This week, we review Ours by Phillip B. Williams, whose voice "soars across each page, breathing life into his dazzling array of characters" in a fabulist historical novel; and The Secret History of Black Punk by Raeghan Buchanan, "a joyful and passionate exploration of the under-recognized contributions of Black people in music history, particularly punk music and its legacy genres"; plus, Universal Guide to the Night Sky, which showcases Lisa Harvey-Smith's enthusiastic presentation "of the awe-inspiring features of the cosmos in a casual, conversational style" with playful, colorful illustrations by Sophie Beer. And so many more!
In The Writer's Life, children's book authors Lesa Cline-Ransome and Breanna J. McDaniel chat about the power of Black librarians, love as a form of protest, and how wonderful it is to write about their heroes.