I have been meaning to read "Orientalism" by Edward W. Said for years now and I finally picked it up a few months ago. Yes, it took me a few months to get through. This book is a dense piece of academia, but it's so foundational when understanding the narratives that the western world abscribes to the east.

Summary

In this wide-ranging, intellectually vigorous study, Said traces the origins of "orientalism" to the centuries-long period during which Europe dominated the Middle and Near East and, from its position of power, defined "the orient" simply as "other than" the occident. This entrenched view continues to dominate western ideas and, because it does not allow the East to represent itself, prevents true understanding. Essential, and still eye-opening, Orientalism remains one of the most important books written about our divided world.

What I learned

• "What our leaders and their intellectual lackeys seem incapable of understnding is that history cannot be swept clean like a blackboard, clean so that 'we' might inscribe our own future there and impose our own forms of life for these lesser people to follow."
  
  History, culture, and collective memory cannot be discarded just because they are inconvenient to colonialism and its leaders. This is still especialy relevant today as leaders continue to frame domination as a "fight for democracy" or a "new start" while ignoring the people whose histories and identities are already deeply rooted in the place that they want to occupy.
  

• "It does not occur to Balfour, however, to let the Egyptian speak for himself, since presumably any Egyptian who would speak out is more likely to be 'the agitator [who] wishes to raise difficulties' than the good native who overlooks the 'difficulties' of foreign domination."
  
  The former prime minister of Britian and one of the figures behind the Balfour Declaration which supported a "national home for Jewish people" in Palestine in 1917 assumes authority to define Egypt and Egyptians without ever considering their own perspectives. Unsurising that Balfour did the same to Palestinians.
  

• "Most important, such texts can create not only knowledge but also the very relity they appear to describe."
  
  Descriptions of other cultures are never neutral. In fact when they're repeated enough, they shape how people see the world and how institutions behave. The "Orient" was not simply discovered through Western writing, it was constructed by it.
  

• "According to Israeli law only a Jew has full civic rights and unqualified immigration privileges; even thought hey are the land's inhabitants, Arabs are given less, more simple rights: they cannot immigrate, and if they seem not to have the same rights, it is because they are 'less developed'. Orientalism governs Israeli policy towards the Arabs throughout, as the recently published Koenig Report amply proves. There are good Arabs (the ones who do as they are told) and bad Arabs (who do not, and are therefore terrorists). Most of all there are those Arabs, who once defeated, and be expected to sit obediently behind an infallibly fortified line, manned by the smallest possible number of men, on the theory that Arabs have had to accept the myth of Israeli superiority and will never dare attack."

  Orientalism isn't just a thing of the past, but still shapes our world today, most notably in Palestine. This is a key example where entire populations can be divided into categories of "good" and "bad" based on their willingness to accept existing power structures.

  

Non-fiction

• "Before We Were Trans" by Kit Heyam

A portion of this book focuses on Angola. Before We Were Trans illuminates the stories of people across the globe, from antiquity to the present, whose experiences of gender have defied binary categories.

Fiction

• "A General Theory of Oblivion" by Jose Eduardo Angualusa

On the eve of Angolan independence, Ludo bricks herself into her apartment, where she will remain for the next thirty years.

• "That Hair" by Djaimilia Pereira De Almeida

That Hair is a family album of sorts that touches upon the universal subjects of racism, feminism, colonialism, immigration, identity and memory.

Poetry

• "Broken Halves of a Milky Sun" by Aaiún Nin

A powerful poetry debut exploring the effects of racism, war and colonialism, queer love and desire.

🗺️If you want to see more book recommendations from all the countries in the world, check out my Reading the World Spreadsheet.

And if you want to support this project, consider becoming a paid member of my Bindery!

Non-fiction

• "Algeria is Beautiful Like America" by Olivia Burton

A memoir, graphic novel that explores the rich heritage and tumultuous modern history of Algeria and its connections to Europe and colonialism.

