Task #9: Read an independently published book by a BIPOC author.

[Andrew]

Is Afromyth: A Fantasy Collection https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... considered independently published? I can't tell.

[JP]

I bought Norman Erikson Pasaribu's Happy Stories, Mostly when it was longlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize. It's published by Tilted Axis Press.

[Book Riot]

Use this space to discuss books you're reading or that might fit the 9th Read Harder task. Sign up for our new Read Harder newsletter to get recommendations for each task delivered straight to your inbox! https://bookriot.com/newsletter/read-...

[Dione]

Indie is hard, for me. This page might be helpful: https://sfrareview.org/2021/10/25/hid...

[Nadine in NY]

If Tor counts as independent, then this is pretty easy for me.

[Carly Really Very Normal]

Black From the Future: A Collection of Black Speculative Writing is a collection of short stories, but I think it fits the bill.

[Tricia]

I found this list of independent publishers, which might help.
https://blog.reedsy.com/independent-p...

[Dione]

Found one that looks good to me! Pirate adventure! By Sea & Sky: An Esowon Story by Antoine Bandele.

[Juliet]

I get a lot of books from Book View Cafe, which is an author owned publishing co-op, it should be a great resource for this prompt https://bookviewcafe.com/about/

[Satrina]

Juliet Brown wrote: "I get a lot of books from Book View Cafe, which is an author owned publishing co-op, it should be a great resource for this prompt https://bookviewcafe.com/about/"

I went to check their site but couldn't find a BIPOC author.

[Regan]

I learned when checking details for this challenge that all University presses count as independent. I've had Avery Colt Is a Snake, a Thief, a Liar on my shelf waiting to be read for a few years now, so I'll probably finally get to that.

[Elizabeth]

I'll see how I'm feeling, but I'm planning on getting to Moon of the Crusted Snow in the next couple months and it would count. I'm also considering maybe one of the Akashic Noir books (I have access to Lagos Noir, Addis Ababa Noir, Nairobi Noir, and Haiti Noir, which all have Black editors and primarily Black authors in the collections).

I live in a Canadian city with a good library system though, which means that I have easy access to a lot of books from indie Canadian publishers and may get to something else first.

[Bonnie G.]

Is Graywolf Press considered indy? It is nonprofit. I read a ton from them and Black and Indigenous writers are very well represented.

[Traci]

Tricia wrote: "I found this list of independent publishers, which might help.
https://blog.reedsy.com/independent-p..."

Thank you! I was going to use this to browse publishers, but one from my TBR was shown, so All You Can Ever Know it is!

[Traci]

Bonnie G. wrote: "Is Graywolf Press considered indy? It is nonprofit. I read a ton from them and Black and Indigenous writers are very well represented."

Graywolf is on the "Best Independent Publishers" list that Tricia posted.

[Bonnie G.]

Traci wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Is Graywolf Press considered indy? It is nonprofit. I read a ton from them and Black and Indigenous writers are very well represented."

Graywolf is on the "Best Independent Publi..."

Oh thank you!

[Jane]

FISH Publishing is an independent publisher of Australian Indigenous authors. I found this through the Small Press Network list of members, if you are looking more broadly for Australian authors of colour.

https://smallpressnetwork.com.au/memb...

[Diya]

Tricia wrote: "I found this list of independent publishers, which might help.
https://blog.reedsy.com/independent-p..."

Thank you for this list! I found my book under House of Anansi Press.

[chysodema]

Afra wrote: "Tricia wrote: "I found this list of independent publishers, which might help.
https://blog.reedsy.com/independent-p..."

Thank you for this list! I found my book under House of Anansi Press."

Thanks for pointing me towards House of Anansi! Their BIPOC Voices section had a bunch of books I'm excited about.

[Elizabeth]

Regan wrote: "I learned when checking details for this challenge that all University presses count as independent. I've had Avery Colt Is a Snake, a Thief, a Liar on my shelf waiting to be read for a few years n..."

This is a super interesting take! I might branch off that and go with something published by my state's historical society to make it work with #13...

