye West, and author of her new book Raising Kanye, discussed the current events and issues in Hip Hop and racism. It was very interesting. There were many young people in attendance, so issues such as the influence of the media and raising youth to be individual thinkers were brought up as well. This topic, in particular, really forced me to think. There was such a great youth turnout to talk about Hip Hop and social justice, I wondered how many of the same young people would show up to talk about literature and it's impact in America. I am really not sure. How many young people are reading today? With the rise of the internet, social networking, and the continued appeal of music and television, I feel that there are so many other ways to be entertained and get information. Young people are turning to literature less and less. Please, do not get me wrong, I see nothing wrong with these other forms of media, but I feel books serve a different purpose. Reading encourages a higher level of analytical thinking, and we need that. Our society, our culture, really needs to continue to cultivate generations of analytical thinkers. These young thinkers are the ones that will grow older and challenge future social injustices, such as those that occurred with the response to Katrina, the Jena 6 situation, and the Don Imus incident. In the year 2007, these issues are still among us, and it is my belief, 20 years from now, they will still be here in some way. We, as a culture, must prepare, be aware of our history and the directions we are going. I see reading as an important step in this process. Making sure young people read means sharing thoughts and ideas from the older generation in a more permanent fashion. They can then analyze, process, share their own thoughts and ideas, and the cycle continues. If knowledge is power, we pass the most precious gift through literature. Do not let the youth miss out. They must read, they must become powerful to succeed.

-Maia

A Vampire Huntress Legend

I know I'm late but I'm just getting into the Vampire Huntress Legend series by L. A. Banks. I recently finished reading Minion, the first in the series, and I loved it.

In Minion, L. A. Banks weaves an intricate tale about vampires and the ones who hunt them down at night. Damali Richards is the vampire huntress, a Neteru, created every one thousand years to hunt the creatures of the night. She is closely guided by guardians who have all come together to show her the way and help her fulfill her destiny. I really enjoyed the character development by Banks. Damali is powerful, seductive, talented, intelligent and young. She is just coming into her powers and what it means to be a Neteru. As a result, in the midst of the fighting and gore, there is a coming of age story as Damali approaches her sure-to-be-eventful 21'st birthday.

I'm hooked. I'm already 100 pages through the next book The Awakening.

-Maia

Grace After Midnight

In African American books today we usually do not read true tales about women involved in drugs and violence but Grace After Midnight brings us just that.

Grace After Midnight is the memoir of Felicia "Snoop" Pearson who plays Snoop on HBO's The Wire. I have not watched The Wire yet so I asked Kevin if he had. He said when he saw her character he was sure she was a boy. Is anyone else out there confused? If so this book dispels the myth.

One of the coolest parts about being a bookseller is the advanced reader copies. I'm steadily devouring everything, new and old. Grace After Midnight found it's way in my hands at the Great Lakes Bookseller Association trade show Saturday night, by Sunday afternoon I had finished it. It was a quick read and the honesty was intriguing. Ms. Pearson speaks her mind with no apology. I found it refreshing, but . . . a little scary. Anyone reading Urban Fiction today will enjoy this book. It is Urban without the Fiction.

Grace After Midnight will be available November 1, 2007. Contact me to reserve a copy.

-Maia

Azizi Books

My name is Maia. I am a bookseller, book reader, book hunter, hound, detective... all that and a movie buff (oh yes, I watch many movies as well). I'm on the brink of exctiting times. I am opening an independent bookstore in Lincoln Mall in Matteson IL called Azizi Books (that's about 30 miles Southeast of Chicago). I've been both encouraged and called crazy. Instead of going for a "safe" career in new media design I have decided to take a chance and see what else I can do in the world. I'm on the path. Wish me luck!

Maia