Victoria Foyt has commented that there has been a “ lack of racial commentary” for her book “Save the Pearls”. I am taking it to mean that no one has inspected the book from a racial/racism perspective. Someone forward her this post by Dion Beary, ‘Save the Pearls”, which is quiet excellent. Maybe this way she would learn something. Here are is a little excerpt: 

To put it lightly, this book is problematic, but to put it more accurately, this book is catastrophically misguided. It doesn’t take much effort to unpack the racial implications of this one. You don’t need to look any further than Foyt’s own summary of the novel. The protagonist, Eden Newman (the name Eden here obviously is meant to signify purity), lives in a world where dark-skinned people are the dominate members of society. They’re known as Coals. I can’t imagine why the ruling class of the world would choose to name themselves after something so dirty. Oh wait. It’s probably because Victoria Foyt is a racist. Eden

Newman has the unfortunate luck to have been born blonde-haired and blue-eyed. These people are known as Pearls. Again, the ruling class of society inexplicably gives a better name to the supposed underclass. Wow, it’s almost as if white people are still the dominate class, even in a fantasy novel based on the premise that they’re oppressed. In this post-apocalyptic world, those with darker-skin are more valued because they’re better equipped to handle the intense heat of the planet. Therefore, Pearls are considered weak, ugly, and have the lowest chance to find a good mate. However, choosing to defy the logic of her own novel, Foyt writes that mixed-race children, even though they can survive the heat better, are still ridiculed in a similar fashion to the Pearls. Why? Who the fuck knows?

My favorite part is how the Uni-Gov, the Big Black Brother of Foyt’s novel, has a law that says the Pearls are only allowed to go outside at night, and only if they’re wearing heavy layers of makeup to darken their skin. That’s right: black face features prominently in this totally not racist novel. Foyt writes that even if Pearls follow all the oppressive rules created for them, they’re still considered lucky to survive to their 40′s. You know, kind of like black men such as Troy Davis and Trayvon Martin.

Edit: An amazing black person wrote her a letter, too. It’s an excellent piece.