Books White People Should Read About Being Black in America

Right now I am sure we are all aware of the situation breaking out across the US following the death of George Floyd. I have also seen a lot of posts on social media about the need to dismantle the structures of racism and the need for white people to look at the ideas we have internalised as part of the work of dismantling racism. Everyone needs to learn to do better for the future.

I am a white British man, so I am writing this post from my perspective, sharing the books that have really helped me to understand the struggles black people face on a daily basis in America. I have a degree in American Literature and throughout my degree I focused on learning, reading, and writing about minority communities and oppression. So sharing a selection of books I think white people need to read to understand something about being black in America feels like a way that I can do something.

The Hate U Give (2017) by Angie Thomas

Probably one of the most relevant books you could be reading right now. The Hate U Give follows 16-year-old Starr Carter after she witnesses a white police officer shoot and kill her friend, Khalil. I suspect most people who will read a blog post like this have probably heard of The Hate U Give, but if you have not read this book yet you really need to.

Citizen: An American Lyric (2014) by Claudia Rankine

                A fascinating book that mixes poetry, essay, art and photography that is quickly becoming considered a modern classic. The breadth covered by Rankine in this book make this an ideal text to read if you are keen to learn more about being black in America. Subjects covered include racist micro-aggressions, racism in sport, and incidents police brutality.

Anything by Toni Morrison

I couldn’t write a post about black American books without including Toni Morrison, she is a legend. I suspect other posts might recommend you read Beloved (1987) a novel that explores slavery and intergenerational trauma – however whilst Beloved is a fantastic novel it is also difficult to read in form and might not be ideal if you are new to Morrison. Sula (1973) is my personal favourite book by Morrison though the way race functions is a little less obvious in that one. The Bluest Eye (1970) is perhaps Morrison’s strongest novel for exploring and understanding the effect that de-humanising racism has had upon the black community. I would also recommend reading Playing in the Dark (1992) a work of literary criticism which explores the way that the realities of race have tinged much of American life.

The Fire Next Time (1963) by James Baldwin

                The Fire Next Time is written in the 1960s exploring the role of race in American history against the backdrop of the black power movement as de-segregation started to happen. However whilst it is written very much in its time and moment, the tensions that Baldwin writes about still continue today and can be seen right now in Minneapolis. Baldwin has sadly been overlooked by history but he definitely deserves to be read, particularly as he was one of the first black gay writers.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (1861) by Harriet Jacobs

I felt conflicted about if I should put a slave narrative on this list or not, however I think we need to talk about the history of slavery. I suspect that for a lot of people even if you know about the history of slavery you haven’t read about it from the perspective of an enslaved woman. Jacob’s narrative is autobiographical and incredibly powerful. This is a difficult book to read, and I remember feeling exhausted when I finished reading it, but it is also a book that should be read.

This list is not exhaustive by any means but it should be a good starting point. It is not up to black people to educate white people about race, however there are tons of books available for you to read to educate yourself about race, and now is the time to do the work for yourself.

Doctor Who – Rosa Review

Rosa was a truly fantastic episode, shifting the usual focus from monsters and adventures to an important moment in history.

This is the first episode in Doctor Who history to centre on a significant figure from black history. So it feels appropriate that Rosa Parks’ story was written by the first ever black writer for Doctor Who, Malorie Blackman making her TV Doctor Who debut.

I haven’t seen any reaction yet but I already feel like there’s going to be people saying Doctor Who is getting too political. My response to them is, grow up sci-fi and fantasy have always been political.

Rosa treated the real life story of Rosa Parks with the dignity and respect that she deserved.

The way that the horrible reality of racism in the 1950s was unflinchingly depicted was harrowing. I was not expecting an episode of Doctor Who to be so brutally honest.

Rosa was not a sad episode, there was a message of hope that things have and will continue to get better. I think this might be one of the most powerful Doctor Who episodes ever. It really made me cry.

Doctor Who - The Ghost Monument Review

The Ghost Monument, is a thrilling episode with some great character driven plot. Series 11 of Doctor Who is on a role!

Warning, this review will contain spoilers.

