Lit Vibes Only

Ep. 75: Lit Recs: African Diaspora

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Join Amanda and Kelsey as they explore notable reads by African diaspora authors for Black History Month. They discuss works spanning diverse genres, from historical narratives to fantasy, emphasizing both the richness of African cultural contributions and contemporary reflections. Don't forget to rate, review, and share your recommendations!

00:00 Welcome to Lit Vibes Only!

02:14 Our Current Reads

08:53 What This Month Is All About

11:06 ‘Dream Count’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

19:41 ‘Akata Witch’ by Nnedi Okorafor

27:07 ‘The Prophets’ by Robert Jones Jr.

35:17 ‘Blood at the Root’ by LaDarrion Williams

43:28 Recap and Social Media Engagement

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Follow us on TikTok & Youtube @litvibesonlypodcast and on Instagram @litvibesonly_podcast. You can also email us at litvibesonlypodcast@gmail.com We'd love to hear from you!

See you on Mondays!

Amanda:

Welcome to Lit Vibes Only, where we lit the shit out of books we love and hate. I'm Amanda, the insightful, thrill seeker and historical fiction nerd.

Kelsey:

And I'm Kelsey, the unhinged, diehard, romantic and fantasy reader. Welcome, Welcome,

Amanda:

welcome

Kelsey:

to our Lit Rex episode.

Amanda:

Yay.

Kelsey:

Excited to have you here. Before we get into it, we want to direct you to our socials, which includes now. Fable.

Amanda:

Woo-hoo. Yes. We love it.

Kelsey:

Like drum roll. Without the actual sound.

Amanda:

There was a suspenseful pause.

Kelsey:

There was. So Amanda is at lit Vibes only. Dash, Amanda and Kelsey is the same. Just dash Kelsey. And we both have our respective book clubs. Mm-hmm. Where you're gonna get the opportunity to vote on the books that we highlight and cover on the podcast. So we're really excited for that. Mm-hmm. And hope that gets people reading the book. Before or prior to the release of the episode. Mm-hmm. We look forward to that. And then of course, you can find us still on Instagram at Live Vibes Only Podcast and TikTok and YouTube at Live Vibes Only podcast.

Amanda:

Yay. Come hang out with us. We have a great time. And Kelsey was saying with Fable, those book clubs are directly connected to our lit it or quit it episode. So if you wanna read along with us, dive into the conversation before the episode drops, give us your predictions about whether or not it's gonna be a litted or quit it for Kelsey or I. That is the place to do it. And I think I have a feeling that this is gonna be where we connect the most with our followers and kinda really build those connections. So really excited about that. If you are not a socials person, you can also get in contact with us via our email. It's at five only. Lit Vibes only podcast@gmail.com. So feel free mm-hmm. To shoot us an email with your thoughts, feedback, things you'd like to see us doing on the podcast. We'd love to hear from you guys. Yep. In any and every format. So don't be shy. Very true. But as Kelsey said we're gonna do our lit Rex episode for Black History Month, although we're doing a slight twist on it, which we'll get to in a second. But first we're gonna share with you guys what we are currently. Reading right now.

Kelsey:

Yeah.

Amanda:

I can start. I need to pull it up on my Libby because I, that's what I was supposed to do. I am just about to start it. It is. One second. Hold on a second. Oh my gosh.

Kelsey:

I can also start.

Amanda:

Okay. Why

don't

Kelsey:

you first, while you're looking I'm still trying to read brimstone. I officially told Amanda, I was like, don't read it. You are not gonna like it. I really stand by that. I don't think she's gonna like it.

Amanda:

Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

There's so much smut in this book that I feel like it takes away from the story. Oh, wow. It's like every time, every time they're together, like that's all they do. Oh. And I was like, come on, you guys like, really? And it doesn't feel like their relationship is building. It just feels like, it's just about sex. And I'm like, what else is there? Yeah. In this relationship. Come on, tell me. I don't know, I just I'm a little disappointed, so I'm like 78% of the way through. Okay. I have seven days left of my hold, and if I don't finish in this time, I probably won't.

Amanda:

Okay. Yeah.

Kelsey:

I really loved Quicksilver. I thought it was so fun.

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

And this one is just yeah, it's

Amanda:

you are not the only person who feels that way. I've heard that from other folks as well. Although my stylist, my hairstylist, she, I went into our last week, I think, for a haircut and we were talking about books'cause we both love to read and, oh, awesome. You really liked. Brimstone. Mm-hmm. And I was telling her like, yeah, I've heard there's some editing issues. Mm-hmm. I hear there's a lot of smut. And she's like, yeah. She's like, but I still really enjoyed it. So I was like, oh, you were, I feel like in terms of the people that I've seen her talk to in the minority

Kelsey:

Uhhuh,

Amanda:

but she really enjoyed it. Yeah. I don't, I, the

Kelsey:

editing issues, I'm like, really?

