Latinos Don't Fall in Love, Asians Don't Tell Jokes

Catchy title eh? We also don't have friendship or sibling drama. No instead people of color live intense lives of prejudice, drugs, alcoholism, abuse (but not mental illness because for some reason no one wants to talk about that particular topic. humph). We never have any fun. There are no wealthy people of color, and there are no people of color who happen to be middle class.

I'm so freakin tired of that message that is constantly echoed over and over again in YA contemporary. I can understand the appeal of fantasy, especially the lighter aspects of paranormals. Sometimes it's nice to just curl up with a good book that's FUN. What a novel concept. I've been blogging for about a year and a half and I'm never able to post about my favorite love stories that feature people of color because at most I can think of about ten (well ten that I think are of good quality). I want to post my top ten favorite YA romances but there aren't enough to choose from. Although I would be happy to be proven wrong.

Don't even get me started on the large number of YA contemporary romances that are published (probably ten a week!). I've said it before but I'll say it again, I don't like comparing books written about Native Americans/Latinos/Asians/Black people to books written about white people but where are our Gossip Girls? Who is our Sarah Dessen (no offense to Sarah Dessen but I've read three of her books and I don't recall any of the characters being from different cultural backgrounds)?

Honestly though, about half of this post isn't really about me. Yes I've always mourned the lack of funny YA books about poc, but I never would have noticed how few YA romances there were about poc if my younger sister hadn't pointed this fact out to me a little while ago. She loves to read and I'm always giving her books I receive that I don't have time to read right away. but she ALWAYS asks me if I have any romance YA books for her and the answer 99% of the time is no. Which is really upsetting to me. My sister loves to read, but in the genre she loves most, she can never read about a Blatina like her finding love. I don't normally curse but that infuriates me, WTF. She loves the Perfect Chemistry series. A biracial romance between a Latino and a white girl. I loved it too. The first romance book we've ever talked about. I gave her If You Come Softly, another biracial romance, she really liked it but wanted less of a sad ending. I gave her A Wish After Midnight, she needed more romance (and here I was just hoping she'd learn something ;) Other was pretty good, paranormal with some romance, but again, romance wasn't the main factor same with Silver Phoenix. Perfect Shot also hit the nail on the head, quick read and very cute. She adored the book. But she's still waiting for her Black/Latina Sarah Dessen. Obviously each writer has their own style and so she will (thank goodness) never find a carbon copy of Sarah Dessen. But there has to be an unpublished (or even published) writer out there whose writing smart, funny romances for girls like my sister. Sarah Dessen writes more than romances, her characters are nuanced and they go through some hard times but the hard times are a little easier for her, a middle class girl to relate to, than say the hard times a working class guy faces over whether or not to deal drugs because of the need for money. She swoons over plenty of guy characters in books (too much so for my liking) but is it selfish of me to hope that one day she will excitedly tell me about this really cute Black guy she fell in love with through a book and hey he didn't fall in love with a white girl (because while I'm all for interracial relationships it can be a blow to continuously see in real life and in books, guys only going for girls of the same race and/or body type)? Speaking of interracial relationships, can anyone think of a YA book where the guy is white and the girl is Black? Hmm.

By that same token, why are interracial (interracial meaning Black-white or Asian-white) relationships the main focus in YA books? I NEED more intercultural relationships a la Girl Overboard (Asian-Latino, well a sort-of relationship) or even Wait For Me (Asian-Latino) or even same cultural relationships. It's as if writers are afraid to now only write Asian-Asian relationships for fear of backlash saying that Asians don't only have to love Asians. Obviously that's true, but it's also realistic, that many Asians still fall in love with other Asians (and please realize you could replace Asian with any other ethnic group). Personally I'm still waiting for my Black-Latino/a relationship (Bleeding Violet satisfies me on that end because it's completely awesome but it didn't satisfy my sister on the romance. However it's the probably the only book besides Silver Phoenix that she didn't care as much about the romance). But I'm also tired of the biracial relationships between a white person and Black person being so controversial. I get why it's such a tough issue when it's a white person and another culture, but I think Black-White relationships have been talked about enough on TV that we should all be able to move. Feature the relationships, but race shouldn't be a huge issue anymore. There will of course still be subtle incidents, but it shouldn't be the main focus, in my opinion. Bicultural relationships should be explored too; there are tensions between Blacks and Latinos, there are even intercultural tensions because many cultures value light skin over dark skin. People have been forbidden to date based on the SHADE of skin color. Yea how many times does that come up in YA? Doesn't need to be mentioned a lot, but it's an issue many teens of color may have to face, that should be reflected in books written for us.