• "The Wretched of the Earth" by Frantz Fanon

A dense, but foundational text that I think everyone should read. It's an eternal touchstone for civil rights, anti-colonialism, psychiatric studies, and Black consciousness movements around the world.

• "Inside the Battle of Algiers" by Zoha Drif

This gripping insider's account chronicles how and why a young woman in 1950s Algiers joined the armed wing of Algeria's national liberation movement to combat her country's French occupiers.

Fiction

• "A Man with No Title" by Xavier Le Clerc

Mohand-Said Ait-Taleb is an enigma. Living in France but ravaged by memories of the war in Algeria, he has withdrawn into his own world, away from his wife and children. When his son Xavier discovers articles by Albert Camus describing the appalling conditions his father grew up in, he starts to piece together the story of his life.

• "This Strange Eventful History" by Claire Messud

Over seven decades, from 1940 to 2010, the pieds-noirs Cassars live in an itinerant state—separated in the chaos of World War II, running from a complicated colonial homeland, and, after Algerian independence, without a homeland at all. This Strange Eventful History, told with historical sweep, is above all a family story.

Other

• "The Disappearance of Mr. Nobody" by Ahmed Taibaoui

A man disappears without trace and the detective in search of him finds more than he expected.

• "2084 : The End of the World" by Boualem Sansal

Tells the story of a near future in which religious extremists have established an oppressive caliphate where autonomous thought is forbidden.

🗺️If you want to see more book recommendations from all the countries in the world, check out my Reading the World Spreadsheet.

And if you want to support this project, consider becoming a paid member of my Bindery!

Summary

In Original Sins, Ewing demonstrates that our schools were designed to propagate the idea of white intellectual superiority, to “civilize” Native students and to prepare Black students for menial labor. Education was not an afterthought for the Founding Fathers; it was envisioned by Thomas Jefferson as an institution that would fortify the country’s racial hierarchy. Ewing argues that these dynamics persist in a curriculum that continues to minimize the horrors of American history. The most insidious aspects of this system fall below the radar in the forms of standardized testing, academic tracking, disciplinary policies, and uneven access to resources.

By demonstrating that it’s in the DNA of American schools to serve as an effective and underacknowledged mechanism maintaining inequality in this country today, Ewing makes the case that we need a profound reevaluation of what schools are supposed to do, and for whom. This book will change the way people understand the place we send our children for eight hours a day.

Review
I'm going to keep this review short and sweet and let the learnings talk for themselves. This is necessary reading for all educators. So if you're one, please pick it up ASAP.


What I learned

• Noah Webster, who created The Webster Dictionary wrote it in order to promote uniformity and "purity" in language in the United States as immigration from countries other than England became to increase.

• The beginning of public schooling in America was built upon the idea of encouraging assimilliation and to teach the principles of "Americanism", which is why the Pledge of Allegiance was introduced into the classroom. The hope was that children would then be figures of assimillation in their household and influence the rest of their family.

• Home Economics stemmed from evangelists hoping to "save our social fabric".

"The sin lies not only in the act of violence, but in the creation of the idea that makes the violence morally permissable. I argue that the way Black and Native children have been treated in schools, from the earliest days of this country to the present, is an integral part of the way racial hierarchy is constructed and maintained; that school is a place where thse ideas leave a lifelong mark on our sense of who we are, how we fit into the world, what is normal, and what is just."

• White women educators were often used by the state in order to "tame" and control Black students. This can be especially seen through Lydia Marie Child who taught and wrote how Black people should recieve violence with grace and that retribution should never be an option. She said that the most important thing for a Black child to learn was patience.

• The Carlisle Indian Industrial School opened in 1879 and wasn't closed until 1918. Over 10,000 students were enrolled in this school and were taught by literal military discipline. It's estimated that almost 200 children died here.

  • By 1900, 75% of Native children were enrolled in boarding schools.

    On residential schools:
    " 'Education for exctinction.' Civilization was a code word for the total erasure of Indigenous peoples from the face of the land. Civilization meant genocide."

