I read my first James Baldwin novel (Go Tell it on the Mountain) in late 2013, so for the entirety of #ReadWomen2014, I was anxiously awaiting the opportunity to read more James Baldwin. The events of Ferguson made his writing all the more relevant (unfortunately), and Melville House recently published his last interview, making James Baldwin very top-of-mind for me.

I can't really describe Giovanni's Room without revealing that it disappointed me. The prose is stark and beautiful and it's an intensely rendered love story, BUT -- it's probably the first novel to make me realize how much #ReadWomen2014 has changed me. The fact that there's a few very minor female characters doesn't necessarily bother me; it is, after all, one of the most significant gay novels ever published, so it's not really a book about women. But that said, I just wasn't able to connect with it in the way I expected to, nor in the way that I did with Go Tell it on the Mountain. It's such a brief little book, but it just left me cold in a way I haven't experienced in a long time.

Black History Month is something every elementary school kid becomes familiar with -- along with figures like George Washington Carver (peanuts!). Most adults spend little/no time thinking about African American history, either in the month of February or any other time of year, but we should all view it as a good time to inject our reading with some much-needed diversity. Thus, my picks for great reads to celebrate Black History Month:

The Souls of Black Folk by W.E.B. Du Bois -- Not an easy book, but an important one, and if I can read it, so can you. This is out of copyright too, which means it's very easy to get an audio or e-book version of it.

The Autobiography of Malcolm X -- I read this in junior high, which strikes me as very amusing now. What were my parents thinking? I remember really loving the first half, which chronicles his life as a pimp and a thief in great detail. As an adult, I found much more to appreciate in the political content, so I guess there's something for everyone in this book.

Martin Luther King, Jr.: A Life by Marshall Frady -- Penguin Lives Biographies are terrific, and I have many, many on my shelves, including this one. After you've seen 'Selma,' read this succinct biography and appreciate the fact that MLK Jr. is a much more interesting human that you were ever taught in school.

Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin -- Every human should read James Baldwin. This is his most essential novel, but it's all good, and he also wrote some terrific essays throughout the Civil Rights movement.

Anything by Toni Morrison -- She is the essential African American authoress and she's a prolific writer, with a new novel coming out this spring. Start with The Bluest Eye, then try Beloved. Song of Solomon is Barack Obama's favorite novel.