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

For this popular of a book.

Amanda:

Yeah. Yeah. I, they're pretty egregious.

Kelsey:

Yeah. Yeah. I told you about one that I found and I was like, I was surprised I even found anything.'cause normally I don't pay attention like that closely. Yeah.

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

I was like, carrying is not in that realm right now, so why are you talking about carrying?

Amanda:

Yeah. So that's why, that was because how do you know off the top of your head how long the book is? Like how many pages? Okay.

Kelsey:

It's 25 hours though.

Amanda:

Oh God. Okay, so it's like another huge tone.

Kelsey:

Yes.

Amanda:

I do wonder about editing books of that length and just like keeping everything straight. But yeah. If you're gonna put out this book, you

Kelsey:

hack editors.

Amanda:

Exactly. You're exactly. And if you're gonna put out a book that's this hyped

Kelsey:

mm-hmm.

Amanda:

It's better to just take the time and do it well versus mm-hmm. Rushing it through the process and ending up with a less than ideal product. Exactly. At the end.

Kelsey:

And while I get annoyed with Rebecca Yaros

Amanda:

mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

For taking so long on her books, like

Amanda:

mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

I get it. Like we don't want a crappy book.

Amanda:

Yeah. And especially with fantasy, like if it's something that's just got this massive scope and is epic and scale, you really have to go through with a fine tooth comb and make sure everything lines up and makes sense. And like you were saying, characters are in the correct realm and like it all needs to tie together. There's a lot of moving parts. Yeah. So you really. Can't rush the process. But I guess the flip side of that is that I, along with most other people, am still annoyed that we don't have the next book in a Court of Thos and Roses. And Sarah J Mass is taking too long. This is too long.

Kelsey:

I actually don't know if I'm gonna finish with Sarah J Mass anymore or continue reading her books because, wait,

Amanda:

weren't you reading the Throne of Glass series?

Kelsey:

Yeah, I was. And what

Amanda:

happened?

Kelsey:

I just.

Amanda:

Over it.

Kelsey:

No, I like the series, but I am over her and I've heard so much controversy over

Amanda:

oh,

Kelsey:

what she's done and I'm just like, I don't know if I can morally read this anymore.

Amanda:

Oh no. What has she done? I feel

Kelsey 2.0:

like there was one, remember Brit and her Books? This is where that came from. Yeah. Where she said that, she used Breonna Taylor's death to promote her book.

Amanda:

What?

Kelsey:

And yeah we'll have to look it up and Okay. Like double check like about it. But I was like, Ew,

Amanda:

I don't like that.

Kelsey:

Yeah. And I just know like I really respect like Britain books. Yeah. And so I'm like, oh God. Like she, she always talks about not ever reading Serge Mass. And I just wanna know more.

Amanda:

Yeah. I'll have to do some research of my own.'cause I don't know anything about this controversy and

Kelsey:

yeah.

Amanda:

Oh, that's, so I just feel okay. Yeah, because I was, I've been toying with the idea of reading the Throne of Glass series'cause I've heard so much good stuff and everyone who knows me is like, I think you'll really like it. And I did end up liking obviously the guitar series. Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

Okay. And I do agree. I think you would like it.

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

But I don't think I'm gonna have you read it.

Amanda:

Yeah I didn't think we'd probably do that on the podcast. Okay. I'll have to do some research into that and figure out what's going on. But I am reading this book Will Bury me by Ashley Winstead. It is a crime fiction thriller. The normal thing that I read just getting started with this one and. Like the gist of it, as far as I can tell, is that there's this young woman whose dad died. I don't know yet if he was murdered or what, but she's become an amateur sleuth and so is now in that world of like true crime and joining up forces with other amateur sleuths to solve. Mm-hmm. Modern or not modern, like the current crimes and things that have happened in cold cases. And she starts investigating the death of these three college girls and the book itself takes place after all of this. So she's like looking back on what happened and I guess unveiling the truth of how it all played out. Sounds fascinating. I cannot remember. But I feel like I read somewhere that there's also perhaps a bit of controversy around this book and that I think it is somehow connected to, I don't know if you remember, this was maybe a. Not this past year or the year before, like mm-hmm. Those students and I think Idaho who were killed on that college campus. Do you remember this?