    

    Photo: from Carlisle Indian Industrial School, 1880
    

• In 1972, Native women were still reporting that they had recieved hysterectomies under duress or without consent. It was discovered that at least a quarter of Native women between the ages 15-45 may have undergone sterilizations. This was also a widespread problem during this time for Black women.

  • In fact, a 2022 report found that 31 states have laws that still permit sterilization without an individual's consent. This largely targets people who are disabled.

• In 1984, a survey of over 1,000 researchers of education and psychology found that 45% of them believed that the differences in Black and White IQ tests were at least partially due to genetic reasons. In 1984!

"We tend to selectively call the beliefs of the past pseudoscience when they make us uncomfortable, rather than confronting the reality that they were once considered orthodox science and relfecting on what that should mean for us now."

• The convict laborer program that started in the 1800s was a death sentence. In Mississippi, not one person involved in the system lived long enough to serve out their ten-year sentence. 1/4 of these prisoners were children.

Non-fiction

• "To the Lake" by Kapka Kassabova
  By exploring on water and land the stories of poets, fishermen, and caretakers, misfits, rulers, and inheritors of war and exile, Kassabova uncovers the human destinies shaped by the lakes.

• "Free" by Lea Ypi
  Family and nation formed a reliable bedrock of security for precocious 11-year-old Lea Ypi. She was a Young Pioneer, helping to lead her country toward the future of perfect freedom promised by the leaders of her country, the People's Socialist Republic of Albania. Then, almost overnight, the Berlin Wall fell and the pillars of her society toppled. The local statue of Stalin, whom she had believed to be a kindly leader who loved children, was beheaded by student protestors.

• "Indignity: A Life Reimagined" by Lea Ypi

  The author of Free returns with an extraordinary inquiry into historical injustice, dignity, truth, and imagination.

Poetry

• "Negative Space" by Luljeta Lleshanaku

  Personal biography disperses into the history of an entire generation that grew up under the oppressive dictatorship of the poet's native Albania.

• "Haywire" by Luljeta Lleshanaku
  In Haywire she turns to the fallout of her country's past and its relation to herself and her family. Through intense, powerful lyrics, she explores how these histories intertwine and influence her childhood memories and the retelling of her family's stories.

Fiction

• "A Girl in Exile" by Ismail Kadare
  A Girl in Exile, first published in Albanian in 2009, is set among the bureaucratic machinery of Albania's 1945-1991 dictatorship. While waiting to hear whether his newest play will be approved for production, playwright Rudian Stefa is called in for questioning by the Party Committee. A girl - Linda B. - has been found dead, with a signed copy of his latest book in her possession.

• "The Palace of Dreams" by Ismail Kadare
  A dystopian novel often interpreted as a critique of totalitarian regimes.

• "Misinterpretation" by Ledia Xhoga

  In present-day New York City, an Albanian interpreter reluctantly agrees to work with Alfred, a Kosovar torture survivor, during his therapy sessions. Despite her husband’s cautions, she soon becomes entangled in her clients’ struggles.
  
  
  🗺️If you want to see more book recommendations from all the countries in the world, check out my Reading the World Spreadsheet.
  
  And if you want to support this project, consider becoming a paid member of my Bindery!

Some reflecitons on my reading stats this month:

• This month was by far the most books I've read in a month in a long time. It was so fun just loooooving reading. It brought me so much joy.

• Although most books I read this month were just okay, I still had a great time, which is all that matters.

Favorite non-fiction book: "Original Sins" by Eve L. Ewing

Synopsis: Why don’t our schools work? Eve L. Ewing tackles this question from a new angle: What if they’re actually doing what they were built to do? She argues that instead of being the great equalizer, America’s classrooms were designed to do the opposite: to maintain the nation’s inequalities. It’s a task at which they excel.

Review: I'm so mad at myself because I've had an arc of this book for over a year now and it took me this long to read it. This book desperately made me want to become a teacher again and I think it's absolutely required reading for all educators. The bibiliography of this book alone is enough to recommend it--so impressive! And I got chills reading the last chapter.