And how about the humor? I L-O-V-E sarcastic/snarky main characters. Maybe authors don't want to perpetuate stereotypes that Blacks and Latinas are sassy, but y'know what, I think our people are funny. You have to develop a sense of humor to deal with all the extra stupidity we get. Luckily Mitali Perkins compiled a list of funny books featuring multicultural protagonists, and I definitely recommend Whale Talk, The Absolutely True-Diary of a Part Time Indian, Does My Head Look Big in This? and the Making of Dr. Truelove. But even Mitali's list is rather paltry, I believe there's only 19 books on the YA part and 16 for MG (on that side I definitely recommend Operation Redwood, 8th Grade Superzero and Watsons Go to Birmingham). Not to be greedy, but I need some more. When you compare the number of humorous titles about white people to the humorous titles about poc OVER TIME the numbers of deplorable. My brother and I both have a really good sense of humor and I 100% believe my brother doesn't read a lot of books about poc is because they aren't funny enough for him. He needs a slightly modified poc version of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Publishers before you say no to yet ANOTHER chick lit (and not to get off topic but I have some thoughts on all things Jane Austen but that's for another post) with lots of romance, friendship and family dramas or a book with a snarky main character, re-consider saying no, if the main characters are protagonists of color, give that book a chance. Trust me, there are at least three kids in my household who want to read them.

I'm starting Daughter of Xanadu which sounds promising because I could use some good historical fiction and hey, it has romance. As for my sister, I'm giving her Jazz in Love and Fury of the Phoenix to read next. I think she'll really like them both.

Romance (might be a little, might be a lot, there's not enough to choose from to really distinguish)

His Own Where by June Jordan

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson

Perfect Chemstry series by Simone Elkeles

Jazz in Love by Neesha Meminger

Wait for Me by An Na

The Agency series by Y.S. Lee

Silver Phoenix series by Cindy Pon

Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier

When the Stars Go Blue by Caridad Ferrer (my #1 favorite romance, regardless of race)

Billi SanGreal series by Sarwat Chadda

Secret Keeper by Mitali Perkins (if this book doesn't break your heart....)

Mismatch by Lensey Namioka

Perfect Shot by Debbie Riguad

Girl vs. Boy by Yvette Collins & Sally Rideout

Other by Karen Kincy

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves

She's So Money by Cherry Cheva

Duplikate by Cherry Cheva

Hotlanta series

It Chicks series

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger

Jason & Kyra by Dana Davidson

Toads & Diamonds by Heather Tomlinson

A Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame by Brenda Woods

Daughter of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang

Belle by Beverly Jenkins

Subway Girl by P.J. Converse (the only romance book I've ever been beyond excited for the release)

Please help me add on to this list. I want to have at least 30 books on here so I can eventually read them all and by the time Valentine's Day rolls around next year, I can list my top ten favorites.

PS Now that I'm done rambling, read the much more eloquent Neesha Meminger express what I tried to say.

PPSS Am I the only who always wondered why the S.A.S.S. series never had a book set in Africa or South America?

The Bis and the Mixies and the What Are Yous?

The following post is not really book-related, more race related so if you hate those kind of discussions, stop reading after my next sentence. There will be a return to bookish posts tomorrow. Stop reading. Still here? Yay! Be warned this post is full of abstract thoughts, ramblings and BUTs.

It would seem the universe is trying to tell me something. First I read the Latte Rebellion (I definitely recommend you read it!) which is all about mixed race kids, bicultural kids, multiracial, whatever you want to call us 'mutts' (which I say out of complete love). Then I'm in school working on an online college profile. My counselor wrote my ethnicity down as Latino. Which is a first because once people see me they automatically assume I'm Black (unless they themselves are Black and then they usually ask me what I'm 'mixed with'. I used to wonder how they knew and when I was in 8th grade or so someone explained to me it was because of my hair...), but if they just hear my last name they automatically assume I'm Latino. But then again, I'm not so sure my counselor had ever seen me before...Regardless I wanted to change the profile to reflect my bicultural status, especially since this was profile was used to find scholarship matches. But I couldn't. The application would not allow me to list more than one ethnicity, so I ended up picking 'multiracial'. But here's the thing I'm not multiracial. To me being multiracial is different from being bicultural. Multiracial=many races. For ex: someone like the main character in The Latte Rebellion who is half Indian, and a quarter Spanish and Irish. However her best friend Carey is half Chinese, half European/Caucasian/white. To me Carey would not be multiracial, she would be bi cultural. BUT she's also multicultural because I'm sure her European side is made up of every single European country (ok I'm slightly exaggerating but you know what I mean). Bicultural is what I am, made up of two cultures. Black and Latina. A Blatina. I asked my college counselor why I couldn't put two ethnic groups down and she said multiracial was the same thing. But it's not. And perhaps this is the dilemma multiracial kids face because by checking such a broad term, we do not get to acknowledge each side of our cultural heritages. I want the world to know that I'm Black and Panamanian because I'm still trying to reconcile both cultures and being able to show them both would make me happy. What's worse is that no multiracial scholarships popped up! So I'm going to have to change my ethnicity to Latino, write down all the scholarships listed and then switch to Black and write down all those scholarships.