The Ghost Monument is the first adventure for the newly formed TARDIS team, in much the same way as End of the World or Beast Below was. Action, adventure, robots, spaceships, alien planets, scares, and mystery. What more do you want from an episode of Doctor Who! Well as with last week, this episode also had very compelling characters too.

The 13th Doctor is awesome! Jodie Whittaker delivered another stellar performance. She just utterly is the Doctor. There’s just so many traits about her that are completely who the Doctor is and should be. I also like that the Doctor’s using Northern colloquialisms like “Let’s get shift on.” After the 12th Doctor it is refreshing to have an empathic Doctor again, one who cares about people, for me that’s a core character trait of the Doctor.

It’s great having a team of companions again. Ryan, Yas and Graham all bring something new to the show. I think it feels like the right balance has been struck for having multiple companions, they’re a team and they’re working together. They feel like different people, but they have each other’s backs, and they’re bringing their individual mindset and skillset to their adventures.

It’s always a sign of bad writing when a significant death doesn’t have any lasting impact, so I like that Grace’s death still has a resonance. Graham is still going through the grieving process and trying to be there for Ryan which is really interesting to watch, very human and very emotional. I know there was some doubt when Bradley Walsh was cast as a companion, but I think - as with the casting of Billie Piper and Catherine Tate – any doubt was unfounded.

Aside from the main TARDIS team this week’s supporting characters, Angstrom and Epzo, were also compelling. Angstrom in particular was an interesting character, resourceful and initially closed off but opening up once she started to trust the Doctor.

This episode perfectly got that zone of scary but not too dark that Doctor Who excels at. Those cloth creatures (whatever they were) were genuinely unnerving. The scares in Doctor Who should be like that, unnerving but not so terrifying that they’ll traumatise the kids who might be watching.

Who else was surprised at the mention of the Stenza? The reveal that the Stenza were responsible for what happened to the planet Desolation, cast a mysterious and ominous shadow over everything that happened. Even in their absence the Stenza are a threat. I’m wondering if that’s why there’s no Daleks this year, because the Stenza are going to be a lurking, and possibly reoccurring big bad. I hope that might be the case because it’s about time Doctor Who had some new big bad monsters, and the Stenza are certainly deeply unpleasant.

Speaking of possible arcs and reoccurring stories, what is the ‘Timeless Child’? I suspect that’s going to become important later on.

This week also gave us our first look at the new TARDIS. Personally I really like this design. We only really got a glimpse of it but I like it. It has elements that sort of feel like they echo the 9th/10th Doctor TARDIS and the 11th Doctor TARDIS. This is a TARDIS that feels like the perfect fusion of organic and mechanical which is what the TARDIS should be. My only complaint is that no one uttered the words “It’s bigger on the inside.”

So to sum up, The Ghost Monument was another entertaining instalment in what promises to be an excellent series of Doctor Who.

Doctor Who - The Woman Who Fell to Earth Review

Doctor Who is back. Jodie Whittaker is the Doctor.

This review will contain some spoilers so be warned…

First off, Jodie Whittaker. She hit the ground running (literally as well as metaphorically!). From the moment we first encountered her, I felt like Jodie Whittaker was the Doctor. Jodie Whitaker’s Doctor was smart, funny, and utterly likeable. This is the newest incarnation of my hero growing up. There were elements of her performance that reminded me a little of Matt Smith and David Tennant but at the same time she utterly made the role her own.

One of the things that makes or breaks any era of Doctor Who is the companions. I think the 13th Doctor is going to have a good team of friends to play off and I think watching the dynamic unfold between them will be really interesting. Each of them is going to bring something different to their adventures with the Doctor. You can already see the traces of what’s going to make them fantastic companions as the series progresses in much the same way that Rose Tyler was showing what she was made of right from the beginning.

Ryan seems to be the smart one but not in a traditional book smart way. It also seems like he has some self-confidence issues which I think the Doctor will help him work through. He was a likeable and relatable character which is what I want to be seeing from any new companion.

Yas seems to have an investigative nose which reminded me somewhat of Sarah Jane, any companion that reminds of Sarah Jane must be doing something right! Also having a companion be a Police Officer is a pretty original idea but one that I think will work well.

