Free Your Mind

There is something magical when you open the first page of a new book.  The peculiar yet ever satisfying smell of dried ink.  The crisp and unbothered pages you can't wait to immerse yourself into.  Or perhaps it's the excitement of what each new chapter will bring.  Soon, you find yourself lost into an exquisitely crafted masterpiece and at the mercy of the author.  

As I continue my celebration of Black History month, I must pay homage to the literary geniuses who have molded the craft and art of writing and paved the way for so many to follow in their footsteps.  Their legacy and outstanding contributions to Black America and American literature's history will never be forgotten.

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Zora Neale Hurston, world-renowned writer, anthropologist, and a fixture of the Harlem Renaissance.  She was dedicated to promoting and studying black culture and educating others about the arts.  An author of novels, short stories, and plays, Hurston would be best known for her book  'Their Eyes Were Watching God.'  Although never receiving the praise she truly deserved, Hurston influenced many writers, forever cementing her place in history as one of the foremost female writers of the 20th century.

Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960)

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Octavia E. Butler​ (1947-2006)

Octavia E. Butler had a true appreciation and love of books at an early age.  At the age of 10, she decided to become a writer.  Breaking barriers as an African-American woman in science fiction, Butler published her first novel in 1976, titled 'Patternmaster.'  One of the few African-American women in the field, she was known for her creativity in blending science fiction with African-American culture.  In 1995, Butler became the first science fiction writer to receive the MacArthur Foundation "Genius" Grant.

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James Baldwin (1924-1987)

Well known for his essays on the Black experience in America, James Baldwin was one of the 20th century's greatest writers.  Baldwin moved to France in 1948 to allow himself the freedom to write more about his personal life as a gay man in a homophobic African-American community and a racist society.  His time would be spent between the United States and France.  Baldwin returned to the US to participate in the Civil Rights Movement.  However, after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, he permanently returned to Europe.  In 1956 Baldwin wrote 'Giovanni's Room' which, told the story of a white man torn between his love for a man and a woman.  The novel brought him critical acclaim as a powerful American writer.

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"If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." -Toni Morrison 

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Chinua Achebe (1930-2013)

Chinua Achebe, a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor, and critic.  His first novel, 'Things Fall Apart' (1958), often considered his masterpiece would become a classic in the world of literature and required reading for students, selling over 10 million copies in 45 languages.  "There is such a thing as absolute power over narrative.  Those who secure this privilege for themselves can arrange stories about others pretty much where, and as, they like." -Chinua Achebe

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Maya Angelou (1928-2014)

Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Annie Johnson in 1928.  It would be over 20 years before she would be forever and famously known as the beloved Maya Angelou, an acclaimed American poet, storyteller, civil rights activist, playwright, autobiographer, etc.  Her name was a combination of her childhood nickname and her then-husbands surname.  Author of over 30 books and the recipient of more than 50 honorary degrees, she is best known for her 1969 memoir, 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings'.  Maya Angelou will forever be one of the most influential women of all time.

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Langston Hughes (1902-1967)

Langston Hughes, famously known as one of the leaders of the Harlem Renaissance.  American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist.  His fearless fight against racism and equality resonates within his writing and poetry.  Although his work was highly criticized, his creativity was undeniable.  
"Humor is laughing at what you haven't got when you ought to have it." - Langston Hughes.

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Toni Morrison (1931-2019)

Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, editor, professor, visionary, Toni Morrison was a brilliant literary force.  From 1967 to 1983 she served as the first female African-American editor in Random House history and was credited with giving a voice to black stories.  "There are writers that we would not know had she not been in that very crucial position as a black woman in publishing," Angelyn L. Mitchell, a professor of English and African-American studies at Georgetown University.   

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Richard Wright (1908-1960)

Richard Wright, born in Roxie, Mississippi.  The grandson of slaves and the son of a sharecropper, he would come to be one of the most influential writers in the history of American literature.  At the age of 16, he published his first short story.  In 1940 Wright wrote a powerful and unforgettable novel titled 'Native Son' which tells the story of 20-year old Bigger Thomas.  The book was banned in some states due to the graphic language and sexual content.  Some of the more candid passages dealing with race, sex, and politics in Wright's books were omitted before original publication, however, some of his other work prior to 1991 remains original.

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Reading will forever be fundamental, and it allows you to go to that special place and free your mind.  Without history, we would be forced to create our own narratives of stories we know nothing of.  As a writer, I am honored to share and continue the legacy of these phenomenal writers.

​~AJ 🖤

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References:
https://www.uis.edu/gendersexualitystudentservices/jamesbaldwin/
http://www.math.buffalo.edu/~sww/wright/wright_bio.html
http://mwp.olemiss.edu//dir/wright_richard/
https://www.biography.com/writer/richard-wright
https://www.jbhe.com/features/59_richardwright.html
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Toni-Morrison
https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/toni-morrison
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/toni-morrison-nobel-laureate-who-transfigured-american-literature-dies-at-88/2019/08/06/49cd4d46-b84d-11e9-a091-6a96e67d9cce_story.html
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/langston-hughes
https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/36910.Langston_Hughes
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/maya-angelou
https://time.com/5226045/dr-maya-angelous-90th-birthday/
https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/maya-angelou
https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-Baldwin
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1998/02/16/the-enemy-within-hilton-als
https://www.biography.com/writer/james-baldwin
https://www.octaviabutler.com
https://www.biography.com/writer/octavia-e-butler
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/29535.Octavia_E_Butler
https://www.zoranealehurston.com
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zora-Neale-Hurston
https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/zora-hurston
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/23/world/africa/chinua-achebe-nigerian-writer-dies-at-82.html