THEN after the college incident, I was directed to the New York Times article, More Young Americans Identify as Mixed Race. This article gave me some good food for thought but this and a conversation on Twitter have left me thoroughly confused. Thus I wrote this blog post to try and write out my thoughts AND to get feedback. I'm even using bulletpoints to make it easier for myself (and others). Any thoughts you could give me/personal anecdotes would be greatly appreciated.

• Is Asian a race? I used to always think multiracial would be Asian, Black and white. But now I think multiracial could also mean Asian, Latino and Black. But Latino is not a race, it's an umbrella term for a culture. Hence the reason as to why I'm not BIRACIAL, I'm BICULTURAL. BUT biracial (I thought) only applies to half-Black, half-white? Someone who is half Asian, half white is usually not referred to as biracial, right? See how confusing it gets?

• Why don't people understand that multicultural does not just mean people of color? Multicultural means someone who has more than two cultural heritages. So you can be Irish, English and German and call yourself multicultural. Seriously I wouldn't care and other people shouldn't either.

• By that same token though, don't be one of those people who on cultural heritage days lists: "10% Irish, 2% Scottish, 50% German, 1% Cherokee, 10% Greek" etc. I HATE that. When you are less than 10% just stop. Unless you actively celebrate that culture.

• Why are people so quick to try and say that they are 3% Black and 5% Native American? Unless you've faced prejudice because of that, I really don't wanna hear it. One time one of my white friends came up to me all excited because she found out she was one eighth Black and Native American (I forgot the tribe). I just looked at her. She was never going to face prejudice because of that fact so I found it hard to get excited with her. BUT there's the 'one drop' rule too. See what a mess this is?
• Not to be stereotypical but anyone ever notice how Southern Black people always claim to be Native American (usually Cherokee)? I say this out of love because my mom is from the Sot uh (but she's never seriously made that claim, only as a joke).

• Am I one of the only people who see myself as bicultural? I've never really heard anyone else you that term but that's what my parents always say :)

Some days, I feel more Black than Latina (which is most of the time but I'm working on that). Other days it's the reverse (when I'm listening to Spanish music, salsa dancing, etc). Any bicultural/mixed race people feel the same way? (Awesome T-shirt from whatRugear, I WANT)

• I would be furious if President Obama called himself a white president because he is biracial. I wouldn't mind if he said he was the first biracial president but he is also the first Black president so everyone who got upset that he checked Black on the census needs to CALM DOWN. Again, it's the one drop rule, he looks Black, faces prejudice because he's Black so obviously he's going to acknowledge his Black heritage first. again, I wouldn't have minded thought if he checked biracial (is that even a census option?) but he is not multiracial.

Don't try and make us mixies and biculturals choose sides. It's annoying

• I don't understand the fuss about joining ethnic clubs? I'm a member of my high school Latino club and my high school African American club. That's what I didn't get about The Latte Rebellion, why couldn't Asha have joined the Latino and Asian clubs? Don't get me wrong, I love the idea behind the Latte Rebellion but still.
• All of you people who want 'Caucasian' clubs and a 'Caucasian history month' (yes more than one person has said that to me)..I don't even know what to say. NO
• O.M.G. stop complaining when someone from a different race/culture dates someone outside their race/culture. It's the 21st century, deal with it
• Most importantly: I'm tired of hearing that race and ethnicity does not matter. I want it to matter. Being Blatina does not DEFINE me, but it's part of what makes me who I am today. I don't want a color blind society, I want a society that embraces ALL colors, without question.

Whew. I'm sure I left out some important questions and facts so fill me in. What do you agree or disagree with?

Step It Up

This is a guest post I wrote that originally ran at Genre Reviews: OCD, Vampires and Rants, oh my! Thank you ladies for asking me to guest post and letting me share my ideas with new (and long time) readers :)

I’m terrible at coming up with guest posts when I don’t have a prompt. I asked my family, I asked Twitter. But ultimately, Bernice McFadden and Cheri P. Edwards helped me decide after I read their respective articles, without my asking them for advice. Go read them. I’ll wait. Are you back? Good. Weren’t they interesting? Both articles talk about how the publishing industry needs to change because in its current state, it’s extremely difficult for writers of color to get published. However, it’s not solely the publishing industry’s fault. We also need the agents, writers and consumers to step it up. We need more people of color in the publishing industry. I’m going to focus mostly on agents and writers because many articles have already talked about what the publishing industry needs to do and what editors need to.