Favorite fiction book: "A Mouth Full of Salt" by Reem Gaafar

Synopsis: "A Mouth Full of Salt" uncovers a country on the brink of seismic change as its women decide for themselves which traditions are fit for purpose – and which prophecies it’s time to rewrite

Review: While the pace of the beginning of this book was a little slow, I was wholly captivated by it. Such a powerful mix of mystery, tension, and folklore. It’s an important look at Sudanese history and the racism/classism present in its past that still dictates its future. And the ending? It hit me in the chest; absolute perfection.

What I’ve added to my TBR (to-be-read)

• "Japan's Infamous Unit 731" by Hal Gold: This is a piece of history I knew nothing about, so naturally now I need to know everything.

• "Shorelines" by Alycia Pirmohamed: A memoir that explores migration, memory, and home.

• "Our Cut of Salt" by Deena Helm: A Palestinian horror from a debut author that explores the idea of home.

• "Exiles" by Mason Coile: I've been coming to realize that I really like short sci-fi books, so I had to add this one to my list.
  
  

Summary

In 1879, King Leopold II of Belgium launched an ambitious plan to plunder Africa’s resources. The key to cracking open the continent, or so he thought, was its elephants—if only he could train them. And so he commissioned the charismatic Irish adventurer Frederick Carter to ship four tamed Asian elephants from India to the East African coast, where they were marched inland towards Congo. The ultimate aim was to establish a training school for African elephants.

Following in the footsteps of the four elephants, Roberts pieces together the story of this long-forgotten expedition, in travels that take her to Belgium, Iraq, India, Tanzania, and Congo. The storytelling brings to life a compelling cast of historic characters and modern voices, from ivory dealers to Catholic nuns, set against rich descriptions of the landscapes travelled. In an original weave of past and present, she digs deep into historic records revealing an extraordinary—and enduring—story of colonial greed, hypocrisy, and folly.


Review
I'm conflicted about this one. This is a point in history that I've been diving into ever since I read "King Leopold's Ghost" and as far as telling this history, this is a good companion to that book. The story was a fascinating look at the egosim and pride of colonizers, which ultimately became their downfall.

It was a tragic look into a niche part of this history in Leopold's attempt to start a training school for Elephants in order to futher colonize Africa. I learned a lot.

Where I think this book fell short was in the travelogue aspect. Roberts clearly did an incredible amount of research into this book and was very clearly careful and intentional about discussing the imperialist impact of this history. However, there was a strange irony in Roberts, a British jouranlist, retracing an imperialist journey through Africa. Her interactions with the land and the people around her seemed surface level at times and a missed opportunity to take the focus away from the colonizers and onto the effects of their colonization.

I would recommend this book if you're interested in the topic, but I highly recommend that you read "King Leopold's Ghost" first.



What I learned

• King Leopold was respsonsible for the deaths of an estimated 10 million Africans over the period of 23 years.

• In the 1958 World Fair, Belgium hosted what they called the "Kongorama", a literal human zoo, to showcase Belgium's "civilizing" impact on the Congo. This zoo held 600 Congolese men, women, and children captive. This harkened back to 1897 when King Leopold started this human zoo which attracted 1 in 4 Belgiums to come visit.

• In the construction of the Central Railway Line in Africa, Germans used slave labor, resulting in the deaths of 100 men each month. During its peak of construction, over 20,000 Africans worked on the railway line.

• Elephants will not abandon their sick or dying family members, communicate through an infrasonic system that humans can't hear, can recognize themselves in a mirror (few animals can do this), have a better memory than humans, and even have a burial ritual for the deceased.

• At the beginning of the 19th century, there were 26 million elephants in Africa. Now, there's between 4-500,000.

"Sven Lindqvist remarked: 'You already know enough. So do I. It is not knowledge we lack. What is missing is the courage to understand what we know and to draw conclusions.'"