A lot has changed in the world, since I planned this post. If you’re looking for a reading list to help you educate yourself in systemic racism and what it means to be an ally, you will find a link at the bottom of the post.
Another month gone by and some more books have been re-read or newly read! As a child I used to be an avid reader. All I would do is read: read while eating, read instead of sleeping, even a couple of times read while walking! Then I did my undergrad in English. So much reading, and none for pleasure. It’s taken me years to get back to reading even a book a month, let along three! Yes, two of those books this month were re-reads. However, unlike Potter fans, I haven’t actually re-read the HP series since my late teens/early twenties. I definitely re-read my favourites several times as a child.
Reading the Harry Potter series as an adult has been interesting. I essentially know what’s going to happen, nothing is a surprise. Yet I’m reading with fresh eyes and an adult perspective. I definitely urge you to do this if you haven’t. It may be hard getting into the books again if you aren’t like those fans who have re-read the books to death. But if you stick through, I promise you’ll see the adult characters in a whole new way.
I also finished reading the first book in the Witcher series. I devoured season one when it was released on Netflix, without any prior knowledge of what this world entailed. To be honest, I actually couldn’t decide if the show was a joke or serious, even as far as episode 3 or 4. I still can’t decide if the show was overall good or not — I will be the first to admit that I watch a lot of trash. Not reality TV type of trash; just shows that probably had a good plot idea but the execution of the story or the acting did to not come together.
Once I finished the show, I wanted to know more and was excited that there were several books to read. I put both the physical copy and the ebook on hold at the library. Well, it took me 5 months to get the e-book copy (due to the number of copies available and the number of people who had put it on hold before me), but it certainly arrived at a good time. The physical copy would have arrived roughly the same time, and I would have preferred to read the tactile book, but the library closed on March 13th (due to COVID-19).
The first book didn’t cover all of Season 1 of the Netflix show, however, I would say about half of the season was covered. It definitely helped me remember each episode better. I’m going to re-watch the series, especially since Roman got tired and went to bed while I binged the entire season in hours. I feel like the show was better simply because you’re better able to visualize the world, which was difficult for me to do while reading. The world is so vast and it was hard for me to keep track of places — I don’t often read fantasy epics. If you’re planning on reading this series, you might want to take a look at this reading order.
The world is waking up to their willful ignorance to the plight of the Black community. I will be spending June doing a lot of reading to better understand how I, a WOC have participated in systems of oppression. If you’re looking for reading materials, there’s a list compiled by the Toronto Public Library here. I look forward to sharing my June Monthly Reads in a month.