I’ve said this many times before; if not for blogging I would have kept on thinking that people of color simply weren’t writing. Now I know otherwise. We need the publishing industry to invest in urban communities; we need them to not only encourage future writers of color, but to talk about other jobs in the publishing industry. We need them and other organizations to sponsor writing contests and actively promote them to students. I didn’t know much about jobs in the publishing industry aside from CEO, editors, writers and the people who made covers. I absolutely recommend that anyone who wants to go into publishing read Moonrat’s Guide to Getting Into Publishing Personally, after I finished reading that post, my eyes were opened to so many new job ideas. Maybe I will be an agent, or marketing manager or actual Publisher. The possibilities are endless and yet I didn’t know about many of them. Why is that publishing industries don’t actively promote jobs to youth? On Career days we got doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, movie critics, etc. These are all important jobs. But what about those kids who don’t want to have those jobs, they want to work with books but they can’t write (or just don’t want to)? They probably think the only way they can join the publishing industry is by writing books or becoming an editor (if that, since I didn’t know about editors before blogging. I swear, I would have kept thinking that authors write books and they are magically put together in a pretty package by anonymous people). We need internships, scholarships and any other way you can think of to help get people of color interested in working in the publishing industry. Writers can only do so much. It’s up to us, the consumers to step up as well. Let’s get some people of color working in sales, being publicist, contracts managers, and lawyers in the publishing industry, book designers and more.

Now let’s say publishers do everything right. They hire POC, and are actively seeking manuscripts written by authors of color but they just can’t find any. Then we need agents to step it up. Editors can’t find those amazing writers of color if their books aren’t being shopped around. We can’t have agents having some self-imposed quota of only supporting one or two writers of color. That’s just wrong. I understand if you only want to take authors of a certain genre, that’s fair. But you CAN NOT only support white authors of color. Maybe you do this sub consciously. Agents, look at your client list. How many authors of color do you represent? If you only represent 2, that’s a problem (the numbers may vary depending on how many clients you have. The point is a close to equal ratio of white and POC writers represented would be nice). Also, if you have an equal ratio of white to POC writers but all your POC writers write street lit or erotica, that’s a problem too (since there is no white equivalent of street lit, that just won’t do. This does not apply if you only represent authors of erotic fiction) If you represent writers across genres, you need to make sure you represent a diverse number of writers (diverse meaning not just cultural background but story wise). I would like to hear about more agents representing POC who write contemporary fiction, sci fi, etc.

Alright so publishers are doing what needs to be done and agents are looking to represent more authors of color. Authors of color I cannot stress how important it is to have an INTERNET PRESENCE. I understand, many writers have a day job and don’t have time to read all their fan mail and blog every day. But if you want to be a published author, you need to be prepared to interact with your fans. This means you need to at least have an updated WEBSITE (don’t get me started on some authors that are near impossible to find online because they don’t have a website. Or haven’t updated their websites in years. Grrr). It’s even better if you have a Twitter account and blog at least twice a month. Not only will this help your fans feel like they are in the know, but it will help you gain new fans. I’ve picked up quite a few books because of an author’s Internet presence. Social networking is an amazing tool that the 21^st century is blessed to have; it can really help established authors and aspiring authors. It’s also important for aspiring authors to have an active Internet presence. Have a website/blog, join online critique groups, and get a Twitter account (seriously I got a Twitter account about 6 months ago and it’s fantastic. I’ve “met” so many established authors as well as aspiring authors that I need to watch out for). Promote your book online (especially if you are a debut author); enlist the help of a publicist if your publishing company cannot or will not help you promote your book (often the case for writers of color). A great example of this is the Manifest campaign. Manifest is by Artist Arthur, an established author in adult fiction who is making her YA debut. I have seen that book popping up in so many blogger’s In My Mailbox posts (even before I got my ARC). On the back cover, it lists the marketing campaign which includes; sending out ARCS, doing interviews, appearing at BEA and ALA, etc. These are all GREAT ideas because as a result of this enormous marketing campaign, I have seen this book everywhere. If you don’t have the money, try and do it yourself, if you have the money but not the time, hire your own publicist to do it for you (or make time since this is the career you chose). Blog tours really work, make yours creative and fun (Fantastic example is Y.S. Lee’s. Each blog stop was either an interview or a guest post. The guest posts were all about little known facts about Victorian England, which ties into her book. It was brilliant and a lot of fun to follow and I’m not just saying that because I participated). Basically get your name out there. I have a very close friend that I met through blogging, she now has a book deal (and a gorgeous cover), but when I met here, she had yet to sell her manuscript. If an aspiring author is constantly Tweeting, leaving comments on blogs, writing awesome posts, etc. I guarantee that your name will be noticed by book lovers (plus I bet agents or editors might notice this as well) and when you share the news that YOU GOT A BOOK DEAL, you will have fans already in place. Established and aspiring authors of color need to step it up.

