We’re close to halfway on the official clock and I’ve been absolutely heart eyes emoji about the online #24in48 community today. Between Instagram, Litsy, Twitter, Facebook, and Booktube, you guys are really making this weekend a team sport. I love how inclusive and supportive everyone is and I am here for it. Keep going, guys, you’re doing great!
One of the best ways that the online readathon community works is by exposing your fellow 24in48-ers to books that they may not otherwise have heard of or thought they’d be interested in. Personally, I recommend using readathon to check out diverse titles and authors. We Need Diverse Books in particular is an organization that advocates for changes in the children’s publishing industry in order to promote and encourage greater diversity of authors, characters, and subject matter. Diverse books normalize, empower, and make visible people who otherwise feel invisible or forgotten.
If you’re not familiar with it, #ownvoices describes books written by authors that identify with the same marginalized group as the protagonists that they’re writing. This could include authors that identify as and are writing characters that are POCs, disabled, LGBTQ+, non-cisgender, etc.
The intention is two-fold: 1) reading #ownvoices books sends a message to the publishing community (which is traditionally, white, able-bodied, straight, and cisgender) that these books have audiences and encourage them to publish more of them, and 2) reading about characters from marginalized groups expands your own awareness of diversity and empathy, something I think we can all benefit from.
So for this hour’s challenge, I want you to recommend books by diverse/#ownvoices authors. Either leave a comment with your recommendations or take a photo of some of your favorite diverse books and drop the link/image in the comments. Give your fellow readers some suggestions for diverse books, and think about adding #ownvoices books to your TBR stack for the rest of the ‘thon.
Here’s a stack of our favorite diverse titles that would be perfect for readathoning:
You have until Hour 24 to enter this diversity challenge. And now to announce prize winners for the Hour 12 roadtrip challenge.
Veronica Éles (@vveronica96 on Twitter)
Jess (b-ookaddict.tumblr.com)
Austin R. (@aerobins13 on Litsy)
Stephanie (@realbooks4ever on Litsy)
Karina (@karina.reads on Litsy)
Julie (@den_siste_heksa on Instagram)
Michelle Sorensen (@hikingnugg on Twitter)
Allison Ivy (@msallisonivy on Twitter)
Michelle B. (@coffeecatsbooks on Litsy)
Britain Callen (@callemarie @ Litsy)
Head over to the Prize page and pick your poison in the form. And don’t forget you have six hours left to enter the Intro Challenge from Hour Zero.
24in48 Readathon 
I’d reccomend- A star touched queen, Of Fire and Stars, More Happy than Not and the Hate you give
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I consider myself a #DiverseBookBlogger, I love to share diverse books, specially own voices stories because it’s important for everyone to see themselves represented in literature.
This is why since December 2016, I’ve dedicated myself to reviewing diverse books on my blog and to sharing diverse stories on an instagram feature account (which currently has over 1,400 followers!)
For those who would like to see recommendations, check out instagram.com/diversityreads ! 😄📚
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Some diverse recommendations from recent reads are;
1) The Love Interest (Gay MC)
2) Every Heart a Doorway (Ace MC)
3) The Education of Margot Sanchez (Puerto Rican rep)
4) Saints and Misfits (Muslim rep)
5) Queens of Geek (Anxiety, Bisexual rep)
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All of my challenge books I’ve read today have been #ownvoices and awesome! This Side of Home by Renee Watson (she is a new favorite – her latest book Piecing Me Together is also awesome), Patina by Jason Reynolds (sequel to last year’s Ghost, which is also awesome), and I just started The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco. I’m also listening to More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera on audio while I do laundry. 🙂 I would recommend any of these!
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I actually just read Dumplin by Julie Murphy and When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon, which I believe are both #ownvoices, and they were absolutely AMAZING! Highly recommend. 🙂
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I agree with the March series. Also, I just read The Hate U Give and I think it should be mandatory reading for everyone. It’s so powerful.
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I recommend The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas! #ownvoice about the Black Lives Matter movement.
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I read Good Peoples by Marcus Major when is first came out in 2001. It has still stuck with me. Maybe also because it was the first raunchy sexy book I read!! 🤗
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My favorites hands down are It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini and Under Rose Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall! They are both books that delve into mental illness and they are both such IMPORTANT reads! They are also both own voices novels!
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The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon is amazing. I’m looking forward to reading Benjamin Aliri Sáenz’s books this readathon too!