Kelsey:

Oh

Amanda:

yeah, I think so. They were found murdered in their beds or something. And I think, and again, I could be totally wrong in mixing this up with another book that folks felt that this author was playing off of that actual true crime. Situation again, need to verify all of this listeners, so please take this with a massive amount or a massive grain of salt. But

Kelsey:

massive amounts of

Amanda (2):

grain of salt. It. Yeah. But I will be checking it out and we'll keep y'all posted on socials. But we are here today. Because it is Black History month, but as y'all know, if you've been following us, we want to continue to broaden our scope as we are diving into these different heritage months. Mm-hmm. Especially now that we're in our second year, and we don't wanna just do the same thing over and over again. And so we want to, of course, still celebrate. Black authors and black stories, but instead of just focusing on black history in the United States, we opened it up and so this is going to be like Lit Recs for the African diaspora. So that can include obviously folks who live here in the United States. Who live in other countries and from mm-hmm. Other countries, folks who have immigrated from African countries more recently and are now living in the United States. And you'll see that reflected in our book choices, it looks like, from what I can tell both Kelsey and I chose a book that takes place here in the United States and also one that is connected to. Folks on the continent of Africa. So we've got a little bit of a mix for y'all here. Yes. And as always you can hop on our socials and let us know what book recs you have for this month. Essentially when we're talking about the African diaspora, it refers to. The worldwide dispersion of people of African descent, primarily stemming from the forced migration that happened during the transatlantic slave trade. But it also includes voluntary movement, so people choosing to leave the continent of Africa and travel to different places around the world. And so whether forced or voluntary, this dispersion of African peoples resulted in the creation of vibrant communities across the Americas, Europe, and. Beyond, literally around the world. And these communities are known for their rich cultural contributions in music, art, and religion. And for fostering ongoing connections to the African continent for development in cultural exchange. And so again, you'll see that reflected in our choices today. And we do have, at least one of my stories is connected to the transatlantic slave trade. And the other one is connected to, yeah. Folks from the continent In more recent times. Choosing to leave Africa and travel to other countries.

Amanda:

So I'm gonna kick things off with my first book. It is Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adii. And. One of my all time favorite books ever is Americana by this author. And if you haven't read it, just wanna put a little plug for that here. You should. But a little bit about Chima men. She was born on September 15th, 1977 in Nugu, Nigeria and was given the English name Grace. And her dad was a professor, so she actually grew up on the campus of the University of Nigeria in Inka and. Cool, fun fact. Her mom was the first female registrar at this university. She grew up Catholic and is still Catholic to this day, and at her Catholic confirmation, she changed her name from Grace. To Amanda. So I was like, oh. Oh. Because whenever I would look at her name, I was like, the name Amanda is Inchi, Amanda. I'm like, how interesting. I didn't know that was like an African name or kind of baked in there somehow. So basically how she ended up with the name Chima Amanda, is that around the time of her first book, she took the Igbo word Qi. I hope I'm saying that right, which means God, and she combined it with Amanda to make the name Chima Amanda, because she wanted a unique. Igbo name that felt more true and authentic to who she was. She also apparently didn't like the way that Westerners pronounced the name Amanda, and it was like really common name. She realized once she moved to the United States mm-hmm. That's how she ended up with the name Chi Amanda. She studied medicine and pharmacy for a year, about a year and a half at her dad's university, and then ended up. Quitting that program. Moved to the United States when she was 19 and went to Drexel University in Pennsylvania where she studied communications and then two years later she transferred again this time to Eastern Connecticut State University. Her, I believe, sister was living there and working there as a medical doctor. She finally graduated from that university with a degree in the communication and political science. She is incredibly intelligent and went on to get, not one, but two master's degrees. One is in creative writing from Johns Hopkins University and her second degree, her second master's degree is an African study since she got that at Yale University. So again, mm-hmm. Just so. wow accomplished. Then she went on to not only receive a MacArthur Fellowship, she also got fellowships from both Harvard and Yale as well. So again, just phenomenal human being. She has earned so much acclaim and attention for her novels. So half of a yellow. Son won the orange prize for Fiction. That book was published in 2006 and her first novel, her debut novel Purple Hibiscus, which was published in 2003, earned her the Commonwealth Writers Prize. And then in 2013. Her novel, the one I mentioned earlier, Americana won the United States National Book Critic Circle Award and was named one of the New York Times Top 10 Best Books of 2013, which is pretty incredible. And then she herself as a person, was named one of the 100 most influential people in the World by Time Magazine in 2015 and 2017. For magazine named her one of the world's 50 greatest leaders. So she has done so much, not just as an author, but also as a public speaker. And a lot of her or a couple of her TED Talks have really just. Essentially gone viral. There's actually one TED Talk that I share with my students, which is the danger of a single story. It's a great TED Talk if you haven't seen it. Highly recommend. And then in terms of her personal life, in 2009, she married a fellow Nigerian Dr. Ivar Esge, and they have three children I believe a little girl, and then twin boys that she had via surrogate. And they do live in the United States, but also have a home in Nigeria, so they can go back and forth. Dream Count is her most recent book. It was published last year, March, 2025. This is a book that I like pre-ordered, was so excited for it to come out. And it is 474 pages and this actually surprised me. It only has a 3.8. Rating on Good reads, which made me a little sad because again, I'm a huge fan and love her work. But it was nominated for reader's favorite fiction on Good Reads in 2025, and it was nominated for both the Women's Prize for fiction for like their long list in 2025 and also nominated. For the, she reads best of award for literary fiction also in 2025. So again, has gotten props for that. And essentially this story follows four different. African women, three of them are from Nigeria, and one of them is from a different African country that I'm blanking on at the moment. And it's interesting because some of these women are living in the United States, they've immigrated, a lot of them came over for school and for work, and then some of them are still living in Nigeria. And so you get both perspectives. And again, very much ties into our theme of the African diaspora. Mm-hmm. And it's essentially a book about womanhood. And you see them as they navigate. Relationships, dating, marriage, mother-daughter relationships, child rearing jobs, careers. So it really is just a slice of Lifebook in many ways and takes place over several years. And so you see them again, dealing with a variety of challenges, from heartbreak to mental health issues, to navigating the complexities of mother-daughter relationships, as I mentioned. Mm-hmm. And. I think I found the book super relatable. There were multiple times where I was taking screenshots of the pages and sending them to my girlfriends and being like, oh my gosh, this has happened to me. Or yes, this is exactly what I think about dating, or I've had this experience at work, or whatever it might be. So I think. There are a lot of points of connection for women who read this book regardless of your background. And then you do see those moments where their culture as African women does create some differences in how they navigate the world and relationships in their careers and also. The racism and oppression they're facing at different times especially for those who are here in the States. And so, yeah, this book dives into big questions like, is happiness something that is attainable or not? It dives into all of the choices we make, both good and bad in order to find love and to be loved and love others. All of the ways in which we are connected. To each other, regardless of age or race or gender and the impact of mother-daughter relationships. And in her author's note at the end of the book, Chi Amanda specifically talks about how this book is in many ways about her mom and processing the grief of losing her mother. And it's why so much of kind of the undercurrent of the book revolves around. Mother daughter relationships and why they're so central to what's happening. So it's a beautiful story. Again, it's well written. It's really gonna make you stop and think while you're reading it. And again, if you're a woman reading the book, I do think there are gonna be a lot of like same moments happening for you mm-hmm. As you read it. So yeah, a great way to read an African writer if you haven't before. This is a great like gateway book to step into that.

