Things To Do For Black History Month Day 8

Things To Do For Black History Month Day 8: Read Some Black Science/Speculative Fiction

When I was in college, I took a Comparative Literature course that opened my eyes to a world of black literature that I never knew about...black science fiction and speculative fiction. I had read a variety of different black literature before, but I honestly never knew that there were any black sci-fi writers.

I admit that I haven't read much science-fiction, but I did enjoy what I read in that class, so I will reccommend some books and authors. The first author I reccommend is Octavia Butler. She is probably the black sci-fi writer you may have most likely heard of (I once heard Brandy mention that she was a fan). Butler has many wonderful books out...too many to name. Another writer I reccommend is Samuel Delany. His short novel, The Einstein Intersection, has a very interesting take on aliens. I also reccommend Tananarive Due. She is an alumnus of Northwestern University, the college I attended, and her husband, Steven Barnes, is also a writer whose book Lion's Blood explores a world where whites are enslaved by blacks. I actually got the opportunity to meet both of them. They are very nice people. Due's books My Soul To Keep, The Living Blood, and The Between are very good. Lastly, I highly reccommend the book Dark Matter: A Century Of Speculative Fiction From The African Diaspora. Most of the authors I have listed have works in this collection. There is also a second Dark Matter collection (which I have not read) entited Dark Matter: Reading The Bones. Both books are edited by Sheree R. Thomas.