The Atlas of Reds and Blues

I'm generally a big fan of friends recommending books to me. I like that they are thinking of me and sharing some of their favorite reads. This book was gifted to me by a friend for a Christmas book exchange and I was so excited to give it a read.

The Atlas of Reds and Blues by Devi S. Laskar is about an Indian American woman living in the Atlanta suburbs and dealing with constant microaggressions against her because of her race. The novel centers around the process of her bleeding to death from a police inflicted gunshot wound. The narrative is then comprised of flashbacks throughout her life of growing up in the South as an outsider and raising her children amongst the same issues.

This book was published in 2019. Since then the movement against police brutality has continued to grow and push back. This book feels very timely after the events of 2020 and the controversy surrounding the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. 

One of the emotionally strongest points in this book for me was the constant microaggressions that Mother, the main character, is faced with. She is constantly being asked "subtly" racist things. She faces it at the grocery store, the dry cleaners, her neighborhood, work, and at her children's school. It all comes to a head when the police won't leave her alone and she has finally had enough. However, the microaggressions reminded me of another book.

I felt like this book goes hand in hand with Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine. It also details many microaggressions that people of color experience on a daily basis. It also includes a page in honor of the many innocent people who have died at the hands of the police. I highly recommend both of these books. 

I'd say that if you're looking for a straight-forward, easy, light read, this is not the book. It's much more literary, covers a heavy topic, and it is written in a "stream of consciousness" style. But it is well worth the effort of reading it and gaining empathy and understanding.

This was Laskar's debut book. She grew up in the South and the novel was based on her own experiences of a police raid on her house back in 2010. It's a stirring and emotional story and learning about the author's experience deepens the reading even more.

I recommend this for adult fiction readers and those looking for an increased understanding of the microaggressions and brutality experienced by people of color. You can purchase a copy here.