Black Chick Lit

Latest Episodes:

BCL Chat: Tell Us Your Book Shame May 31, 2017

Show notes

It’s confession time: We asked you what book you should have read but haven’t yet. The majority of you all said The Underground Railroad.

But there were more titles. So many more titles. Tune in to hear what else y’all said you need to read on the latest bonus episode of Black Chick Lit.

Thanks to @LocPressedBooks, @BangBangBooks, @Everywoman98, @IamTammiJ, @_Jayla_Rodgers, @MochaGirlReads, @fairlyliterary and @Author_DLWhite.

Got a topic you want us to discuss? Follow us on @blackchicklit and tweet us up!

Join us for the next regular episode when we discuss Beloved, by Toni Morrison.

Episode 11: “The Hate U Give” May 17, 2017

Show notes

This is it: Mollie and Dani finally dig into YA. We read the hottest new release in the book world’s hottest genre: The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas.

We loved this novel inspired by the “Black Lives Matter” movement. We’re still not sure how we feel about YA, though. So many teenagers. Get ready as we discuss Tumblr, Tupac and whether or not ’00s kids care about ’90s R&B.

BCL Chat: What Was Your First Book Love? May 05, 2017

Show notes

If anyone asks, we delayed this episode because we knew you’d need something to get you through the travesty that was the ChumpCare vote today.

You’re welcome.

In this episode of the podcast, we wanted to know your first book. What made you the type of person to listen to two strangers talk books on the Internet?

We share rate your responses, make enemies with cab drivers and (somehow) share our first period stories. Trust us, it makes sense in context.

Thanks to @charelliam, @whoaskedash, @havuqtefinished, @prettyjoyful08, @unicorninkk, @MonaFeesa, @LocPressedBooks and @diancalondon for their contributions!

Got a topic you want us to discuss? Follow us on @blackchicklit and tweet us up!

Join us for the next regular episode when we discuss The Hate You Give, by Angie Thomas.

Episode 10: “An Extraordinary Union” Apr 13, 2017

Show notes

This episode, we switch genres and talk love, sex and awkward adjectives as we discuss Alyssa Cole’s new release, An Extraordinary Union.

Mollie decides that romance just has too many emotions for her liking while Dani shares her four requirements for a satisfying romance. Listen in and share your thoughts by tweeting us at @blackchicklit.

Links

Books Mentioned in the Episode

Diary of an Ugly Duckling, by Karyn Langhorne
Breathless, by Beverly Jenkins
Exit West, by Mohsin Hamid
Hannah Mary Tabbs and the Disembodied Torso: A Tale of Race, Sex, and Violence in America, by Kali Nicole Gross

BCL Chat: What’s Up with Whitewashed Book Covers? Apr 05, 2017

Show notes

We’re back for another bonus episode. This week, we asked you all to share your experiences — either as a reader or a writer — with whitewashed book covers. We shared your responses and talked over some recent ones that have occurred in books and film. Join us for the discussion.

Thanks to @LocPressedBooks and @diancalondon for their awesome replies.

Got a topic you want us to discuss? Follow us on @blackchicklit and tweet us up!

Episode 9: “Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation” Mar 29, 2017

Show notes

We read the recently released Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, by Octavia Butler, Damian Duffy and James Jennings. Mollie (finally!) gets the opportunity to school us all on what defines a graphic novel while Dani drinks in the background. Listen in and share your thoughts by tweeting us at @blackchicklit.

Links:

‘Kindred’ Artist John Jennings Talks About Adapting Octavia Butler in Comic Form, by Noah Berlatsky
How John Jennings and Damian Duffy Transformed Octavia Butler’s Kindred into the Most Powerful Graphic Novel of the Year, by Brigid Alverson
The Joy (And Fear) Of Making ‘Kindred’ Into A Graphic Novel, by Tanya Ballard Brown

Books mentioned in this episode:

Exit West, by Mohshin Hamid
Daughters of a Nation: A Black Suffragette Historical Romance Anthology, by Alyssa Cole, Lena Hart, Piper Huguley and Kianna Alexander
The Shining, by Stephen King

BCL Chat: What Book Must Every Black Woman Read? Mar 22, 2017

Show notes

School, work, birthdays. Life hit us hard, y’all. Octavia Butler’s Kindred is next on our schedule and we’re recording this week. To make up for the loooonnnnnnng delay, we’ve got our first-ever bonus episode! Earlier this month, we asked you what books should every black woman read.

We want to hear from you! What book should every black woman read? #BCLchat

— Black Chick Lit (@blackchicklit) March 2, 2017

Join us for a messy, wine-inspired episode where we discuss the titles you said were required reading for all black women. Thanks to Twitter users @IamTammiJ, @amariescully, @LocPressedBooks, @dr_1908 and @createandwrite for contributing.

Got a topic you want us to discuss? Follow us on @blackchicklit and tweet us up!

Episode 8: “Binti” and “Binti: Home” Feb 22, 2017

Show notes

This episode is a two-for-one special. We read both Nnedi Okorafor’s Binti and Binti: Home.Listen in for a discussion about diversity in sci-fi, the power of lotion and Steven Universe. We promise it all makes sense in context.

Got a book you think we should check out? Tweet us at @blackchicklit. Also, be sure to rate, review and subscribe on iTunes.

Links:

“On that Rabid Puppies thing and my Hugo Award-winning novella Binti,” Nnedi’s Wahala Zone Blog
“The Pixar Theory of Labor,” theawl.com

Books mentioned in this episode:

The Case Against Sugar, by Gary Taubes
Forbidden, by Beverly Jenkins

Episode 7: “There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé” Feb 01, 2017

Show notes

Did you know only 6.7 percent of Americans have read poetry in the past 12 months? We’ve joined these exclusive few and sit down to discuss Morgan Parker’s There Are More Beautiful Things Than Beyoncé.

It moved us, y’all. So much so, that we’ve declared that this year’s going to be “blacker than ever.”

Got a book you think we should check out? Tweet us at @blackchicklit. Also, be sure to rate, review and subscribe on iTunes.

Links:

“Poetry is going extinct, government data show,” The Washington Post
“The Poetry-Free Inauguration Makes a Comeback,” The Atlantic
Carrie Mae Weems, The Kitchen Table Series

Books mentioned in this episode:

White Teeth by Zadie Smith
Swing Time by Zadie Smith
The Case Against Sugar by Gary Taubes

Episode 6: “This Could Be Us But You Playin'” Jan 18, 2017

Show notes

We kicked off 2017 by diving right into genre fic. Specifically, urban fiction. We read This could Be Us But You Playin‘ by Cachet. Mollie lays out the plot, Danielle remains bougie and bitter, and in the end, we take up that age-old debate of art vs. commerce. All in all, not a bad way to wrap up this book.

Have you read This Could Be Us But You Playin’ or another urban fic title? Want to contribute to the debate? Got a book you think we should check out? Tweet us at @blackchicklit.

Links: