Dr. Cornel West

Molik Bus has all the knowledge you want. My Leak Bus has all the knowledge you need.

Chat they have all the books that the whole wild world one of read League Bus. Welcome, Welcome, Welcome to Malik's Bookshow, bringing a world together with books, culture and community. Hi, my name is Malik, your host of Malik's Book Show. I'm outside. I'm in nature. You might hear some crookeds, you might hear some wind, you might hear some airplanes going around. You might even hear somebody huffing and puffing and running down the field.

But I'm out in the wild.

I'm out in the nature, I'm out in the community, and I'm sitting here recording my podcast.

It was a wonderful, wonderful week.

I want to share an interview I did with Jessica and Parker Carrie.

At the bookstore.

We did a podcast line at the bookstore with gold Daddy. We were filming a video about our brand, our mission at Malik Books. And Jessica and Parker Carry, who wrote a couple of books, well not just a couple more they got about eight books.

And she started when she was two years old.

Parker Carry with Parker looks up and the latest book is.

The Slumber Party.

But I interviewed both Parker and Jessica her mother at Malik Books, and I'm gonna share that interview.

You're gonna hear. She's nine now and.

Like I said, got about eight books and she started out at two years old with the first one. So she's talking with me as well as her mother, and I'm gonna feature that interview. Also was invited to Tavis Smiley. Y'all know Tavis Smiley. He's only one of the most decorated host that was on I Believe It air for like fourteen years with PBS as an interview hosted the PPS Show, interview just about everybody that you can think of, from Obama to Biden, to.

Celebrities and you name it. He's interviewed him. Well.

Anyway, I was invited to his birthday party, but more important it was his sixtieth birthday party.

But more importantly it.

Was his.

His celebration of the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award that he received by Joe Biden. So it was a combination of an award ceremony to share with the people that love him, the friends and the family.

The Presidential Lifetime Achievement.

Award that he received by Joe Biden and his sixtieth birthday party. Malik was honored to be a guest and be invited to a stellar event downtown in LA on a short list like that. That was amazing, It was incredible. It was man just to be there. It lets me know that I'm doing something. Then I'm doing something in

So I'm honored because Tavis is known.

You can watch the State of the Union videos, the State of Black America videos, the State of the Union videos that he's done over the years where he invited some of the top intellectual educators, scholars, grassroots leaders, political advocates, you name it. They've been at the State of the Union and they still run those State of the Unions. I guess on YouTube in the house was Cordnell West,

The main honorary award ceremony.

For Tavis Smyle. They've been together for a long time. They've traveled this whole globe. They've done so many things together, and they're very close and dear friend like brothers. Where doctor Cornell West was in the house and he threw down this is the most intellectual, most extraordinary person I think I've ever interviewed, simply because this brother.

Has taught some of the greatest sea because.

You know, he taught at Harvard University. He taught that major university, I mean, you name it, he's been there.

And this guy is one of.

The most intellectual, one of the most educated, one of the most gifted brothers.

That I was able to talk to briefly.

I was able to get a sound bite from about the importance of reading.

I'm running out on this show.

But doctor Cornell West, I never thought that I would run into him or have a conversation with him, Not that I ever thought about it, but the fact that the matter is, we were all in the same house and I said to mine, I got to run up on doctor Cornell. That's the most Listen, we talk about WD boys, we talk about Booker t Why, we talk about a lot of advocates intellectuals, extraordinary leaders of yesterday. Doctor Cornell West is a modern day leader. Tavin Smarty

Day w E D the Boys. Let's just keep it real.

He's the modern day w E D the Boys because because he back in the day he was an insulact. He was known as doing the Harlem renalsce w E the boyd. I'm sorry, doctor w E the Boys. He was the modern day you know, he was back in the past. He was the renaissance, Holland Renaissance. He was, you know, known for all education, and he talked to the masters of the people, and he had a philosophy.

He was highly.

Educated, and he wanted to see black people elevate in America despite past slavery and oppression and so forth. Anyway, doctor Cort there, it's the modern day w boy. That's the level that this brother has been on and the impact that he's made. He can he everywhere he travels. I was told his students always recognize him. A lot of his students are running major corporations. A lot of his students are palanzouses. A lot of his students are

Oh, brother Malik, I'm telling you read. You get a chance to think. When you think critically, you get a chance to cultivate courage and bad worldness to make the world a better place. And there's a lot of joy in reading, not just pleasure, but joy in reading. Deplore the world's explore the dementias of what it is to be human. And then at the same time, you can do it rhythmically, brother, I mean you say, do it with.

A little style.

You do it off, beating on the beat, little dissonance here, little residence there.

Yes, yes, because that's what read on you we got.

Well, we gotta love the young folk and be an example of them, so they want to read and reach y'all to them.

How y'all doing that?

Yes, yes, doctor Webb, thank you.

Welcome, Welcome, Welcome to Malie's Book Show, bringing a world together with books, culture and community. Hi, my name is Malik, your host of Malik's Book Show. Welcome Jessica and Parker.

Thank you. We're so excited to be here.

Wonderful.

