The Diverse Books Tag

When I was first tagged in The Diverse Books Tag I was worried that I would have a hard time finding anything I’d read that answered the questions. Turns out there were more than a few books already on my read list. Don’t get me wrong there are still more I want to read, and I’m always looking out for more diverse books so if you have any recommendations please let me know.

I was tagged by Izzi at Ravenclaw Book Club. Thank you so much for the tag Izzi; everyone else should definitely check out her original post and while you’re there her blog as well.

The Rules

• Credit the original creator, Read Diverse Books.
• The Diverse Books Tag is a bit like a scavenger hunt. I will task you to find a book that fits a specific criteria and you will have to show us a book you have read or want to read.
• If you can’t think of a book that fits the specific category, then I encourage you to go look for one. A quick Google search will provide you with many books that will fit the bill. (Also, Goodreads lists are your friends.) Find one you are genuinely interested in reading and move on to the next category.

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Find a book starring a lesbian character.

Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour

I’ve seen a few reviews for this book, granted they were mixed ones, but I finally added it to my to-read list a little while back. It will be the first book by Nina LaCour I’ve read but not the first book with a lesbian character.

A love letter to the craft and romance of film and fate in front of – and behind – the camera from the award-winning author of Hold Still.

A wunderkind young set designer, Emi has already started to find her way in the competitive Hollywood film world.

Emi is a film buff and a true romantic, but her real-life relationships are a mess. She has desperately gone back to the same girl too many times to mention. But then a mysterious letter from a silver screen legend leads Emi to Ava. Ava is unlike anyone Emi has ever met. She has a tumultuous, not-so-glamorous past, and lives an unconventional life. She’s enigmatic…She’s beautiful. And she is about to expand Emi’s understanding of family, acceptance, and true romance.

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Find a book with a Muslim protagonist.

Ms Marvel, Vol 1 by G. Willow Wilson

After reading Nimona and really enjoying it I wanted to find more graphic novels I could read and enjoy. Ms Marvel was one of the ones that made it onto my to-read list. I’m a massive fan of superheroes, and a huge fan of Marvel so I think I’m bound to love this one.

Marvel Comics presents the new Ms. Marvel, the groundbreaking heroine that has become an international sensation!

Kamala Khan is an ordinary girl from Jersey City—until she’s suddenly empowered with extraordinary gifts. But who truly is the new Ms. Marvel? Teenager? Muslim? Inhuman? Find out as she takes the Marvel Universe by storm! When Kamala discovers the dangers of her newfound powers, she unlocks a secret behind them, as well. Is Kamala ready to wield these immense new gifts? Or will the weight of the legacy before her be too much to bear? Kamala has no idea, either. But she’s comin’ for you, Jersey!

It’s history in the making from acclaimed writer G. Willow Wilson (Air, Cairo) and beloved artist Adrian Alphona (RUNAWAYS)! Collecting MS. MARVEL (2014) #1-5 and material from ALL-NEW MARVEL NOW! POINT ONE #1.

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Find a book set in Latin America.

A Fierce and Subtle Poison by Samantha Mabry

While A Fierce and Subtle Poison isn’t the best magical realism book I’ve read it stands out for me for one reason and that is the world building. Taking place in Puerto Rico everything was wonderfully written; it sounded magical but at the same time the setting was steeped in the culture and history of the country.

“I didn’t fear stories, or closed-up houses, or witches, or notes from ghosts, or even the possibility of being cursed. I’d spent my whole life on this island running towards those things, throwing rocks back at those who threw rocks at me, waiting up for phantoms. What I feared was a future where I ended up a version of my dad.”

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Find a book about a person with a disability.

Highly Illogical Behavior by John Corey Whaley

I count what Solomon faces in this book as a disability. It may not be as obvious as some of the physical ones but mental illness are still disabilities in their own way, and Solomon’s struggle in this book is very real. He hasn’t left his house in years, and there were parts of his anxiety that I found I could relate to making this a powerful book for me.

