“What she must feel for him was an awed fear. Whether or not Mama had told her to go to his room, she had not said no to Odenigbo because she had not even considered that she could say no. Odenigbo made a drunken pass and she submitted willingly and promptly. He was the master, he spoke English, he had a car. It was the way it should be.”
― Half of a Yellow Sun
― Half of a Yellow Sun
“I am not a cynic. I love you, I love the world and I love it more with every new inch I discover. But you are a black boy, and you must be responsible for your body in a way that other boys cannot know. Indeed, you must be responsible for the worst actions of other black bodies, which, somehow, will always be assigned to you. And you must be responsible for the bodies of the powerful-the policeman who cracks you with a nightstick will quickly find his excuse in your furtive movements. And this is not reducible to just you-the women around you must be responsible for their bodies in a way that you never will know.”
― Between the World and Me
― Between the World and Me
“Too often we're told that advocates of new policies are putting values of fairness above practical concerns, while supporters of laissez-faire are the ones who are serious about the economy. This isn't correct. For today's economy, the question is not whether we should help families with handouts; it's how to help families so they can thrive as workers and consumers. To boost long-term economic growth, businesses need a highly skilled workforce, ready and able to work. In today's economy, where most workers also have care responsibilities, this means we must find ways to address conflicts between work and life. These conflicts aren't trivial private travails; they're serious economic problems.”
― Finding Time: The Economics of Work-Life Conflict
― Finding Time: The Economics of Work-Life Conflict
“She was used to this, being grabbed by men who walked around in a cloud of cologne-drenched entitlement, with the presumption that, because they were powerful and found her beautiful, they belonged together.”
― Half of a Yellow Sun
― Half of a Yellow Sun
Our Shared Shelf
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— last activity Dec 16, 2025 12:22AM
OUR SHARED SHELF IS CURRENTLY DORMANT AND NOT MANAGED BY EMMA AND HER TEAM. Dear Readers, As part of my work with UN Women, I have started reading ...more
The Guilty Feminist Podcast Reading List
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— last activity Jan 27, 2020 12:39PM
The unofficial reading list for all those obsessed by The Guilty Feminist. http://www.guiltyfeminist.com/ Anyone can add books, if you want you can p ...more
Nerdette Book Club
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— last activity Mar 02, 2023 11:52AM
A place to get together and chat as you read books chosen for the Nerdette Book Club.
Paulina’s 2025 Year in Books
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