Little Hawk and the Lone Wolf: A Memoir by Raymond C. Kaquatosh
Modern Jungles: A Hmong Refugee’s Childhood Story of Survival by Pao Lor
Somos Latinas: Voices of Wisconsin Latina Activists
Good Seeds: A Menominee Indian Food Memoir by Thomas Pecore Weso
Indian Nations of Wisconsin: Histories of Endurance and Renewal by Patty Loew

[Heather]

Braiding Sweetgrass and Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer are independently published by Milkweed Editions. Since I read Braiding Sweetgrass last year, I'm going to read Gathering Moss this year.

[Gina]

I have a few independent presses that I often look to for translated works (which can often include a few BIPOC authors), so I'll likely read one of those. Here are some of my favourite indie presses with some BIPOC-authored options from each:

Tilted Axis Press
So Distant From My Life by Monique Ilboudo
Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree (winner of the International Booker Prize last year)
I'll Go On by Hwang Jungeun

NYRB Classics
An African in Greenland by Tété-Michel Kpomassie
Woman Running in the Mountains by Yūko Tsushima
Notes of a Crocodile by Qiu Miaojin
Season of Migration to the North by Tayeb Salih

Europa Editions
All Your Children, Scattered by Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse
Farewell, My Orange by Kei Iwaki
Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami (She has several other books out with them.)

Archipelago Books
Dance on the Volcano by Marie Vieux-Chauvet
Cockroaches by Scholastique Mukasonga

And Other Stories
Mister N by Najwa Barakat
By Night the Mountain Burns by Juan Tomás Ávila Laurel

[Mandie]

Heather wrote: "Braiding Sweetgrass and Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer are independently published by Milkweed Editions...."

Yes! Milkweed is listed on the independent publishers link above.

I've read both of those, so I'm going to conquer World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments for this.

[Kim]

Elizabeth wrote: "I'll see how I'm feeling, but I'm planning on getting to Moon of the Crusted Snow in the next couple months and it would count. I'm also considering maybe one of the Akashic Noir bo..."

Oh, thanks for the reminder! I bought Haiti Noir during the pandemic and haven't gotten to it yet. Perfect!

[Betty]

I'm planning on reading Awakening

[Judith]

I've found this VERY long list of indie publishers, some of whom are quite well known.

http://www.indiepublishers.co.uk/inde...

I'm going to go with one from Peepal Tree Press, Motherland: And Other Stories by Wandeka Gayle.

[Heather]

Dione wrote: "Indie is hard, for me. This page might be helpful: https://sfrareview.org/2021/10/25/hid..."

I believe Tor is owned by McMillan, which is definitely not an indie publisher.

[Jenny]

I want to read one that's sapphic, if possible. I think Jade Winters' books are all indie published?

[Nina]

I just ordered “808s & Otherworlds” published by Two Dollar Radio. It also hits the #20 (Read a book of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author) https://twodollarradio.com/products/8...

[Jenny]

Just checked, and Rekekah Weatherspoon's Vampire Sorority Sisters series was indie published! I always try to go for LGBT+, especially sapphic, books for as many prompts as I can

[Tanu]

My recs; Flood Damages, Take Care. Dropbear

[Robin]

So after doing a little research on this one, I've chosen Her Body and Other Parties: Stories. The author is Latina, LGBT, and the book is published by Graywolf. Bonus: it also works as #21 Read a book of short stories.

[Caitlin]

https://a.co/d/gLJVCtF
My friend Breanna Gellings published her first book on Amazon.

[Jessica]

I'm reading an ARC of Linghun by Ai Jiang through Dark Matter Ink that will count! It'll also count for social horror and books with under 500 Goodreads ratings. It comes out in April for general pub!

[Sara]

Is Levine Querido an independent publisher? I want to read A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger.

[Megan]

I just started reading The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia, and then I realized it would work for this prompt! (It also works for several of the other prompts, but I will probably count it for this one, since I have other ideas for those.)

[Mia]

I'll be reading That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon! It was on bookriot's cozy fantasy list, and I just knew I had to read it when I saw the fantastic title

[Megan]

Sara wrote: "Is Levine Querido an independent publisher? I want to read A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger."

According to their website, Levine Querido is indeed an indie publisher: https://www.levinequerido.com/

[Jason]

I'm going to listen to Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, which also counts for Challenge #7.

[Ron]

Jason wrote: "I'm going to listen to Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, which also counts for Challenge #7."