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just realized something was weird with my wordpress account — it should be linking to my readathon blog, not some blog i apparently started when i was 17…
hopefully i fixed it now?
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I recommend The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas.
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Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech – AMAZING AMAZING story, Native Americans, woman protagonist, and a TWIST!
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Carry On by Rainbow Rowell and I’ll Give you the Sun by Jandy Nelson are my absolute favourites! But The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, Aristoteles and Dante discover the secrets of the universe, Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin, and the Song of Achilles are also a few of all the amazing diverse books out there 😀
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If you haven’t yet, I strongly recommend the YA title Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz 🙂
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I definitely need more exposure to own voices books so I can’t wait to read these comments. But the ones that come to my mind are THUG, More Happy Than Not, and Orangeboy. I will try to get a picture up on a little bit!
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I will recommend The Hate U Give until I am blue in the face. So important right now.
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The best book I can think of is American Born Chinese, a graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang about a second-generation Chinese-American boy and his struggle between his American and Chinese identities.
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I loved written in the stars by Aisha Saeed. It was well written but emotionally draining to read at the same time.
The hate u give was also another book I read this year that I highly recommend. And although I haven’t read it yet, Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi is supposedly an amazing read.
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My top recommendations are anything Adam Silvera or Benjamin Alive Saenz! And THUG by Angie Thomas!
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Here’s a small group of my favorite diverse authors: Roxane Gay, Isabel Allende, Joyce Carol Oates, Shonda Rhimes, Margaret George, Sherman Alexie and more! https://twitter.com/thealexklein/status/888884158055034883
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I really love Ari and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe! Have already read it multiple times and will probably read it again this week 🙂
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I loved this one too, and the audiobook is narrated by Lim Manuel and it is outstanding!!!!!
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I’m trying to read more authors of color and a lot of these are on my TBR: Between the World and Me, The Fire This Time, The Underground Railroad, Salvage the Bones, Behold the Dreamers, Things Fall Apart, The Hate U Give, The Warmth of Other Suns, The God of Small Things, The Wangs vs. The World, The Association of Small Bombs, What We Lose, No One is Coming to Save Us … I’m also really looking forward to Stay with Me by Ayobami Adebayo, which comes out next month.
I just read The Fire Next Time and it gives you a lot to think about, especially considering it was written in 1963 and is still so relevant. Anything by Roxane Gay is outstanding. Homegoing is excellent. I’m also currently reading Freedom in Exile, the autobiography of the Dalai Lama.
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I would suggest “Brother, I’m Dying” by Edwidge Dandicat. I relate to it a bit being 1st generation and having lived in Nigeria for a while during my childhood. But of course I do not relate fully because it is not my story.
For Westerners I believe it opens a door to understanding what it’s like for families who have to leave their home for a better life.
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I’d recommend Chasing Destiny by Eric Jerome Dickey .
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I haven’t read this yet, but a fiend recommended it:
Queer there and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World
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Magnus Chase by Rick Riordan. Carry on by Rainbow Rowell. Nimona by Noelle Stevenson. Honestly all three some of my all time favorite books.
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The Hate U Give has been my Best Read of 2017…so far. I’d also recommend More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera, Does My Head Look Big in This by Randa Abdel-Fattah, Braced by Alyson Gerber, The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon, and El Deafo by Cece Bell.
I’m so glad you decided to do this for a challenge. I’m always looking for more #ownvoices recommendations!
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I was raised in an extremely religious house. Associating with people outside our religion was discouraged. TV shows, movies, and books that portrayed the lives of “bad” people were looked down upon. Now I know why. Books change your perception of the world. More than anything else, reading about people who are unlike me, who are living a different experience, has made me a more understanding, empathetic person. Reading has made me a better person than religion ever did.
Just a few of the books that changed my brain: Between the World and Me, Middlesex, Tell the Wolves I’m Home, An Untamed Heart, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, The Argonauts.
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I recommend Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics by Bell Hooks which highlights the problems in feminism when it stems from white supremacy and focuses on informing about the class differences between African American and whites.
Also, My Voice by Poetry Translation Centre which includes translations of poems from cultures rarely translated. The poets are unknown in Western countries regardless of their great talent for poetry.