Kelsey:

Thank you.

Amanda:

You're welcome.

Kelsey:

Yeah, sounds like a fantastic author.

Amanda:

It's so good

Kelsey:

out.

Amanda:

She's so good.

Kelsey:

Some of her books.

Amanda:

Oh, and I forgot really quickly for those on YouTube. Sorry. I have the book here, so I try, I have both of the books that I read, so this is it. It's beautiful. And you should read it. I've

Kelsey:

seen that one. Yeah.

Amanda:

Yeah,

Kelsey:

it's a pretty cover. So I chose to focus in on fantasy reads this month. And I really wanted to because I struggle finding in general like POC fantasy authors that are really great and I just wanted to like, bring some more awareness to that genre because it really is a great. Creative outlet to be able to speak to and about real world issues. Mm-hmm. But find it in a story that is more fantastical. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. And so my first recommendation is a Kata Witch by Neta Kor, and we have highlighted this author in a previous episode. Mm-hmm. What was it for? Disability Awareness Month, right?

Amanda:

Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

Yeah. Yeah. She has a large.

Amanda:

Like Body of

Kelsey:

work. Body of work. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And AADA Witch is only one series out of all of those works. And she is actually from Cincinnati, Ohio.

Amanda:

She's

Kelsey:

but grew up in Chicago and is a daughter of two Nigerian immigrants. They immigrated in the late 1960s to the US and that basis of her life really supports the work that she's continuing to do in in her adulthood. And I didn't wanna get like too crazy into her life because we've already covered her. But just to give some good highlights she did go to the University of Illinois. Received her BA in journalism and MA in journalism and then she also got her MA in literature in English and PhD in English. And the thing that I wanted to highlight was, her doctoral work, focused on literature and speculative storytelling. And that reinforced like her academic grounding and myth, narrative structure and cultural studies, which I find so fascinating because what, an intentional time to be able to dive deep into this creative work that she wants to build. And I'm just thinking about how cool that probably was for her. Yeah. And sparked like all of the storytelling that she's been able to do. Since then similar to your first author? Mm-hmm. Netty also received the MacArthur Fellow Fellowship Nice. In 2021. And, she was awarded this for her overall contribution to literature and the creation of African futurism as a distinct literary framework. Mm-hmm. Yeah. She's the one that like mm-hmm. Really created this. Yeah. And I have read her series Benty and I definitely see,, African futurism, woven within that story or built upon that. It's a really great like genre. If you're interested in getting into Binti is a great example. She also received the NP Aacp Image Awards. And again, this is I focused on the awards that, she received for bodies of work rather than a specific book. Yeah. Because her books are very well awarded. And it would've taken a long time to go through those lists. And not necessarily super meaningful, but she received this across multiple years for variety of works recognizing again, her cultural impact rather than a single title. So that's a little bit about Netty. Yes. So this series the first book in the series ACADO Witch is 349 pages. It has a 4.03 on good read.