I realize that the title of this post sounds rather mean (or you might have seen the title and thought I was about to talk about the movie, which was pretty good. Alas that is not what this particular post is about, sorry to disappoint), but its tough love. I so desperately want to see quality books by POC being published in all genres for people of all ages. I think that’s happening in picture books and early chapter books, we just need more writers of color being published in MG/YA and up. Obviously consumers need to help too. BUY books by POC (it’s no longer enough to buy books about POC not written by POC. I don’t have a problem with those books, but I do have a problem with editors thinking that “we publish books about POC therefore we are diverse”, never mind the fact that the books are not being written by POC. WOC and white writers have different perspectives, both are perspectives that need to be shared, but sadly, we usually just hear the white perspective (best example: The Help. I love this book, but the question most POC are asking is: would it have done as well if it was written by a POC? I don’t know the definite answer to that, but my guess is no.) If you can’t afford to buy books by POC (believe me, I understand) then go to your library and check them out. If they don’t have any, REQUEST them.

Everyone in the publishing industry needs to step it up to promote diversity from editors to agents, to publicists, writers and consumers. Once people start taking those steps and rise to the challenge, we will see change in the publishing industry.

Guess What This Post is About?

Hardcover (top left) Paperback (middle) Hardcover sequel (immediate left)

I've been getting a ton of emails asking for my thoughts on Cindy Pon's new covers (I'll respond soon). I saw them last night (well technically today because I saw them around midnight) and many people have already posted about the whitewashing of the covers. I've been silent. Why? Because this feels more personal. I became friends with Justine Larbalestier during the Liar controversy and before I read her book. I still haven't read Magic Under Glass (I promise it will be soon!) but I've been in contact with Jaclyn Dolamore and she's very sweet. However, we only started talking during the MUG cover fail. This time it's different. Cindy Pon has been a huge supporter of Reading in Color from the very beginning. She donated 3 ARCs of Silver Phoenix for me to give away, along with sending me an autographed ARC (I'm pretty sure it was my first one). Yet another book I have that I will treasure always. She's a wonderful person and so nice (I am especially in awe of her kindness in light of my cringe-worthy review of Silver Phoenix, which I really liked but it's not the most eloquent of reviews. Good thing I'm re-reviewing it). Therefore I didn't really want to post about this. However, I'm also drained. But I realized that whitewashing controversies don't hurt the authors (who knows, they might even help) and this is too important not to post about.

The beautiful Silver Phoenix cover has been changed drastically. The paperback version is coming out in February and it is a complete whitewash. I don't like it. The girl on the cover definitely looks white and I think it's rather plain. I did send a Tweet to Cindy Pon that I LOVE the Silver Phoenix hardcover and Fury of the Phoenix has a cool cover. I stand by that. I think the dagger gives it a very cool touch and I'm ambivalent about the half covered face. I don't hate it or love it, I would probably care more if the model on the cover was Asian. Maybe the model is Asian (anyone know?). However, it is most UNCOOL that the publisher feels it has to change the cover for the book to reach more readers. It is UNCOOL that Borders refuses to sell it and that only a few Barnes and Noble stores sell it. I HATE knowing that some readers probably do see the beautiful hardcover Silver Phoenix and walk right on by because they are turned off by 'pretty pink/Asian inspired fantasy'. I do wish the original hardcover showed how action packed the book is (hence the reason why I like the dagger) because I think that could draw in more readers. I HATE that Silver Phoenix and Fury of the Phoenix look similar to other YA covers.

Silver Phoenix has a cover that readers could be proud of, especially Asian girls. It's a unique cover that contains a great story. I'm not going to boycott the sequel. I NEED to know what happens next and I don't want anyone else to boycott the book, especially since the publisher did try to have an accurate cover (but then again that could be just as bad since the cover is still being changed). I want Silver Phoenix to find new readers, but I don't want it to alienate its original readers.

Here's what Cindy had to say

i feel so blessed to have gotten the original cover
so wonderfully created by chris borgman. it will
always hold a special place in my heart.
alas, despite its gorgeousness, Silver Phoenix was passed
on by borders and carried in only limited quantities
in select barnes and noble stores. she simply wasn’t
being picked up by readers as much as we’d have liked.

the truth is, Silver Phoenix looks like nothing else
that is being offered on the young adult bookshelves.
on top of that, my story is also “different”. it’s fantasy, which
is very popular right now. but asian-inspired and reads
more like a historical than the more familiar urban.
for every reader that told me s/he’s been waiting so long
for a book like mine to come along, i’ve had another tell
me, i never thought i’d like asian-inspired fantasy, but
really loved Silver Phoenix. (this always makes me so happy!)

