Diversify your reading with our Monthly Diverse Reads. Choose your title(s) from this month's carefully handpicked selection of titles with rich cultural representation for a unique diverse reading experience.
New to Monthly Diverse Reads? Keep scrolling (past this month's book blurbs) to learn more about this service.
September 2024 Diverse Reads:
1. Tales of Polynesian by Chronicle Books, illustrated by Yiling Changues (Hardcover)
Explore the enchanting world of Polynesian folklore in this beautifully illustrated collection of traditional stories.
A woman falls in love with the king of the sharks. Two powerful sorcerers compete in a battle of magical wits. The king of Maui's fastest messenger races to bring a young woman back from the dead. In these traditional tales, the borders blur between life and death, reality and magic, and land and sea.
This volume includes legends from Hawai'i, New Zealand, Tahiti, and Samoa, showcasing the rich narrative tradition of the Polynesian islands. You'll encounter awe-inspiring warriors, tricky magicians, and fearsome creatures of the deep. Each tale is paired with evocative contemporary art, creating a special illustrated edition to read, share, and treasure across generations.
Perfect for you, if you are:
- a fan of fairy tales, folklore, myths, legends, and history
- a reader with Polynesian heritage or interested in Polynesian culture
- an Illustration and art lover
- a collector of special editions
2. A Grandmother Begins a Story by Michelle Porter (Paperback)
From award-winning Métis author Michelle Porter, a powerfully funny and moving story told not just by five generations of Métis women, but also by the land, the bison that surround them, and two utterly captivating dogs.
Carter is a young mother on a quest to find the true meaning of her heritage, which she only learned of in her teens. Allie is trying to make up for the lost years with her first born and to protect Carter from the hurt she herself suffered from her own mother. Lucie wants the granddaughter she's never met to help her get to her ancestors in the afterlife. And Geneviève is determined to conquer her demons—before the fire inside burns her up—with the help of the sister she lost but has never been without. Meanwhile, Mamé, in the afterlife, knows that all their stories began with her; she must find a way to cut herself from the last threads that keep her tethered to the living, just as they must find their own paths forward. And a young bison wants to understand why he keeps being moved and whether he should make a break for it and run for his life.
This extraordinary novel, told by a chorus of vividly realized, wise, confused, struggling characters attempting to make sense of this life and the next, heralds the arrival of a stunning new voice in literary fiction.
Perfect pick for you, if you are:
- looking to learn more about indigenous history from indigenous voices
- enjoy narratives with multiple, unique perspectives
3. The Volcano Daughters by Gina María Balibrera (Hardcover) - includes signed book plates!
El Salvador, 1923. Graciela, a young girl growing up on a volcano in a community of Indigenous women, is summoned to the capital, where she is claimed as an oracle for a rising dictator. There she meets Consuelo, the sister she has never known, who was stolen from their home before Graciela was born. The two spend years under the cruel El Gran Pendejo’s regime, unwillingly helping his reign of terror, until genocide strikes the community from which they hail. Each believing the other to be dead, they escape, fleeing across the globe, reinventing themselves until fate ultimately brings them back together in the most unlikely of ways…
Endlessly surprising, vividly imaginative, bursting with lush life, The Volcano Daughters charts a new history and mythology of El Salvador, fiercely bringing forth voices that have been calling out for generations.
Perfect pick for you, if you:
- love rich historical settings, as the book moves to Hollywood, San Francisco, Paris, and the south of France
- enjoy strong, modern narrative voice from ghosts
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About Monthly Diverse Reads:
Discover a world of diverse literature with our Monthly Diverse Reads!
Elevate your reading experience by immersing yourself in our curated selection of the new releases & backlist titles written by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. If you're seeking an effortless way to explore a range of perspectives without the hassle of endless searches, Monthly Diverse Reads is your solution.
Each month, choose from a carefully curated collection of three captivating and culturally diverse books. Skip the research with it diverse book club, avoid navigating lengthy lists, and eliminate worries about problematic content – Tuma takes care of it all for you.
Is there a monthly book subscription? Yes, you can make a one-time purchase or subscribe for seamless, regular deliveries of exceptional, diverse books.
- One Time Purchase, Subscription, or Pre-Paid options available.
- Choose 1, 2, or all three titles!
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- Title(s) come in a purple envelope with personalized note.
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