I thought Graham was going to be the weakest of the new TARDIS team but I was wrong, I don’t think there is a weak member of the team. It’s interesting to see a companion who’s more cautious, I don’t think that’s really happened before.

I had a feeling that Grace was going to die, but that didn’t undermine the poignancy of her death. I think that her death is going to be something that has an important and powerful lasting impact throughout the series.

Monsters, this episode had a proper monster! If you read my Doctor Who Series 10 reviews you might recall I complained frequently about a lack of proper monsters. Well The Woman Who Fell to Earth gave us a proper monster. I don’t think Tim Shaw will come to be regarded as one of the all-time classic Doctor Who monsters but he was a good adversary for the new Doctor to face.

Even the setting was new, instead of London we’re now in Sheffield. After Clara Oswald and Amy Pond both having fairly vaguely defined backstories it was nice to see the new team having a life in a city before they met the Doctor. I think moving away from London is a smart idea, since 2005 pretty much every series of Doctor Who has been very London heavy so leaving the capital really makes this feel like a fresh start. It was definitely Sheffield, I’m from Yorkshire and it felt like an authentic representation of my county.

Fundamentally this is a ‘new Doctor’ episode. To a certain extent it followed the mould that has been set by The Christmas Invasion and The Eleventh Hour for what a new Doctor episode is. The Doctor has to figure out who they are in their newest incarnation and save the world. That is the type of episode that The Woman Who Fell to Earth is. Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so. This is a new era of Doctor Who, with a brand new Doctor, I think it was right to start the series like this. It was a great episode to whet our appetite for more Who and I definitely want to see more of what this era has in store.

Also I loved that tease we got of the new theme tune over the credits. It gave me a Classic Who vibe in all the best ways.

My Tiana Doll Collection

I recently added a fifth Tiana doll to my collection. With so many versions of the best Disney Princess I thought I would do a blog post about my Tiana doll collection so far…

Mattel, Disney Princess Bath Time Collection (Approx. 2013/14)

The doll that started off my entire collection. She’s a basic doll (basic five points of articulation, no shoes, and moulded on top) but in spite of that I’ve used her a lot to make outfits for.

Hasbro, Disney Princess Royal Shimmer (2017)

At this point I was only just beginning to collect variant dolls. I found her on offer in a supermarket and I had enough loyalty point to get some money off her. I actually really like this collection of Hasbro Disney Princess dolls, I have Jasmine and Pocahontas from the same series.

Disney Store, Winter Boutique (2011)

I found this Tiana doll whilst browsing on eBay. Originally she was released with two other dresses as part of a ‘wardrobe set’ collection of princess dolls. However I was only able to get her with the winter dress. I really like the execution of the green dress with this one and the winter details are a fun little extra that makes her stand out.

Disney Store, Wedding Doll (2018)

Possibly motivated by the Royal Wedding, Disney released a collection of Disney Princess dolls in their wedding dresses this year. This collection included Tiana, I think this wedding dress is fabulous. It’s nice to see a Tiana wearing some slightly different colours to what she usually wears. I also like that this dress has something of a 1920s feel to it which is appropriate for Tiana but not something that is shown too often in her merchandise.

Disney Store, Disney Princess Classic Doll (2016)

My most recent Tiana and one that had eluded me for a while. I specifically wanted the 2016 Classic doll as that was the last year (for now) that Tiana wore the blue dress, but the first year she came with a minifigure of Naveen as a frog. I love the way that she is posed in the box, almost like she’s about to kiss him, this is one doll I won’t be opening.

Honourable Mention:

Charlotte La Bouff, Mattel, Princess and the Frog (2009)

Lottie (Tiana’s best friend) has only ever had two dolls released, one by Disney Store and one by Mattel, I personally think that the Mattel one is much nicer. It took me around a year to finally get this Lottie but once I had her I was glad that I bought her.

Making Tiana’s Café

Following the Frozen Doll Room I’ve made another doll room, this time my favourite Disney Princess is getting a new café.

The second doll room I made was Tiana’s Café. In the movie Tiana opened a restaurant – not a café – but with a little creative license I decided to make a café instead. It was a nice little set when I made it but I know that now I could do much better. I also felt like Tiana needed to move to larger premises.

