Books Are Inherently Political.
Welcome to this week’s edition of Stacks & Spoons, a weekly substack for bookish girls, gays and theys, written by author Jen Wilde. If you enjoy it, make sure to subscribe here.
“Books are a form of political action.
Books are knowledge. Books are reflection.
Books change your mind.”
~ Toni Morrison
There’s been discussion online recently that books should be an escape from reality and nothing more.
Some people want authors to stick to talking about their books, not their politics. There are authors who don’t want to talk about politics, either. They don’t write political books, they say, so why should they inject their political opinions into their social media feeds?
But this is like fish saying they don’t want to talk about the water they swim in. (Pretend, for the sake of that analogy, that fish could talk.) My point is this: it’s impossible for any space to be free of politics. People bring their identities, biases, beliefs, and values everywhere they go – all of which can be influenced or affected by politics.
It’s important to note that a lot of the people calling for bookstagram, booktok, books, and authors to be apolitical are white. A book may seem apolitical to white, cishet, non-disabled folks, but that’s because it mirrors their worldview. It matches their level of privilege, the characters look like them, think like them, they are ‘relatable.’ This is where I wonder if being “apolitical” simply means not wanting to be asked to think of or include the “other.”
Whether people want to accept it or not, books with white, cishet, non-disabled characters and storylines are political, too. They’re just the kind of political that feels comfortable to people who follow the status quo. Choosing to read books that reaffirm your privileged perspective is a political choice. It just is. You’re free to make that choice, of course. But don’t delude yourself into thinking you are removed from politics.
There’s no such thing as being “apolitical.”
You can say you’re apolitical, you can say you’re just not into politics, you can say you keep politics off your social media but saying it doesn’t make it true. Neutrality is a political choice. Silence is a political choice.
I’m a queer, nonbinary, disabled person with a uterus. My existence is political. When laws are passed in DC, they affect me in Brooklyn. When votes are tallied, the outcomes affect me. They affect my bodily autonomy, my healthcare, my marriage, my immigration status, my livelihood as a queer writer who writes queer books. They affect my BIPOC friends, my disabled friends, my queer, trans, and nonbinary friends, my friends who are parents, and their kids. They affect the air we breathe, the transportation we take, the stores we shop at. And as we’ve seen over the last month, they have consequences for people all across the planet.
Books are inherently political.
I’ve never been vague about my politics – one of my most popular lines from QUEENS OF GEEK is, “You can’t pick and choose whose equality you support. That’s not equality.” My latest book, THIS IS THE WAY THE WORLD ENDS, is about marginalized teens uncovering a plot by powerful men to let the world burn for their profit. And my next book, PAIGE NOT FOUND, is about autistic tweens fighting against their own erasure.
Still, every time I post online about Palestine, I lose followers. I’ve lost subscribers here. And I’ve lost readers. (I know because some have angrily announced their departure.)
I don’t know how anyone who has read my books or followed me for more than a week could think I wouldn’t speak up against genocide. I can’t believe I even have to explain why I would speak up against genocide. It’s fucking genocide!
My books, my substack, my Instagram feed, my life, are all inherently political, and I’m not going to apologize for that.
I’ll keep losing followers when I post. I’ll lose subscribers. I’ll lose readers. I’m potentially losing jobs. None of that matters when I look at the number of Palestinian people who have lost their lives – a number that grows every single day.
The numbers I’ve lost were just numbers, people hitting unsubscribe and going on with their comfortable lives.
The numbers lost in Palestine are entire worlds, families, generations. Each number represents someone who held a story inside them. A story that deserved a better ending than what they were given.
BOOKS FOR PALESTINE
Books for Palestine (BFP) is an auction-based fundraising & awareness campaign within the book community to provide emergency relief financial aid for the ongoing crisis in Palestine, and to benefit organizations which look toward Palestine's future and the preservation of Palestinian rights, voices, and culture. Funds will be donated directly by the auction winners to their choice of three organizations, chosen in consultation with Palestinian organizers and activists:
Palestine Children's Relief Fund
Adalah Justice Project
Palestine Writes Literature Festival
I’ve donated a huge book bundle to BFP that includes:
A signed copy of QUEENS OF GEEK
A signed copy of THE BRIGHTSIDERS
A signed copy of GOING OFF SCRIPT
A signed copy of my latest book, THIS IS THE WAY THE WORLD ENDS
Plus a signed ARC of my debut Middle Grade novel, PAIGE NOT FOUND, which doesn’t come out until 2024 – meaning whoever wins will be one of the first to read it!
A bookmark, signed bookplate, and stickers for THIS IS THE WAY THE WORLD ENDS (there will be glitter involved!)
If my book bundle isn’t your cup of tea, no worries! There are literally HUNDREDS of cool bookish items available. I’ve been bidding on a few myself!
Most importantly, the proceeds will benefit the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, Adalah Justice Project, and Palestine Writes Literature Festival.
Of course, donating is not the only action we must take. Keep contacting your reps to demand a ceasefire. It’s the bare minimum.
ICYMI…
Previously, on Stacks & Spoons:
Sorry, But Selena Gomez Is Wrong On This One
You Don't Need To Come Out To Be Queer