Amanda:

Nice.

Kelsey:

Has three books in the series. It is a completed series. Oh, thank

Amanda:

goodness.

Kelsey:

If you wanna dive into this, you have all three at your fingertips, and then often it's compared to Harry Potter and Percy Jackson in terms of the cultural impact.

Amanda:

Oh,

Kelsey:

interesting. Okay. Yeah. And then to give you an idea of what the book is about the book follows sunny, a young girl who feels out of place both in Nigeria and in the world until she discovers she belongs to a hidden, magical society. Rooted in West African traditions as sunny trains in Juju Magic, alongside other gifted children. She must learn to harness her powers while confronting a dangerous force, threatening their community. The novel Blends coming of age themes with rich Nigerian folklore creating a fresh, culturally grounded fantasy world. So yeah, like Amanda was saying, this story starts in the United States, but then goes to Nigeria and is happening in Nigeria and with the added fantastical element. Mm-hmm. So important themes to note is the magic system is really treated as like a knowledge system, not just speculative. And it really centers African cosmology rather than borrowing, Western fantasy structures. I think we also saw this in the book that we just highlighted. Mm-hmm. Children of Blood and Bone. I think it's important. To center those things, especially in black stories, and I love that she does that. And not only that, it's often taught in classrooms, like alongside of, or sometimes instead of the Eurocentric fantasy Canon text.

Amanda:

Very

Kelsey:

cool. Oh, this was like, interesting fact. I found, and I think we also talked about this in our last episode Children of Blood and Bone, but is that not everything is like black and white, right? Mm-hmm. And you are going to find some folks will have criticisms of the work. And her novels have been met with some resistance from religious conservatives in Nigeria. And they're arguing that the novels glorify superstition in witchcraft. Mm-hmm. Which, like mm-hmm. Of course when you think of like religious conservatives mm-hmm. But still these are Nigerian people. Mm-hmm. It's important too. Honor their perspective. Mm-hmm. So I thought that was like an interesting thing to to highlight. And it just made me think of what's that one? Lightning, oh gosh, I just had it. The tip. It's on the tip of Trail

Amanda:

of Lightning.

Kelsey:

Yes. Thank you.

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

By Rebecca Roanhorse, right?

Amanda:

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

She was met with resistance because mm-hmm. She technically wasn't Navajo. And that's where the story is like set. Mm-hmm. And so you just never know who's gonna think what or perceive in what way. And that's just important to keep in mind. Yeah. Not that this story is not important or Yeah. Valid.

Amanda:

Which it's so interesting, right? Because if you like, not to get super deep, but mm-hmm. Christianity was brought to Nigeria by colonizers. Yes. Totally. And so they're basically using the colonizer's religion to Yeah. To critique, critique the actual, original religious practices and beliefs

Kelsey:

mm-hmm.

Amanda:

