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The first book in a series of autobiographical incidences chronicling the life and voice of an outspoke Black girl. Sonia at age 7 refused to stand and pledge allegiance to the flag because she didn't see "liberty and justice for all."Monsters & Aliens is likened to the Diary of Anne Frank, as they both magnify the voices of children speaking their truth, a truth less jaded by the normalcy of lies?Imagine the voice you wish they heard while growing up. Imagine feeling valued for your race, complexion, features, textures, and socio-economic status. Likewise, imagine being encouraged to use your voice regularly in an effort to stand unwavering for the things that matter to you the most. All of the things my parents, family, and friends said made me beautiful, were the very things used to tear her down.For 7-year old Sonia, her voice was forced to mature sooner than her peers because too often Black children are expected to deal with adult situations as if they instinctively know better and are inherently prepared. "Monsters & Aliens" is a coming-of-age story that speaks to Sonia's journey of seeking to understand the forced tradition and norm of saying the Pledge of Allegiance to a flag. This story illuminates the juxtaposition of being American and Black, without reaping the benefits of "freedom and justice for all."It tells the tale of two Americas, with staunchly different rules and results. The America that has been highly dependent upon ideations of anti-blackness to sustain the white normative we've all become conditioned to accept, is put under the microscope. Sonia Williams-Lewis at age 50 finally gives voice to her 7-year old self, a Black girl from California refusing to say the Pledge of Allegiance and the consequences associated with said decision."Monsters & Aliens" isn't just about Sonia's refusal to say the Pledge of Allegiance, nor is it about the punishment. It is more about courage, asserting agency, adultification, racism, socio-economic inequities, and the layers we wear while trying to make sense of our way through the swampy parts of life's journey.

This collection of essays brings together some of the biggest names in British archaeology to pay tribute to Sonia Chadwick Hawkes. The bulk of the essays are, as one might expect on Anglo-Saxon archaeology, culture and society, amny of them on sites in Kent, with a section on antiquarianism and collecting, and a section looking back at the life and career of Sonia Chadwick Hawkes.

Art. Art Criticism. This monograph traces Sonia Boyce's trajectory from early graphic work to her recent mixed-media pieces which draw on elements of British popular culture and cinema to address society's positioning of individuals in terms of race, class and gender. Unquestionably serious and with an unquestionable sense of humor, Boyce's work, ranging from photography to painting and installations, is here widely represented, and well-complemented by three intelligent essays by Gilane Tawadros, a biography of the artist, and, alongside the essays, excellently chosen excerpts from Boyce's working diaries. Tawadros' essays address cultural, racial, gender and visual/art historical issues raised over the trajectory of Boyce's artistic development, using such theorists as Homi Bhabha, Frantz Fanon, Italo Calvino, and Stuart Hall to contextualize the artist's magnificent and provocative work.