TBR

Take the Mic is a fictional anthology of resistance against everyday microaggressions and injustices. The stories and poems are profound, emotional, hopeful and at times disturbing. Take the Mic contains a lot of parallels with today’s society creating a lot of engagement and self-reflection for the reader. ( )

Average Rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.6

This anthology has been on my highly anticipated releases list since the exact day it was announced. And I’m so so glad that I finally got the opportunity to read it. This was powerful, nuanced, thought provoking, made me very emotional or enraged at times, but also gave me hope. We all need some hope in our lives.

As the world around us gets increasingly divided and marginalized people have to fight for their rights even harder every day, this is a very powerful collection of poems and stories about young people who are also fighting to get their voices heard. There are a lot of important themes and messages discussed in this book but the one thing I found very relevant and impactful was that protesting physically at a march or a rally isn’t the only form of resistance, and everyone should try to do whatever they can in their sphere of influence; but sometimes, it’s okay to take a break when you are exhausted and spend some time on self care without feeling guilty that you aren’t doing enough. Every form of resistance counts.

Below are my individual reviews, wherever I was able to write one.

GRACE: A SHORT STORY BY DARCIE LITTLE BADGER

The story of a young indigenous girl, this is about her standing up for herself and not allowing anyone to disrespect her. It may feel like a very small thing but I thought what Grace does is very powerful and I loved it. There is also the underlying theme of wanting to find the one place you can call home and what it would actually feel like to have one. Very very moving.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SHIFT: A POEM BY JASON REYNOLDS

I’m not very good at understanding poems and that was the case here. It was very short and I didn’t know what the author was trying to say. But I will leave it unrated because it’s just not my thing and not a fault of the poem itself.

Rating: Unrated

THE HELPERS: A SHORT STORY BY L. D. LEWIS

I think this story really captured the guilt that some people might feel who want to fight the injustices they see everyday but are unable to participate in protests for whatever reason; it wonderfully depicts that anything you can do during adversity counts as resistance and you don’t always have to put yourself in physical danger to show your solidarity and standup for your beliefs.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

FIGHTING THE BLUES: A COMIC BY CONNIE SUN

This might just be a small comic strip but it’s message is very universal - a lot of things that happen around you can bring you down but it’s important to remember that you are not alone and you shouldn’t give up. And the art really captured that essence of despair.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

ARE YOU THE GOOD KIND OF MUSLIM?: A POEM BY SAMIRA AHMED

As you can guess from the title of this poem, it was heartbreaking to read - how very young, brown, Muslim children are asked pointed questions about their faith which seem innocuous on the surface but are seeped full of racism and Islamophobia. And however old these young kids grow up to be and feel they are ready to handle these bad faith questions, it’s never easy. This particular line from the poem just destroyed me ( )

"Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."

"I can't let them stay out there alone, saying these hateful and false things, without someone countering them. Because if they're the only voice out there, then they're right by default." ( )