i can’t help but wonder how many readers took one
look at my cover, made assumptions (it’s too *this*
or obviously not enough *that*) and decided it
wasn’t for them. i won’t lie. it breaks my heart a little.
the reason that i love fantasy so much is because despite
the fact that an author can take me to an entirely
different world or time, weave epic stories of good
against evil, astound me with mythical creatures, etc, the
fantastic is always grounded in the human experience. [....]

i’m very well aware of recent discussions
about whitewashing young adult covers as well as
#racefail debates, especially within the speculative
fiction genres. most of you know by now that the
author gets very little say in cover design. i was fortunate
enough to be consulted on many aspects for the original
cover. my debut cover couldn’t have been more fierce
or asian! and i’m so grateful to greenwillow books for spending
the time, money and effort to repackage my books.
with the hopes that it will be carried more widely and
perhaps draw a new audience that my original cover didn’t.

because what matters to me the most has always been
the story. i spent two years writing and revising
Silver Phoenix, went through the gut wrenching heartache of
querying 121 agents so ai ling’s tale could be read. and it’s a
dream come true to be published. i never did it for the money,
fame or glory (i laugh at the thought!). but on a personal level,
i want my stories to be read and on a professional level, read
widely enough that more xia fantasy books in the future is
a possibility. i do have other xia tales in me! =)

i would love to see more diversity in all ways being
published in children’s and young adult genres.
i think progress is happening, even if it may seem painfully slow.
especially when we feel passionate about it. but change doesn’t
happen instantly. i believe success can be achieved through many
small triumphs. and it can start simply with a story…

You can read the rest of her post here

So what am I going to do? Well I already had a giveaway planned that will be announced on Sunday, I'll be giving away a hardcover copy of Silver Phoenix. I wish I could afford to give more away. I'm going to make sure my library has it. When I buy the book I'll be giving away, I'll head to Borders and ask for it, just to be difficult ;) I am torn over whether or not I should email the publishing company. Thoughts?

What else is there to say? I've been ranting about this (whitewashing), discussing it and trying to find a solution for months. I honestly feel like I have nothing new to say about this issue. Instead I'll update this page with links to people talking about Silver Phoenix's covers. I still want to discuss this so I'll be visiting as many posts as I can, leaving comments and replying to comments left here. Don't be shy, if you don't think this is a whitewashed cover, say so! I promise I won't bite your head off :) If you think this is horrible beyond belief, share your anger! Tell me what YOU are going to do and link to your posts.

I'm tired of being tired.

Inkstone: I guess I still have one post in me

BookGazing: That Makes Six-Whitewashing Reappears

Jeanette Lin: Sad

Writers of Color 50 Book Challenge: Cindy Pon's Silver Phoenix

Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind: Dear Greenwillow Books

Babbling About Books, and More: Special Edition WTFckery

Say It Isn't So: Whitewashing. Who's to blame?

The Rejectionist: Insert Animated .gift of The Rejectionist Jumping Up And Down And Screaming Obscenities ( Short, not at all sweet and expresses my own feelings perfectly)

The Book Smugglers: Smugglers' Stash & News

My Words Ate Me: Racism on Covers

The Compulsive Reader: Reading Rants: Of Historical Fiction, Sarah Dessen and Strong Asian Heroines

PS I also admit that I don't always report on whitewashed covers. I comment on posts that talk about them but honestly it can get really depressing to talk about all the time. For the record, I don't think White Cat was whitewashed, I do think the Mariposa Club was whitewashed. However, I haven't read either book (yet!) so my opinion could change.

Apples, Bananas, Coconuts, and Oreos (An Apology)

Apples, bananas, coconuts and oreos. To most white people those are simply the names of food,but to people of color, those are names you get called for "acting white" or "not being (fill in the minority) enough". "Acting white" means you don't use slang when you talk, you want to get an education/get ahead in life and basically you don't fit in with the stereotype people have about your culture. Some examples: An African American who likes metal music, a Latino who doesn't speak Spanish, etc. These are all examples of people who would be accused of "acting white."



An apple is what Native Americans are called when they "act white", "red "on the outside, white on the inside. Banana is what Chinese people are called, "yellow on the outside, white on the inside." Coconut is the similar term for South Asians (I think it's only South Asians, correct me if I'm wrong) and Oreo is the term used for African Americans. I don't know what the name is for a Latino who "acts white". Besides the fact that the terms red and yellow being used to describe people's skin color can be seen as offensive, these terms all essentially mean that you are a sellout, someone who does not embrace their culture. Let me make myself clear, I'm no expert on these words and the meaning behind them. I am basing this off of my own experience as well as things I've read/heard/seen. I don't want anyone to think I'm an expert on this subject, but I do want to help readers understand these terms and why we shouldn't use them.