Of Nigerians. Mm-hmm. And so there's, yeah, there's a lot there. There's a lot to unpack there. Yeah. There's layers, there's so many layers. But one thing I was wondering or thinking about when you were talking about this book, especially since we did just read Children of Blood and Bone last week mm-hmm. Is that. I wonder what Netty would think about or what she does think about children of blood and bone in terms of Tomi, the author's representation of West African, like folklore and mythology since that was a criticism from some people and saying like she didn't do a good job of representing it. Mm-hmm. So I wonder how she, as an Nigerian would feel and what her perspective is on the book. I would love to talk to her about it. Alright, so my next book is, and I, again, I have it here with me so I'll remember to hold it up this time. So this is the Prophets by Robert Jones Jr. I actually read this a couple years ago when one of my friends. Got me a book of the month subscription. Oh, nice. And it was one of the books that I got through that subscription process. Robert Jones Jr. Is a Brooklyn based writer and public speaker who used to go by the moniker son of Baldwin because he really loves the work of James Baldwin and it's really impacted, influenced him as both a writer and as a. Human being. He attended Brooklyn College and then in 2008 he started a blog also called Son of Baldwin, and it was a place where he discussed a variety of topics, but mostly race, sexuality, gender, and disability. In 2022, he ended up. Stopping the blog, he retired it and all of his social media accounts, so you now can no longer find him on, Instagram or TikTok or any of those. But he does write a newsletter that you can subscribe to called Witness. He is a very well established, prominent. Writer and his work can be found in the New York Times Essence Variety, the Paris Review. And he also has essays that were included in 400 Souls, which is a book I have behind me on my bookshelf that I still need to read. And the 1619 project. As of right now, his debut and only novel is this book, the Prophets. And he published that in 2021. And it's interesting because it makes me feel better.'cause I'm always like, I'm gonna write a book and I still haven't done it. But he worked on this book, this manuscript for 13 years. So over a decade before another author and friend was like, Hey. You should probably do something with this and helped him actually get it published. And then in terms of his personal life, he is married to his husband Adrian, and I'm gonna butcher this last name, Tera, perhaps. Who is an attorney and they're happily married, the profits, like I mentioned, was published in January of 2021. It is 400 pages and has a slightly higher Good Reads rating than my previous book Dream Count. It's a 3.91 Good Reads rating. It was nominated for both reader's favorite historical fiction and reader's favorite debut novel in 2021 when it came out and has won several awards including the. N-A-I-B-A Naba Book of the Year for fiction. Was a national book award finalist for fiction and won the Publishing Triangle Award for debut fiction. So really just knocked it outta the park with his first book and very cool. It was named one of the 25 most influential works of post-war. Queer literature by the New York Times, so hide praise for this book. Yeah, and I've read a lot of novels that take place during slavery in the United States, but this is the only one that I've ever read that focuses on a queer couple. So. Tells the story of these two enslaved men, Samuel and Isaiah, who are enslaved on a plantation in Mississippi. I think the name of the plantation is empty. And obviously empty. Yeah. Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

Oh,

Amanda (2):

and so obviously, homosexuality at that time, it was absolutely not allowed. And essentially what happens is another man Amos, in order to try to get into the master's, good graces, starts to preach the gospel to the enslaved people on this plantation. And he. Uncovers. Samuel and Isaiah's relationship obviously condemns them for it and says that it's awful and unnatural, which puts them in a pretty precarious position for multiple reasons. And on top of that, because of the way that chattel slavery worked in the United States, they were also expected to impregnate, have sex with the enslaved females, right? And produce more slaves for their master. And so they're obviously. Again, for multiple reasons in a very difficult position. Mm-hmm. I'm not gonna give anything away.'cause again, this is a lit Rex episode, not a lit it or quit it. So you'll need to read the book to find out what happens. But the cool thing about this book is that, again, tying it back to the African diaspora, is that while this book does take place in the south during slavery times mm-hmm. It does jump back and forth between. The South and these characters, ancestors in Africa. So it's jumping between timelines. And so you're getting what was happening on the continent prior to slavery and then what was happening to their descendants, right? Mm-hmm. As they were enslaved in the United States, this book is not an easy read for. Multiple reasons. Obviously the content can get the content gets pretty heavy which makes sense. And it also, depending on your reading style, this at times reads like poetic prose, so it's very beautifully written, but it does mean that you have to use a bit more brain power at times to parse out. What is being said, right? Mm-hmm. This book definitely wants you to slow down and reflect. It is not a let me speed right through it, beach read. And this quote that I've included is directly from the book jacket. It says, this book is quote, shot through with Hope, beauty, and Truth. Portraying the enormous heroic power of love, unquote. It's a book that I loved. It did take me a minute to get through again, because it's emotional and because of the way that it's written. But like I said, I've never read a book like this. Yeah. Where. Again, it's set in the south during slavery times, but focuses on a queer couple like that. Those two things I've never, ever come across. And and of course that was happening, right? Like they were people who were queer and enslaved and I can't even begin to imagine what that must have been like for them.

Kelsey:

Wow.

Amanda:

So I'm glad that he. Shed light on that and told this really beautiful, heartbreaking story. So that's my second one

Kelsey:

for your enjoyment.

Amanda:

You'll definitely learn something for sure. Yeah.

Kelsey:

That's the difference between Amanda and I is I just, I can't stomach a lot of those and tend to not, I tend to try to not read those.

Amanda:

I have to be in the right, I have to be in the right Headspace, and I do limit it to a certain number every year. Like I can count in one hand, like how many, books about slavery, for example, I'm reading at any given year. Yeah.'cause it, yeah, it's rough.

Kelsey:

Like even when I read Kindred. That was like, that was a limit.