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I enjoy diverse books and cannot believe I did not know about #ownvoices. The Color Purple is great & even better on audio. Few authors are effective narrators. Alice Walker defies that stereotype…among others. A MUST read. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11486.The_Color_Purple?from_search=true
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As far as comics go, I would recommend the new Ms. Marvel as a great #ownvoice read. Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel) and the writer G. Willow Wilson are Muslim and from New Jersey. I should really broaden my horizons in this category, so I appreciate the suggestions! I’ll have to read The Hate U Give when the library has it in stock.
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The three #ownvoices books I’ve read (and loved) so far this year are:
Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
American Street by Ibi Zoboi
Looking forward to reading through everyone’s comments after the readathon to find some new recommendations!
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Among the many wonderful diverse/own voices books I’ve read this year, Tears We Cannot Stop by Michael Eric Dyson is probably the one I find myself recommending the most . ❤️
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Loved Americanah by Chimamanda Ngosi Adichie and Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward.
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I’m currently reading Me, My Hair, and I which is by 27 diverse female authors discussing how their hair matters politically, personally, religiously, and everything in between. It’s fascinating gaining so many new perspectives!!
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These aren’t super recent, but they are both AMAZING novels: The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu and Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward.
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Also! Some great diverse voice books – Challenger Deep, Trini, I’ll Meet You There, Crash Boom, Bang, and Under the Mesquite.
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I recommend Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson, She Wore Red Trainers by Na’ima B. Robert, History is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera, and the Inheritance Trilogy by N. K. Jemisin.
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https://www.instagram.com/p/BW3ZPIuAcoA/?taken-by=the_hero_of_books
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So many great ideas in this thread! Here’s my image entry as I just started WHEN DIMPLE MET RISHI when you guys posted this. https://instagram.com/p/BW3ZfkkBpRq/
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LOVE Iron Cast by Destiny Soria and Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor
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I am thrilled with this challenge! I am very proud to own a few amazing books from African writers. The #ownvoices movement is powerful and so thank you for doing this. Below is my shelf of books I own that I recommend.
HardcoverHearts’s post on Litsy
http://litsy.com/p/YkZHRkttSkxV
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My personal favorites include: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, The Vegetarian by Han Kang, Half of a Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (whose TED talk The Danger of a Single Story is a MUST WATCH RIGHT NOW!!!!), Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson, The Grass Dancer by Susan Power, Tonto and the Lone Ranger Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie, and The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros.
ANYTHING and EVERYTHING by Nnedi Okorafor and NK Jemisin and Louise Erdrich
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inwhichHeikereadsharder’s post on Litsy http://litsy.com/p/NkUzS2ZVa2FZ
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I recommend I Was Told to Come Alone by Souad Mekhennet and Letters to a Young Muslim by Omar Saif Ghobash. There is so much fear and hatred in our world targeting Muslims and until we understand one another more fully, this will continue and will worsen. These two books are a great exploration of Islam in current times, including an exploration of radicalism and how Islam can be utilized in a peaceful way.
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Here’s Jacky’s post on tumblr:
http://jacky-the-bibliophile.tumblr.com/post/163303464102/update-10-diverse-books-recommendation-here
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For me, books about mental illness are the ones that speak to me most personally. Some I would recommend and some I have on my TBR:
The Bell Jar
Girl, Interrupted
Fangirl
Silver Linings Playbook
The Man Who Couldn’t Stop
Made You Up
http://litsy.com/p/NG1JOVM2SEhm
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I chose Kindred, Homegoing, The Underground Railroad and All American Boys. http://litsy.com/p/eXoxODZXZENI
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Some of my favourites are Binti, Obasan, Secret Daughter, Birdie and Kiss of the Fur Queen
@brilliantglow on Litsy: http://litsy.com/p/TWh0eDRo
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I have a couple of diverse books on my stack for this readathon. I started this one earlier today on audio.
http://litsy.com/p/MmR5SkJpdDcy
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I am completely uneducated in terms of diverse reads 😦 I just posted a photo to Instagram, pleading for my followers to recommend any and all diverse books they can think of! I did list 5 that I’ve found on my own, ones that have come up frequently for Diversity Bingo 2017, ones that I really want to read and are high up on my TBR list … but as far as actually having read any yet, I’m ashamed to say I haven’t 😦 In a little fairness to me, I just got back into reading a year ago, and my goal then was to just READ, no matter what kind of books they were. It wasn’t until a couple months ago that I started really diving into this topic, researching as much as I could. Anyways, here’s the link to my post:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BW3Z4r-jZ4W/
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