“All he was doing was living instead of dying. Some people get cancer. Some people get crazy. Nobody tries to take the chemo away.”

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Find a science-fiction or fantasy book with a POC protagonist.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

As one of my favourite series, and a brilliant sci-fi/fantasy series in general, of course Cinder found its way into this tag. Although it is fantasy, and one of the books was set on the moon, there is also a lot of diversity throughout this series. Both Cinder and Winter are POC characters, and all four books are set all over the world and beyond.

“I am not human.
I am a cyborg.
I am mechanic.
That’s all I am…right?”

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Find a book set in (or about) any country in Africa.

Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms by Katherine Rundell

The main reason I added this book to my to-read list was because of the gorgeous cover, the fact that the book itself sounds amazing is a bonus. While it’s not set completely in Africa it does sound like it keeps Wilhelmina’s life there at the heart of the story as she adjusts to London.

Even a life on the untamed plains of Africa can’t prepare Wilhelmina for the wilds of an English boarding school in this lovely and lyrical novel from the author of Rooftoppers, which Booklist called “a glorious adventure.”

Wilhelmina Silver’s world is golden. Living half-wild on an African farm with her horse, her monkey, and her best friend, every day is beautiful. But when her home is sold and Will is sent away to boarding school in England, the world becomes impossibly difficult. Lions and hyenas are nothing compared to packs of vicious schoolgirls. Where can a girl run to in London? And will she have the courage to survive?

From the author of the “witty, inventively poetic” Rooftoppers comes an utterly beautiful story that’s sure to be treasured.

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Find a book set in South Asia (Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, etc.).

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

This is one of my favourite books of this year and a large part of that is because of the world building within. When I first read the blurb and saw it described as a story ‘steeped in Indian folklore and mythology’ I was instantly hooked, and the setting was so much better than I could have ever imagined; full of magic and myths and ethnicity.

“The weeks before, I had lost myself in the folktales of Bharata. Stories of elephants who spun clouds, shaking tremors loose from ancient trunks gnarled with the rime of lost cyclones, whirlwinds and thunderstorms. Myths of frank-eyed naga women, twisting serpentine, flashing smiles full of uncut gemstones. Legends of a world beneath, above, beside the one I knew―where trees bore edible gems and no one would think twice about a girl with dark skin and a darker horoscope.”

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Find a book with a biracial protagonist.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

Lara Jean is an amazing biracial protagonist. Despite losing her mother her father still tries to keep all his daughters immersed in that side of their heritage, and it’s subtle references in the books that show you that part of their lives. It’s not just in the food their father cooks for them but the celebrations they take part in with their extended family.

“When my dad has a day off, he cooks Korean food. It’s not exactly authentic, and sometimes he just goes to the Korean market and buys ready-made side dishes and marinated meat, but sometimes he’ll call our grandma for a recipe and he’ll try. That’s the thing: Daddy tries. He doesn’t say so, but I know it’s because he doesn’t want us to lose our connection to our Korean side, and food is the only way he knows how to contribute.”

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Find a book starring a transgender character or about transgender issues.

When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore

When the Moon Was Ours is the only book I’ve read that focuses on transgender issues and it is such a beautiful and moving story. Samira has been living as Sam, hiding behind the bacha posh way of life, but as the story unfolds he starts to wonder whether the words actually fit him or if they are something he uses to hide who he really wants to be.

“Maybe bacha posh were words that did not belong to him. They were only his through the stories his grandmother had told him, of families across the border from Peshawar, mothers and fathers dressing their youngest daughters as sons.”

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My Tags:

• Anne at Inked Brownies
• Ariana at The Quirky Book Nerd
• Casey at Adoptabookaus
• Fadwa at Word Wonders
• Kayla at No Time for Tiny Bookshelves
• Lilly at Lair of Books Blog

And if there’s anyone else out there who wants to take part, consider yourself tagged. Just send me a link to your post in the comments so I can see what your answers are.