Amanda (2):

Yeah. Was like yeah, can, yeah, and I'm just like, for me especially, I'm like, this is not some far off distant thing. I'm like, these are my great-great-grandparents, who are living and even my great grandparents who are like sharecroppers. It's just this is not some far distant past these are my people. And yeah, it's just, it's crazy.

Kelsey:

For my people's history, like I choose not to read about boarding schools and things like that. Mm-hmm. Because it is, like you said, my mom went to a boarding school like, oh my

Amanda:

god.

Kelsey:

So it's it's right there. It's real, it's

Amanda:

not. Yeah,

Kelsey:

exactly. And then those. Yeah. While you can learn a lot mm-hmm. Some of those things are just like silly. They're

Amanda:

traumatizing. Yeah. And it's like we already are going through our own daily struggles as women of color and dealing with our own micro and macroaggressions. And so it's like we're already like bearing that on a daily basis. Yeah. When I

Kelsey:

read a book, good Head space.

Amanda:

Yeah. Like sometimes you just wanna escape, not dive into it more.

Kelsey:

Yeah. Thank you for sharing. You're welcome. I sure somebody out there is in a good head space to take this on. Okay, so my second book that I wanna highlight I'm really intrigued about the author because we haven't heard about this author

Amanda:

Yeah.

Kelsey:

Before. On the podcast anyway. Mm-hmm. The book is Blood at the Root by Ladarian Williams. Okay. And the first thing I wanna mention about Ladarian is that he is on TikTok. Okay. He is a TikTok. I think that he trailed off after his second book, but, he ha he still has 40,000 followers on TikTok. Okay. So good for him.

Amanda:

Yeah. Maybe someday we will do,

Kelsey:

oh God yes. Please don't follow us. But I think he has these followers for good reason, right? Mm-hmm. Is because of his body of work. Mm-hmm. But to start from his beginning, he was born in Helena, Alabama. And, he grew up in the south and that is that really, oh my gosh. Inspires his work. Mm-hmm. And you'll see that in the synopsis of his this book. Mm-hmm. But Amanda, you'll be overjoyed to find out. Yeah. He was a theater nerd.

Amanda:

Yay. Love a theater nerd.

Kelsey:

Yeah. Grew up in, inspired by theater and wrote his first play in high school.

Amanda:

Oh, okay. Overachiever.

Kelsey:

Yes. He's a self-taught playwright, filmmaker, author, and a screenwriter. Yeah. Like I was just looking at this one. Oh my God. It was site, website. I swear words are struggling to come to me these days. And I'm looking through like his body of work. Yeah. And I can't even keep count of the amount of place he's written.

Amanda:

Wow.

Kelsey:

Like it's over 10, over 15. Like it's a lot.

Amanda:

That's crazy.

Kelsey:

Way to go. And so, yeah. And he is been awarded, a lot of there's a different word I wanted to use, but awarded a lot of awards for his work. For example his play, cocoa Queens. Mm-hmm. Uh, First featured in the 2019 Sundance Institute, playwriting Intensive, and one the new works at the Works Playwriting Award. Oh. And that's just like one of his many mm-hmm. Accomplishments. Yeah he's a theater nerd.

Amanda:

I love it. I'm here for it.

Kelsey:

Yeah. So he also is an American fantasy author and content creator best known for his debut novel, blood at the Root, which is what I am highlighting today. And he started out as self-published. Okay. This first book and gained viral attention through TikTok, of

Amanda:

course,

Kelsey:

and critical praise before being picked up by a traditional. Publisher obviously making a success story in modern publishing because both of his books have received new York's oh my God. What is that? Bestsellers?

Amanda:

Mm-hmm. New York Times Bestseller. Mm-hmm.

Kelsey:

Thank you.

Amanda:

You're

Kelsey:

gonna tell me through this, apparently, and yeah, his work is often described as southern gothic fantasy. Ooh, I love that. I know. I feel like it's like right through your alley. Blending magic with real world issues such as racism, power, legacy, and belonging. And his, genre of choice, or mm-hmm. Is ya fantasy. Okay. And I have read in several places that it's more like middle school level, like fantasy. Okay. So we'll see. Okay. But has received such high praise. Mm-hmm. He is interested in reimagining classic fantasy tropes mm-hmm. Through a black southern lens. Love that. And explores how magic systems can reflect social hierarchies. Mm-hmm. Writing emotionally intense and character driven fantasy. And beyond writing he's an advocate for representation and accountability and fantasy spaces. Which is another reason why I wanted to highlight him. Yeah. For this episode and. My focus in on fantasy. And now he's just happily living in Los Angeles and there are currently two books in a series published and there will be a third book.

Amanda:

Nice.

Kelsey:

All right. So he is not yet finished, but you do have two of the books. Two of the three. Okay. The third one will be the final one.

Amanda:

Okay.