There's nothing wrong with being white. But it is an insult to be accused of acting white if you aren't white because it means you aren't proud of your culture. Not only that, it implies that only white people can be educated, listen to certain music, watch certain things, etc. Why is a Native American child called an apple simply because he or she wants to make something of themselves? It's ridiculous to accuse people of "acting white" who want to get ahead and lift up themselves and their people. Why is a South Asian who doesn't speak Bangla, Urdu, Hindi, etc. considered a coconut? Why can't an African American not like rap music without being called an oreo? Furthermore, why is wanting to better yourself considered something that only white people can do? At the end of the day, that's what's really troubling. The fact that POC seem to think that when you do well in school, volunteer, get a job, etc. you are "acting white" and not "acting black/Latino/Asian/Native American". What a low standard. Based on that thinking, there's no point in ever trying to get ahead because if we want to become presidents, CEOs, doctors, lawyers, nurses and have success in our careers, then we have to give up our culture. Well I refuse to accept that. Isn't it obvious that a POC with a strong work ethic is not "acting white", they just have a strong work ethic. Honestly, the naysayers who say that successful minorities are "acting white" are just trying to hold their race/culture back, they may not know it, but it's true. In fact, wouldn't you say that the successful minorities are making our race PROUD?! Regardless of how you feel about him politically, you have to admit that President Obama is a smart guy. I bet he was called an oreo when he was younger (I read his autobiography a really long time ago so I don't remember for sure) because he got good grades and went to college and then law school. Now look at him, PRESIDENT. Do you hear anyone calling him an oreo? (if people are still calling him an oreo, they are just dense). Instead people are expressing pride in how far he (and we) have come. There are many more examples of people like him, leave some names in the comments :)




I've been called an oreo before. As a former dancer I can hold my own, but I have a diverse taste in music. I love hip hop and some rap, but I also like some old school rock and I love salsa and merengue. I also listen to reggaeton, jazz and during my dance years I listened to classical a lot. I was called an oreo for knowing the song "Living on a Prayer", not only that but apparently, my singing along with the song with my white friends meant that I wasn't "black enough." *eye roll* I know people who have been called oreos for not using slang. Being a minority in this country forces you to learn two languages of sorts. As a Black American teenager (I'm also half Latino but I don't speak Spanish that well), I've learned that I can relax and use slang with my friends. We can talk about the subtle racism occurring in our school and laugh at the ignorant comments people ask ("why do you wear wigs everyday?", "why don't you talk black?"). Then you have to learn the language that everyone else speaks, proper English. When I'm not with my Black or Latino friends, I lose the slang especially when you are talking to an adult, but I don't use slang with my white friends either. I don't use a lot of slang to begin with, coming out of my mouth "finna" sounds ridiculous. I also don't know all the slang, once my friend called me a cluck. I had no idea what that was. Apparently, a cluck is someone who is clumsy. No idea where that comes from. I strongly disagree with the notion that not using words like "finna" and "cluck" means you don't know or respect your Black culture. It means you speak proper English.

I'm writing this post to explain and (lamely) apologize. The fear of being called an oreo is what holds me back from telling my friends about my blog. My friends don't even know that I like to read. It's why, though I may accept your friend request on Facebook, I will not talk about books or book blogs on my account. My Facebook account is basically for my friends that I see face-to-face. So I apologize for not joining your book group or becoming a fan of your blog, etc. on Facebook but I'm tired. Tired of being called an oreo simply because I refuse to let a stereotype box me in. I'm not perfect, I have thought the word oreo in my head when I meet Black people who don't want to associate with other Black people. I'm working on not thinking like that, it's not easy but it's necessary. "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me", I can handle being called a nerd and a bookworm, those terms don't hurt me as much. But accuse me of not being Black or Latina, of not respecting or making my culture proud? That hurts more that you will ever know. I may laugh it off but believe me, "oreo" is deeply branded into my mind and it has left scars.


I'm half Black and half Latina and I don't fit in with either. I don't speak Spanish so I'm never fully accepted by Latinos and Black people don't always accept me because of my class and the way I talk and the music I like, etc. I was once told by a Black person that the reason I couldn't get Double Dutch was because of my "Hispanic blood" (I think it just comes from me being clumsy), so I shouldn't "worry about it." So I'm not "Black enough" or "Latina enough" (it doesn't help that I don't have an hourglass figure), I can't win. But the trials of being mixed-race, biracial and multiracial are for another post on another day.



PS I wasn't born knowing most of these terms! I learned about apples from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexie and coconut from Shine, Coconut Moon by Nessha Meminger (and banana from the comments).