Well, hey y'all two big upcoming children authors, and I'm so excited that I have you on my podcast today and we're gonna get right into it. We're gonna talk about your wonderful book that came out a.

Few years ago.

So when you became a child author, both of you collaborated on this book.

Called Parker Looks Up. Can you tell me how that came about?

So Parker Looks Up as our first book, and it was really inspired by a really special moment that Parker and I and her sister had at the National Portrait Gallery in DC, where I was born and raised in where Parker was born. The Obama portraits had just been unveiled, and I thought that it would be really important and special for Parker and her sister to see the portraits and just recognize like the excellence in who the Obamas

Parker, turn around, turn around, turned around, and she wouldn't turn around.

And two seconds later she zipped down the hallway and we left that day. I left feeling inspired, feeling proud. And the next morning I woke up to literally hundreds of text messages and phone calls from family friends, from colleagues, like elementary school friends, aunties, uncles from all over the country. And it's a really funny story because at the time I was really adamant that I wasn't gonna post my children's faces on the internet. I didn't want them to

And it was a picture of her looking up at.

Michelle Obama's portrait in that moment when I couldn't get her to turn around, and her mouth was just open, and she was clearly having an extraordinary moment with that portrait. And the photo went viral and it was shared all over the world in different languages with all people. Yeah, who would have thought, right, And then the visits to the museum turned into this really special, inspiring moment, and you know when it happened, I was just I was honored.

Was like, you know, I don't know.

I think Parker's happy going to ballet, being a little kid, being a two year old doing the things that she loves, and I'm happy with that too.

That fills me up. But I'm I wanted to do.

Something special for not only her, so that she could really hold on to this moment and understand.

How impactful it was as she grew up.

But I also wanted little boys and girls all over the country, all over the world who might not have the opportunity to get to DC to see the portrait, to see it. And that's why it's in the book that reimagining of the portrait is in the book, so that other kids can see it and they can feel the magic of that moment. So I wrote the book and it became a New York and it was an

Absolute Parker, how has this whirlwind been? You started his journey.

Two Now you what nine? Yeah, look at that, that's seven years.

Tell us about how this journey this world when you've been on, not every nine year old has experienced being an author and being going viral.

It's different than most other kids because every almost every time I walk into a new classroom because I'm in second grade, I go to third grade and my teacher goes.

Wait a minute, you're Parker.

Every teacher that I've ever met will almost do that exact same response to me, knowing that I'm a New York Times bestselling author.

Man, that's incredible.

Not only a New York Times bestseller, but you nine people you have inspired inspired over these years through Parker looks Up and all the other subsequent books Thing you got books came out to help people read level one.

Are there some level twos and threes.

There's just level one of the ready to read's right now. But our literary.

Collection continues to grow. We feel really lucky that we've had the opportunity to keep writing books and having them keep being published by Simon and Schuster, who's been such a wonderful partner much like you, thank you. And we

It's new.

They're finding inspiration in the littlest pieces of the world that we live in.

And so we just we just feel really true, that's true.

And it's all about taking that moment and then moret you know, making it immortalize it, Yeah, make it live forever. And that's what you've done in these books. Because books is the gift keeps on.

Gift keeps on giving forever.

Yes, and so Parker, that must be incredible. You go out, you speak to kids and adults, and you.

Do book signings. Tell us about that and that experience.

Book tangs are a lot of fun because most of the time when I do book signings, a lot of people that I know would come and support me.

Yes, yes, yes, you got a lot of new friends. Yeah, yes, yes, Now I got a question. You got a cell phone, Yeah, you got a social media account, post a lot of things that you have done, your books, your events.

Yes, yes, that's right.

So you got control on round yeah yeah, yeah, but that's good because I'll follow you.

Yeah, we follow We've all miss from Elite TiO.

Yes, yes, yes, you know.

I you know, I remember the day that you came to Elite Books here right here at the Westfield Mall.

And we met and from then we built a relationship.

We posted events at the Los Angeles Festival Books and you the book signings with us several times. And we've also done events right here at the Westfield Mall during the Winner I think it was called the Widow Wonderland and last year there was incredible and and we'll continue to do more events in the future.

But just tell us about that relationship. What brought you to Malite Books? Did you stumble on us?

I did?

I did.

Indeed. You know, I'm from d.

C and we all from d born and raised in d C, d M d M V right, d m V d M v DC.

Proper, we're from d C B not Maryland born.

And so we had just we just moved to California about three years ago during the pandemic. You know, I think a lot of people realized during the pandemic, like life is short. You need to go do what you want to do, and do it now because you never know when the last day is going to be. And so we had just moved here, We've probably been here a week, and we were like, let's go to the mall.

I need to go on in.

And we walked up and as I got closer, my my mouth just got wider and wider and wider, because what I could see through the glass was this wall on this side right, and all I could see was ceiling to floor books by black authors, authors of color, books featuring main characters of color, little black kids, little black boys, picture books. That one bookshelf up there used to be all picture books. And I said, oh, I

I said, our book, we have our book. I was so excited.

I literally cut through the aisles and I came up here and I was like, Hi, how are you, sir? I need to speak to the owner and he said, oh, well, you got the right person, that's me. And I said, listen, can I just express gratitude just before I say anything, Let me just express gratitude for this beautiful bookstore you have, with all these beautiful minority books, all these children's picture books with children of color.