The first thing I made for Tiana’s Café was a kitchen, the plan was to make this outside of the usual cereal box I make doll rooms in and has it rest alongside the box. For this I took a piece of card from a calendar insert which I cut to size and then covered with paper. Using a hot glue gun I secured a shelf onto the wall, there’s also a small bottle cap glued to provide extra support for the shelf. I then used items I’d either previously made or collected to furnish the kitchen for Tiana.

As with many of doll rooms, the main part of the café started out as a cereal box. I cut it to open up one side and then covered the edges and the outside of the box with white paper to neaten it up. This step is taken from My Froggy Stuff on YouTube.

With the box prepared I worked on the exterior of the café. I used a green check scrapbook paper which I thought looked like tiles along the front of the box. I stuck on a piece of wood print scrapbook paper with a picture of a frame and a small handle added on for a door. For the sign I used black paper and a white chalk marker.

For the interior walls I found this green patterned scrapbook paper at a local craft store. I thought this would be perfect for Tiana. Green is one of the core colours Disney use to market her, the pattern reminded me of one of the patterns Disney sometimes uses for Tiana, and I also felt that it had a bit of a 1920s feel to it.

The main walls have been completed so I could add in a little extra detail. I glued in a picture from a Disneyland Paris travel brochure which has been trimmed with white paper for a window. I used a complimentary strip of scrapbook paper to give the room a skirting board and I used a light wood print scrapbook paper for the flooring.

These pictures were on the wall in the old version of Tiana’s Café but I decided that they were still useable and so I glued them into the new one.

I wanted a little stand to display cakes on. I covered a small box with gingham fabric and then hot glued a stand of bunting around it to create a unit to display cakes that is inspired by the ‘Gingham Alter’ from the Great British Bake Off.

The room was pretty much complete so I placed the café next to the kitchen and then added in some furniture.

And that was how I made a new café for (one of) my Tiana dolls. I’m pleased with how this project turned out, I feel like it is a massive improvement from the more basic previous version.

Frozen Doll Room

The Forest of Enchantment got Frozen in my latest craft project…

The very first doll room I made was The Forest of Enchantment living room. It was inspired by a stage show I had seen at Disneyland Paris which featured Rapunzel, Merida and Pocahontas. I loved the show and made the room as a little tribute to it and as a way to display those dolls. However over time this room feel out of use and strayed away from its intended purpose. Rather than just put it in the recycling I decided to retheme it into a Frozen doll room.

First step was to strip back the room to just a paper covered box. I chose to keep the green floral wall as it reminds me a little of Frozen Fever. I recovered the other wall with a snowflake patterned scrapbook paper. I used a dark wood scrapbook paper on the floor and a lighter wood scrapbook paper as a skirting board.

I mounted a picture of the Arendelle castle onto another piece of wood print scrapbook paper for a window and then glued it into the box.

Using a hot glue gun, I glued a piece of sequin fabric to the box as a curtain and to help soften the divide between the two wall papers. I also glued a string of silver beads to the box, these were part of the old Forest of Enchantment room but I think they sort of look like lights and I felt they fit the general feel of the Frozen room. A selection of pictures has also been glued onto the wall, I initially considered adding more but decided not to so that I have the option to add more at a later date.

The basic room was compete so I could move the furniture into the room.

This mini drawer had been a part of the Forest of Enchantment room previously. I bought it cheap from The Works (I think it was meant to be a jewlery box), previously I had painted it light blue. To make it feel like a better fit for the Frozen room I used a chalk marker to add some Frozen inspired details.

This couch was from a pack of doll sized IKEA furniture. I used a piece of white fabric with a black print as a blanket thrown on the couch, I chose this fabric as it’s relatively neutral in contrast to a lot of the pattern throughout the room. I also placed some mini cushions I had made previously onto the couch. In front of the couch is a brown faux fur rug which was just cut out from a piece of faux fur that I’d used in a previous craft project.

Every room always needs just a few little extra items to help finish it off and bring the set to life. I like adding things like this to add a little more detail into a doll room. The digital clock and the box of tissues are both from the Disney Happy Places blind boxes I collected.

With the Frozen doll room now complete all that was left to do was move in some dolls. So here’s Anna and Kristoff on the couch with Sven.