PPSS Never call a POC an apple, banana, coconut or oreo if you are not of that race. Obviously, you shouldn't use it in general but believe me, if a white person calls a Black person an oreo (or a Native American person an apple, etc.), they will beat you down (verbally or physically). Seriously people, how can someone who is not of that culture tell someone else that they are not "Black (or any other minority) enough"? Doesn't even make any sense and yet I know some white kids at school who talk about Black people being oreos (we don't have enough Asians or Native Americans for them to comment on), as if they even have a clue as to what being Black means. Oh please.

February=Time to Show We Love and Understand Black People.

February is the worst month of the year. Where I live, it's cold and dreary and there's little possibility of a snow day or any other day off of school (except President's Day). And I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day but at least it tries to make this month more cheerful. To top it all off, February has been announced as Black History Month. Seriously? We get the shortest, most depressing month?!

I have a love/hate relationship with Black History Month. I love it because I get to find out about little known facts about Black people like this and watch cool documentaries and feel proud. But then after February, guess what? All that good stuff stops. Then it's on to Women's History Month. Don't get me wrong, I realize the importance Women's History month and all the other cultural months.

One day I was in class and a kid asked "why isn't there a White Heritage Month?" And other kids agreed! I'm pretty sure I just went into shock. Why isn't there a white heritage month, hmm maybe because it's WHITE MALE history month 365 days of the year! so I don't know, I don't think white males need a month dedicated to them, just a thought. Or when one of my white friends doesn't know who Malcolm X is and she's in high school! At an academically rigorous school I might add. WHAT?

I understand people mean well, but by regulating our culture to only be celebrated for a month, the problem grows worse. What's worse is that in schools, people view these months as a drag. I can't tell you how many well-meaning teachers assigned us Black History month projects and hearing the groans of my fellow classmates (and I was right there with them because the projects were usually the same old abolitionist and civil rights project, at least come up with something creative and different! I once did a project on an African American female composer, that was cool. Except then I had to write a paper. Not cool). Trust me, when you're the only Black person in the class and your whole class has to do a project about your people, you feel almost ashamed or embarrassed. Like, if this month didn't exist that celebrated my culture, we would have less work to do. I don't care anymore, but I would be turning red when we discussed Black History Month and projects/papers were assigned. Again, are we so unimportant that we only deserve a month? That our achievements only consist of 28 worthy events?

So I get it. These cultural months are necessary to educate those who would otherwise give no other thought to non-white cultures and to promote tolerance and show the diversity of America. But why can't the achievements of POC be celebrated all year round? Why must we be regulated to one month? I know white people mean well, but to me February is just a month where everyone gets to share how much they love Black people and how we have made so much progress and white and Black people understand each other so much better now. Please. There's still a lot of racial tension (hello whitewashed covers, Harry Reid and Peggy Noonan) and once February ends the posters, books, etc. will be put away for next February. I look forward to the day when cultural months are not necessary.

I certainly don't want to discourage anyone from celebrating us. I love seeing Brown faces everywhere, bring on the blog posts, book reviews, tv commercials, documentaries, newspaper and magazine articles! Just remember to keep celebrating ALL POC 365 days a year.

PS NEVER go up to a Black person and spout a random Black History fact (unless you are close friends and they know you are kidding). Otherwise, it's irritating. You don't see me telling you some fact about Italian Americans, do you? And yes, this has happened to me (someone felt the need to inform me of the importance of the civil rights movement, I kid you not!)

I'm done with my rant now. Moving on...

Here at Reading in Color I will continue doing what I do and making sure that I do have at least one review of a book with an African American main character a week. But I'm more excited about two projects I'm undertaking. I will spend one week reviewing books about Haiti (Everytime a Rainbow Dies, Ruined, Taste of Salt, Behind the Mountains, and Anacoana: Golden Flower) and include one way we can help the people of Haiti. I'm thinking of trying to do this more often with different countries, who knows maybe I could do all the countries in like 20 years? (I'm pretty sure there are no POC books set in Antartica or Switzerland). lol.

Also I'm working on finding the most diverse publishing companies (i.e. the publishing companies that publish the most diverse books). I'll be doing this for a month and posting weekly updates with the help of Doret. We will be looking at:

1. Promotion of the books (i.e. how many ARCs are sent out or guest blog pots or author interviews, etc. are done before/after the book is released)

2. How many authors of color does the publishing company have

3. How diverse are the stories?

4. How accurate are the covers and do they have a POC on them

The companies being evaluated are Random House, Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Hachette, Penguin, Macmillan and Candlewick. we will only be looking at the YA/MG selections.

Next month I will be looking at the smaller, indie-presses.

Here are some cool links for the day

Spirit of PaperTigers Project which is a really awesome project run by PaperTigers, they donate a set of books to areas in need and the books all feature POC. Follow the link for more details

POC Faces on Book Covers: Poll Results Mitali Perkins shares the results of the poll she did about how likely POC faces on book covers are likely to sell. It's interesting and definitely leaves plenty of room to hope and work for a change!