Building Black Literary Spaces: Cree Myles On Books, Representation & Liberation
The Her Agenda podcast is back with another captivating interview! This time, we sit down with Cree Myles, founder of the Black Like We Never Left book club, to discuss the lack of representation in the digital book space and how she’s working to amplify Black authors and stories. Cree shares how reading influential works like Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye, and Audre Lorde’s Sister Outsider, helped liberate her from the confines of respectability politics, and how curating the All Ways Black initiative for Penguin House expanded her mission to celebrate the dynamic Black experience.
Episode Highlights:
1. The Gap Between Black Folks And Reading
● Cree addresses whether there is a gap between Black people and books.
● The lack of books that pique the interest of Black and brown people.
2. What Made Cree Start The Black Like We Never Left Book Club?
- The lack of prioritization of of black authors and stories.
- Cree’s love of Toni Morrison’s books led her to starting the book club.
3. How All Ways Black Expanded Cree’s mission To Promote Black Authors And Their Stories
● Cree’s short-sighted view of Black literary canon.
● The days are good in the Black literary world.
4. How Black Literature Affirmed Or Helped Cree Unlearn Elements Of Her Upbringing
● Escaping from the clutch of respectability politics.
● Ditching the white gaze through literature.
5. Books That Have Liberated Cree And How Her Blackness Should Move Throughout The World
● Sister Outsider and The Transformation of Silence Into Language and Action.
● How Audre Lorde’s writing freed Cree Myles and how she’s using it when faced with things that scare her.
6. All Ways Black And The Black Dynamic Experience
● Being mindful and respectful of nuanced Black experiences.
● The shared Black experience.
7. What Made Cree Sure About Becoming Paid For Reading Books One Day
● Cree admits to having a crazy power complex and how books are her responsible way of using her gifts.
● Becoming insufferable about things that Cree loves and is passionate about.
8. Books Cree Is Currently Reading
● Bram Stoker and Dracula
● Original Sins by Eve Ewing
● Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell
● The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates
9. The Banning Of Important Books
● The stories being banned are as important as those that aren’t.
● It’s a crime to deprive children of these stories that are being banned.
10. Advice To Give To A Young Black Woman Who Wants To Conquer The Same Way Cree Does
● Getting quiet and think about what you really want.
● Make a plan on how to disrupt in an interesting way.
11. What Is Cree’s Favorite Thing About Being Black?
● Being predestined for wonderful things.
● Being a Black woman the same way Toni Morrison is.
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[This episode uses audio from an interview that published in November 2024.]
