Check out the book talk and review video for The Raven and Other Poems by Edgar Allan Poe released by Scholastic.

As a former English teacher and librarian, book talks were a staple in my classroom and library. I used to post my book talks and reviews on educatorbarnes.com. Now, I am shifting them to my business page because we get asked a lot for book recommendations at Blazing Brilliance. For the book talks and book…

Check out the book talk and review video for The Venus Hottentot by Elizabeth Alexander.

Check out the book talk and review video for African Americans in Indianapolis by David Leander Williams.

Check out the book talk and review video for Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts by Rebecca Hall.

Blazing Brilliance launched its first of four book clubs in the summer of 2023. Educator Barnes and her sister Alice Stockton hosted the Stockton Sisters Summer Book Club and will do so again summer of 2024.

Check out episode 71 – Taking Over a Classroom After the Start of the School Year

Happy Black History Month! #BlackHistoryMonth #BHM #RepresentationMatters

Check out our video about educator Gertrude Amelia Mahorney.

Author Deedee Cummings and illustrator Charlene Mosley have teamed up again for another book. This time I had the pleasure of reading Kayla: A Modern-Day Princess – A Little Magic.

The first sentence of Old to Joy is, “Joy’s Grandmama lived in an old house, on an old street, with old trees, and all kinds of old things.” In the author’s note at the back of the book, author and illustrator Anita Crawford Clark noted that she had written a version of that sentence in 1998. Years later, it grew into this book.

A few years ago, I purchased the book There’s Something I Have to Tell You All Mommy Has Cancer by Towanna Hogue. Although I thought the title was too wordy, I was intrigued by the subject matter. Mommy Has Cancer should have been the title of this book. It is more direct and to the point.

A few days ago, I received an email alerting me that my boys’ library cards were about to expire.  We stopped by our local library to renew their cards and to check out more books.  My sons are fascinated with animals at the moment, which probably led my son, James, to pick up a book with a little fish on the cover.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver is a dystopian novel where love is considered a disease (amor deliria nervosa) that needs to be cured, and scientists have developed a cure.  The cure is administered to all citizens once they turn eighteen. Lena has three months left until she is cured.  The Book of Shhh (The Safety, Health, and Happiness Handbook) gives citizens guidance on the importance and need for the cure.  Lena takes its readings to heart until she meets Alex and begins to fall in love.  

Check out the book talk and review video for Identity Affirming Classrooms: Spaces that Center Humanity by Dr. Erica Buchanan-Rivera.

Check out episode 70 – Sanctuaries of Knowledge: The Black Church’s Role in Education

This summer, Blazing Brilliance launched its first of four book clubs. Our aim is to have four book clubs per year that coincide with each season of the year. Each book club will have an area of focus.

Check out the book talk and review video for Singularity by William Sleator.

Check out the book talk and review video for Feed by M.T. Anderson.

Welcome to Blazing Brilliance, an education consulting company founded by Educator Barnes. We have been proudly serving clients for two years.