I said, I cry. I said, I'm this is incredible.

I've never seen this many black books and whate place, which, of course from we're very excited to hear that. And you know, I went on to say you know. My name is Jessica. I'm from DC. Immediately we connected over that, of course, and I was like, you have my book on your bookshelf and he was.

Like, what do I What book is it? And I said, Parker looks up. Immediately he comes around the counter.

We're hugging, we're talking. I said, you know what, we just moved here. I haven't been in one other bookstore in LA yet.

But I want you, if you will.

Have us, I want you to be our partner in California when we do events.

I want you to be our bookseller.

I will tell our publisher you are who we use when we do events.

And let's be partners. Let's lift each other up.

Let's make community together and inspire the community together.

Whatever we can do together, let's do it. And I think.

It probably wasn't but a few months after that we probably did our first event together. It's been three years now that we've had this wonderful, wonderful, beautiful relationship. We check in with each other, we do events together, we try to help each other however we can. Whenever someone finds out that Parker and I are authors, that we have these beautiful books, the first thing I say is go to myleek books. Hello, he carries all the books.

Just just really just really grateful to have you in our life.

Wonderful, wonderful.

You know, I'm blessed, you know, to beat it on that day to meet you. You know, I could have been some will, but everything came together and no coincidence. We were meant to meet and we were meant to work together, and that has taken place now. You know, you walked into the books store, you saw the legacy wall. I got sixty foot of children books leading all the way up to young adult.

Nothing like it in the country.

Now, Parker, I believe children of one hundred percent of the future.

Absolutely.

Everything we do.

Here is to inspire you in the next generation, and you, at such an early age, is doing just that. You know, when I look at your books and I see the images, the illustrations, and the Parker looks up expressed a very positive image of a little young black Girl, and your books have evolved to show a melting pot of young boys and girls and inspire them to read.

I just want you to.

You know, tell me in your own words, how does that feel?

It feels great?

Wow, amazing?

And I'm I'm.

Sure that each book leads to the next book. And the next book that just came out was Parker Summer Party. How did that come about?

Uh? It just came about because when I was younger and I lived in Washington, I had a best friend named Ga Jones, which is in the Bucks, and we had summer parties all the time. We'd stay up almost all night talking. We couldn't get to bed, even if our mom thought we were asleep, we were. We were away playing, doing stuff in gas bed, messing with her clock, breaking something probably wow.

Having fun. Yes, having a good time. Ka's Slummer Party is an expression of just you being.

A young girl.

Huh yeah.

Yeah. And is that how you come up with the idea DearS for all of your books?

Yeah? Yes, Real stories are stories, stories that matter to her. She does a lot of the leading now. She chooses what we're going to write about, what the next story is going to be about. And I think that is what makes them so special, is that they're real stories that are universal. Right, everybody can relate to their first slumber party, whether it was with friends or cousins, or at an auntie or an uncle's house. Slumber parties, we all go through that.

So, Yes, and I think one of the titles of you book, Parker's Big Feelings, is that the title, Yeah, Parker's big feeling, and well, what's the big feeling?

The big feelings are because at seven, eight, nine years old, we have big feelings, we do, and you know, even adults we have big feelings, you know, and mental health is really important to me, it's one of my passions. And I felt like writing a story about something that's super personal to her, super personal to me as a mom, trying to help her manage those big feelings, trying to manage my big feelings and helping her with her big feelings. Everybody can relate to that, you know, And there's a

Yes, where they all the books are inspiring, they're encouraging, they're motivating, they're uplifting. You're touching a lot of kids, you're touching a lot of parents.

Listen.

What you're doing is incredible and I just want you to know it.

If nobody else did. I know your mama didn't told.

You that, but I'm telling you as Alit the owner of Malique Books.

I'm very impressed. I'm looking to see what's next.

I've been following you since the first book, and I'm gonna continue to follow you until further books. Just just the beginning, I could see the big screen. I could see probably unanimated story on TV on your books, the character Parker.

Wouldn't that be amazing? I got it out of them.

Yes, it's a.

Amation series coming to you soon.

It's in production.

If you know a buyer, hello, you know someone that Netflix, Disney, let us know.

But yeah, we're working on it. It's in production right now.

That means you gotta look out for Jessica and Parker carry You need to tell them where to find you right now.

You can find us on Instagram at Parker Curry. It's Parker's Instagram. We also have another Instagram, happy mom and happy Babies. That's my where I put all my things that the kids are doing. Things that I'm doing with the kids inspire me.

As five hundred and fifty eight photos.

Hell say that again, I did not have that many photos.

Yay.

No, I wish I had enough.

Time, so much I don't. That is well, you just heard it on Malik's Bookshelf.

Bringing a world together with books, culture and community.

I'll guess Jessica and Parker carry.

Thank you, Thank you, mister Meligue, thank you.

Thanks for listening to Malik's Bookshelf, where topics on the shelf are books, culture, and community. Be sure to subscribe and leave me a review. Check out my instagram at Malak Books. See you next time,