K's Books

I first read this book during seminary, probably 2018. It had been on my to-read list for years but very few copies were available and, as I've written here before, I rarely purchase a book I haven't read. Seminary was so disappointing that I assigned myself Native American liberation theology books to make sure I'd learn something, and I bought this despite my misgivings. This now was my second time reading it. Gunn Allen's connection of Native (she differentiates between nations and does not generalize) cosmologies, creation stories, social structures, and survival techniques is fantastic. It can get a little dry and repetitive, but this is incredibly important work - especially because she's very obviously not writing for an academic audience. I greatly enjoyed, both my first time reading and now, her more autobiographical sections. Her connection of Native liberation theology to lesbian identity, community, and culture is unique, which she acknowledges, and very...

Although I wanted to read all of Craighead's books for years, I didn't have access to any of them until autumn 2022 when I discovered 2 of them at the Clarke University library in Dubuque. She studied there and several of her original prints are on campus! This is one of the books there, and I lovingly read it a few times before getting my own copy.  I now own 4 books by Craighead, she wrote 4 more before this one and copies of those are even harder to find. This one pairs an artwork with either a poem or small essay on her life over just 80 pages. This was perhaps my sixth or seventh rereading and I still cherish it. Having just read Judy Chicago's Birth Project, I'm curious if that influenced Craighead as there are so many similar themes.  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/781444.The_Mother_s_Songs 

Shortly before Thanksgiving, I visited Sinsinawa Mound for the first time in a few years. It had been closed for construction and I drove by every few months to check on the progress. At last it was open during this visit, and on the receptionist's desk was a list of books for sale. I'd never heard of any of them, but when I saw the time period this book covered I ordered a copy. This was my first time reading it. This isn't the kind of book you sit down and read cover to cover, it contains many lists, names, and dates. There are few details - hopefully once their archives are digitized, I'll be able to fall down the rabbit holes listed in the Reference Notes. Two months before I was born, the Sinsinawa Dominicans hosted an Arts Festival celebrating their history of visual and performance arts! I had no idea, and hopefully someday I'll be able to access a copy of the SinsiNOVA publication issue about it!  Although I'm glad to have this book as a reference, it wa...

I first discovered this book about a year ago when I explored the Loras College library. As a rule, I won't purchase a copy of a book that I haven't read, but this was a rare exception. After skimming it for around a half hour, I knew that I needed my own copy! This was my first time reading it. What's so significant about this book is Weaver wrote about the development of Catholic feminism while it was happening; I haven't encountered any other books that did this. She compared Catholic feminist theologians to each other during their careers, as well as the ongoing impacts of the Goddess movement. I have a few books that treat this period in the mid-80's as history, but Weaver was an analyst of this movement in real time.  My two main experiences while reading this book: 1) I know what happens after its publication, I know where the careers of these theologians went and I know that most of them are now dead. Weaver writes with a few vague predictions of the future,...