Several of my recent reading choices in the past six months have been a direct result of my subscription to The Sun Magazine out of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Sun Magazine is a monthly literary publication of essays, fiction, poetry and photography. Each issue has an in-depth interview with a person who presents a thoughtful perspective on a timely issue whether it is political, cultural, or environmental. Here is list of recent interviewees that may interest you as well as their books.
Interview with Leah Penniman in the July, 2019 Issue
Penniman is an author, educator and activist and co-founder of Soul Fire Farm, which is not only a working farm, but "a training ground for aspiring people of color who come there to learn about sustainable agriculture and reclaim a connection to the land severed by centuries of trauma and oppression.”
I read her Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farm’s Practical Guide to Liberation on the Land which is a rare blend of black history, activism, and practical advice for those interested in community gardening and tips on growing better fruits and vegetables. It inspired me to contact their publisher Chelsea Green to carry some of their books at my Destination: Books popup.
Interview with Paul Chaat Smith in the August, 2019 issue
Smith is an American Indian essayist, activist and cultural provocateur. Smith’s book Everything You Know About Indians is Wrong (2009) is a series of essays expanding over 10 years. Smith ruminates about various related to Indian history and art, his own heritage, and portrayal of Native Americans. The Sun describes his style as" a combination of smart-aleck, freewheeling with thoughtful scholarship." After reading Everything You Know I put the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) in Washington D.C. on my travel list and so maybe visit Smith who is one of the curators there.
Interview with Astra Taylor in the November, 2019 issue
Her book Democracy May Not Exist, But We’ll Miss It When It’s Gone (2019) gives a history of what democracy really means and how it came to be so threatened here in 2020. It's a thicker book that can occasionally ramble, but it does cover the history of democracy and looks at many of the current systemic threats to democracy. She admits that democracy is a flawed form of government but worth saving.
Since Sun Magazine has temporarily removed its paywall these interviews are available to read online. However, the magazine is gorgeously printed on fine paper with extraordinary black and white photography throughout so you may want to consider subscribing. You will never have to worry about the magazine piling up because you probably have like-minded friends that are always willing to take them off you hands.
Available at Destination: Books
All three of these slightly used books are in my Destination: Books online store where I often place books that I don’t want to read again, but deserve to find a good homes instead being dumped at Goodwill or in the purgatory of one of those Neighborhood Little Libraries. Regular readers of the blog may recall that generally I do not mark in books or eat sticky foods while reading. I prefer to make notes on postcards instead and I readily avoid anything that will get stuck in my teeth except kale. I keep a small inventory with additional descriptions and ordering information at the Destination: Books catalog page.