Kelsey:

So speaking a little bit about blood at the Root, it is 432 pages. So not like a really. Super light read and was published just recently in May of 2025 and, or, I'm sorry, 2024.

Amanda:

I was like, wait a minute. That's not what it does.

Kelsey:

And it has a good reads rating of 4.06.

Amanda:

Nice.

Kelsey:

And the sequel to this book, bones at the Crossroads was. Published in July of 2025. Okay, we got it. Years, correct? Mm-hmm. But yeah, so a little bit about Blood At the Root, it follows Malik, a black teenage boy who is unexpectedly pulled into a secret magical academy hidden within the American South as he begins training in Magic Malik. Quickly realizes that this world, like the one he came from, is deeply shaped by racism, power, and exclusion. When violent events reveal how the institution's magic is rooted in historical oppression, Malik. Must decide whether to survive quietly or confront a system built on injustice in the novel blends, dark academia coming of age, fantasy, and social commentary into a powerful examination of who magic is truly for. And just some highlights about his book. The magic system really treats it as ancestral survival and it centers black institutions as knowledge keepers. Because I don't know if it said in here, but the academy is what do they say? It's HBCU. Mm-hmm. Historically black institution or,

Amanda:

historic. It's historically black colleges and universities.

Kelsey:

Yeah. So yeah, it is known for that, There you have it. My second.

Amanda:

Yeah. You know what's really interesting, as you were talking

Kelsey:

Uhhuh

Amanda:

it reminded me so much of legend born. Which we obviously read on the podcast in terms of the setting, the fact that she also is in the south going into this like hidden, magical kind of academy, mm-hmm. And that those themes of racism, power, and exclusion are also present in her experience as well. Mm-hmm. So there's so many parallels, I think between legend born. And Blood at the root. And while you were talking I was like looking up Blood at the Root Online Uhhuh and even the cover Art for Blood at the Root looks very, does similar.

Kelsey:

It does, yeah.

Amanda:

To Legend Born. Like the style is

Kelsey:

you were gonna say, it's the same artist. I was like, oh.

Amanda:

Oh. It could be the same artist because the style is so similar. Mm-hmm. I would not surprise me.

Kelsey:

Yeah.

Amanda:

But it sounds like there's a lot of really cool parallels and I really loved Legend Born. I still need to read the rest of the series.

Kelsey:

Same, my gosh,

Amanda:

I know there's so many books to read and not enough time. And then of course, but the start of another year, it's like I have all of these new releases that I also want to check out, and I'm gonna be leaning really heavily into audiobook this year. To try get to everything. I

Kelsey:

think. Yeah.

Amanda:

I feel like you do already, you do a really good job of that, but I realized I, yes. Sorry, not to go on a tangent, but I, because this is, this is still January for us when we're recording this, but I was doing my December reading wrap up not too long ago, and I think I read 10 books in total in December, and I think. Almost half of them were audio books and I was like, oh. Oh, okay. So clearly I'm like getting more and more naughty books and they're serving me well. But yay. I think it's gonna help me get to all the things I wanna get to. But as a quick recap for folks, my two books were Dream Count by Chi Amanda and Zi ACI and the Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr.

Kelsey:

My two books were a Ka, A Witch by Neti Aour, and the Second Being Blood at the Root by Ladarian Williams.

Amanda:

So as always, we'd love for you guys to check these books out and let us know your thoughts and you can let us know your thoughts. Honor socials. You can find us at Instagram at Lit Vibes only podcast, or on YouTube and TikTok at Lit Vibes Only podcast. You can also find us on Fable. I am Lit Vibes only dash Amanda. And you can find Kelsey at Lit Vibes only dash. Kelsey, so be sure to hop on there and join our book clubs. Follow us so you can see what we're up to, what we're reading outside of the podcast. And again, one more time, if you're not into socials, you can also email us at Lit Vibes Only. podcast@gmail.com. Mm-hmm. I also realized both last episode and at the beginning of this episode, we forgot to say the most important thing, which is, if you have not rated and reviewed our podcast, you need to drop everything. I was like,

Kelsey:

what did we miss?

Amanda:

The most important thing, yes. You need to drop everything and rate and review us. Literally takes no time at all. Hit that five star button on Apple Podcast and or Spotify. If you're on Apple Podcast, you can write a quick one or two sentence review. Or the whole thing. And if you're on Spotify, you can just write us a quick comment on this episode. Perhaps let us know what your recommendations would be for this month's lit Rex episode. We are always looking for good recommendations, good books to read to add to our heck

Kelsey:

yes,

Amanda:

ever growing tbrs. Be sure to do that, and we'll also be asking you for your recommendations on our socials this Thursday, so keep an eye out for that. Otherwise, we will see you next Monday. Bye bye.