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sodrewrites's review against another edition
5.0
"Millions of people consume the blues as entertainment without acknowledging its most important contributions to the freedom struggle: a platform for truth telling, a form of resistance, and thus a pathway to healing and learning." -Monique W. Morris
I believe this book is required reading for anyone who loves, cares for, or educates brown girls. Not only does the author point out flaws in our education system, she adds ways in which it can be improved upon. Though I have formed a unique perspective of public education because of my own experiences, I am glad that I was able to read Sing a Rhythm, Dance a Blues and be able to better understand other's perspectives as well. Oftentimes we believe that more discipline will cause our children to "shape up" and be better students, but the real answer here is all about love and I'm so elated that I was able to see this message translated and shared in this book!
I especially love the format of the book, starting with interludes then going into "songs" which further illustrate how our current education system is failing our young black girls. Not only do I feel this book is a necessary read for educators, I feel like this book is necessary for all brown girls and advocates, as there is so much information here that can help + heal us all. Can't wait to purchase a hardcover copy and share with others.
Major thanks to The New Press and Netgalley for an ARC of Sing a Rhythm, Dance a Blues in exchange for an honest review.
I believe this book is required reading for anyone who loves, cares for, or educates brown girls. Not only does the author point out flaws in our education system, she adds ways in which it can be improved upon. Though I have formed a unique perspective of public education because of my own experiences, I am glad that I was able to read Sing a Rhythm, Dance a Blues and be able to better understand other's perspectives as well. Oftentimes we believe that more discipline will cause our children to "shape up" and be better students, but the real answer here is all about love and I'm so elated that I was able to see this message translated and shared in this book!
I especially love the format of the book, starting with interludes then going into "songs" which further illustrate how our current education system is failing our young black girls. Not only do I feel this book is a necessary read for educators, I feel like this book is necessary for all brown girls and advocates, as there is so much information here that can help + heal us all. Can't wait to purchase a hardcover copy and share with others.
Major thanks to The New Press and Netgalley for an ARC of Sing a Rhythm, Dance a Blues in exchange for an honest review.
molly_dettmann's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 Another standout work by Dr. Morris on how to support Black girls in schools. A must-read for educators. I liked the blending of case studies from schools and their practices, stories from educators and students, and some bits on pedagogical best practices. It was a really short read too, but I think that just makes it more accessible for educators that most of all just need works like this to remind us to be compassionate and caring and stop policing Black girls for being Black girls. I did knock it a star because ACE scores aren’t great (but it did give me another perspective and the case study focused on ACE-buffers as opposed to typical reactionary practices I see with ACE)
stevia333k's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
reflective
tense
4.75
Very helpful book, very hopeful. It inspires a lot of healing art for me.
Also this book prompted me to take the ACE questionaire & it turns out my previous generation of the family has 9's & 10's and I'm either a 7 or 8 depending on how the mom/stepmom gets reinterpreted for families with 2 dads no moms.
The thing that was a barrier was about the first 10 percent of the book focuses on a blues song improvisation set up, and I'm unfamiliar with the genre. But it turns out somewhere around the 10 percent mark that learning curve drops. That being said I'm guessing I missed some metacommentary
Also this book prompted me to take the ACE questionaire & it turns out my previous generation of the family has 9's & 10's and I'm either a 7 or 8 depending on how the mom/stepmom gets reinterpreted for families with 2 dads no moms.
The thing that was a barrier was about the first 10 percent of the book focuses on a blues song improvisation set up, and I'm unfamiliar with the genre. But it turns out somewhere around the 10 percent mark that learning curve drops. That being said I'm guessing I missed some metacommentary
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Sexism, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Hate crime, Police brutality, Violence, and Racism
rose_peterson's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to love this book. At the end, I respected it--I know it's an important step in the publishing world to have a subtitle that explicitly mentions the liberation of black and brown girls--but I didn't love it.
Morris says she will not detail the failures of the past but the successes of programs in the present, but I'm not sure she makes good on that promise. Whenever she does cite specific programs, the mentions are brief and don't provide enough detail or context to be helpful to readers. I'm certain Morris did copious amounts of research for this book, but I worry the meat of that didn't make it into the book. Instead, it felt like a string of educational buzzwords--SEL, trauma-sensitive care, ACES, restorative practices--without much meaningful exploration of how these uniquely support black and brown girls or what that unique support would look like.
I also wanted connections to the blues to be more frequent and more explicit. Other than in the underdeveloped introduction, the music form was rarely mentioned. I'd like a clearer articulation of blues elements and what their liberatory educational equivalents are.
Despite my hefty critique, I did appreciate the first half of this book in particular because it confirmed what I already believe to be true about education but need frequent reminders and validation about, especially in a time when those who suggest that elements of liberatory pedagogy, like advocating for the elimination of exclusionary discipline, can be dismissed as soft and overly sensitive. I underlined several phrases that resonated with me and refocused my teaching. However, those few gems weren't enough to carry the book.
I hope this book will serve the role of paving the way for more books like it, books that can go into greater depth and lead to more specific action to truly liberate black and brown girls.
Morris says she will not detail the failures of the past but the successes of programs in the present, but I'm not sure she makes good on that promise. Whenever she does cite specific programs, the mentions are brief and don't provide enough detail or context to be helpful to readers. I'm certain Morris did copious amounts of research for this book, but I worry the meat of that didn't make it into the book. Instead, it felt like a string of educational buzzwords--SEL, trauma-sensitive care, ACES, restorative practices--without much meaningful exploration of how these uniquely support black and brown girls or what that unique support would look like.
I also wanted connections to the blues to be more frequent and more explicit. Other than in the underdeveloped introduction, the music form was rarely mentioned. I'd like a clearer articulation of blues elements and what their liberatory educational equivalents are.
Despite my hefty critique, I did appreciate the first half of this book in particular because it confirmed what I already believe to be true about education but need frequent reminders and validation about, especially in a time when those who suggest that elements of liberatory pedagogy, like advocating for the elimination of exclusionary discipline, can be dismissed as soft and overly sensitive. I underlined several phrases that resonated with me and refocused my teaching. However, those few gems weren't enough to carry the book.
I hope this book will serve the role of paving the way for more books like it, books that can go into greater depth and lead to more specific action to truly liberate black and brown girls.
queer_kitties's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.25
evamadera1's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
4.0
I think I pulled more from this second book written by Monique Morris. Even saying that, I must say that I have learned a tremendous amount from both books which I hope to apply to my own teaching and interactions with my students.
In this book Morris focuses more on all of the black and brown girls mentioned in the subtitle as compared to those girls most vulnerable to Pushout which she highlights in her first book. She also has her first book as a strong reference that she can connect to throughout this book.
One of the main drawbacks I have from the book is the fact that it is so short. I wanted more. However, the length will make it easier to return to and pull from everything that I annotated throughout my read.
In this book Morris focuses more on all of the black and brown girls mentioned in the subtitle as compared to those girls most vulnerable to Pushout which she highlights in her first book. She also has her first book as a strong reference that she can connect to throughout this book.
One of the main drawbacks I have from the book is the fact that it is so short. I wanted more. However, the length will make it easier to return to and pull from everything that I annotated throughout my read.