"Sponsored" Post- Virgin Soul

Virgin Soul by Judy Juanita is about a young black woman trying to both simultaneously educate herself academically and socially. Geniece grows up in 1960s Oakland without her parents, feeling pressured to earn her degree and a steady gig. She studies hard through two years of community college so that she can transfer to CSU San Francisco. Meanwhile, she becomes entrenched in the Black Panther movement during an extremely volatile time in the Civil Rights Movement. Geniece must also handle her love life, and the serious implications it has by the end of the book. 

This typically would not be something I would normally choose for myself, although I am glad I had the opportunity to read about a portion of history I know little about. Reading from an African American woman's perspective during the radical sixties was also new for me- it was a voice that I can definitely appreciate. My one issue with the book was the last twenty or so pages- so many important events were packed in, as well as (what I thought) an unnecessary interaction between Geniece and some children she helps take care of (if it would have happened earlier in the book it would have worked better).

While I don't thin Virgin Soul is for everyone, those that are interested in the African American perspective of the sixties, or the Black Power movement, should probably give it a try. As someone from Northern California, I also got a kick out of reading places I've visited or spent time.