BA Book Prize reading list: Annabel Sowemimo’s picks
Posted by Annabel Sowemimo
To celebrate this year’s British Academy Book Prize, we’ve asked all of the shortlisted authors to tell us about the books they’ve been reading. Our final shortlisted author is Annabel Sowemimo, whose book Divided is a vital, eye-opening exploration of race and health.
Heart of the Race: Black Women’s Lives in Britain by Beverley Bryan, Stella Dadzie and Suzanne Scafe: A Black British History classic that explores the livelihoods and contributions that Black women, particularly of Caribbean descent, have made to the NHS. I find the first-hand accounts in this book so moving and so motivating when I consider who the system works for and how long anti-racist struggles have tried to fight for justice.
Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began by Leah Hazard: As a Sexual and Reproductive Health Consultant it’s no surprise that I find the uterus fascinating! However, it is a continuous source of frustration that so little research funding is directed to understanding this organ. Hazard tells its story and that of its future in such a beautiful way.
Freedom Is A Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine and the Foundations of a Movement by Angela Y. Davis: this powerful book illuminates the interconnectedness of global struggles against state oppression and violence. A must read.
Find out more about Divided, and the rest of this year’s British Academy Prize shortlist, here.