Oh this is great, I'll add it to my list. I've been having a hard time with this prompt.

[Evilblacksheep]

Somebody mentionned another book by the same author just a few posts ago so I guess I'll be going with In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado. It might fit other categories too.

Edit : After checking, the audiobook is read by the author so I guess it fits prompt #7

[Carole]

I read Drag Me Up by R. M. Virtues for this task.

So I don’t read book reviews before I start reading. I don’t want any spoilers. Looking through the list for the reading challenge I found a book that is a modern retelling of the Greek mythological story about Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld, and Hades, the King of the Underworld. So in the Ancient Greek mythology Hades abducted Persephone and took her to his kingdom in the underworld. Demeter, her mother and the Goddess of the Harvest, was so devastated she neglected her crops until everything started dying. Hades agreed to allow Persephone to return to Earth six months every year, it’s why we have seasons. So I am expecting something along those lines with this book. What I got quickly devolved into something resembling The Hustler Magazine fan fiction. I did not see that coming. 🫣. I will finish this book, but then probably take a very hot shower and then watch videos of puppies and kittens and laughing babies the rest of the day. Might need to smudge my brain with burnt sage.

[Sherri]

I read White Tears/Brown Scars: How White Feminism Betrays Women of Color

[Stina]

I read Moses: The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman by Balogun Ojetade. Harriet Tubman being her usual badass self and going up against all kinds of monsters.

[Briana]

Before this prompt, I took "independently published" to mean self published, not through an indie publisher. I'm going to try to stick to that vein of thought and try to scour some of my writing groups or author newsletters to find some authors going that route. I get emails from Nana Malone and I think she publishes a lot of her books on her own.

I ended up reading Mimi Grace's Make a Scene when I found it at my library. I felt like that wasn't 100% in the spirit of how I saw the prompt (buying a book from an indie author) so I ended up buying the second book in the series, What a Match, since it wasn't available at the library, so that's the one I'm officially counting. I liked both and I'm excited for the third!

[Tammy]

Briana wrote: "Before this prompt, I took "independently published" to mean self published, not through an indie publisher. I'm going to try to stick to that vein of thought and try to scour some of my writing gr..."

I'm currently reading a self-published book I may count for this: A Wealth of Family: An Adopted Son's International Quest for Heritage, Reunion, and Enrichment. I may also read The Seed Keeper: A Novel (Milkweed Editions) or She Would Be King (Graywolf Press).

[Heather]

Bonnie G. wrote: "Is Graywolf Press considered indy? It is nonprofit. I read a ton from them and Black and Indigenous writers are very well represented."

As far as I can tell, Greywolf is indie... I looked into them a bit while reading "Post-colonial love poem,"

[Heather]

Heather wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Is Graywolf Press considered indy? It is nonprofit. I read a ton from them and Black and Indigenous writers are very well represented."

As far as I can tell, Greywolf is indie......"

Yep! This is from their mission statement on their website:
"Graywolf Press is a leading independent publisher committed to the discovery and energetic publication of twenty-first century American and international literature."

[Elizabeth]

Elizabeth wrote: "I'll see how I'm feeling, but I'm planning on getting to Moon of the Crusted Snow in the next couple months and it would count. I'm also considering maybe one of the Akashic Noir bo..."

I'm still thinking I may do some of these books this year (and Moon of the Crusted Snow is near the top of my TBR right now), but I ended up reading Wash Day Diaries by Jamila Rowser and Robyn Smith. It was published by Chronicle Books and it was excellent.

[Kelly]

I wanted to mention some independent publishers I didn't see on here! I'm big into horror, so I'm reading After the People Lights Have Gone Off by Stephen Graham Jones, which is published by Dark House Press. Dark House Press is an imprint of Curbside Splendor: http://www.curbsidesplendor.com/, which is another great place to look for books for this challenge.

I also highly suggest Haymarket Books: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books - they're a leftist publisher so they have lots of great works by BIPOC authors.

I think I saw someone mention Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado on this thread. I'm reading that one for local author (go Philadelphia!) and I'm very excited about it, as I LOVE her comic The Low, Low Wood. However, personally I don't feel it counts for this prompt because to my knowledge, the author isn't black or indigenous.