Photo by Allie Holloway
Cree Myles
Cree Myles
Cree Myles is an artist in many senses of the word. Writer, singer and actress are just a few terms that apply to her. Since 2020 she has run the Instagram account All Ways Black, where she reviews and curates Black literature of all kinds, plus she conducts interviews with Black authors. Myles utilizes her platform to challenge the literary status quo while building a sense of community between readers and influencers alike.
The All Ways Black website reads, “There are Infinite Ways to be Black. To be Black and joyful and awestruck. To be Black and to amplify, or to agitate, or to celebrate. They are all important. They are all glorious. And nothing quite captures this truth like literature.”
Born and raised in Milwaukee, Cree Myles grew up an avid reader. She spent a lot of time at Milwaukee Public Library’s Capitol Branch, recalling, “I distinctly remember walking into the library and just succumbing to the peace from being there. There’s this duality of it being so quiet yet so loud with all the stories around you.”
She cites Ann M. Martin’s The Baby Sitters Club, R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps, Carol Plum-Ucci’s What Happened to Lani Garver, Mary Downing Hahn’s Look for Me By Moonlight and The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah as formative books to her childhood and young adulthood.
Start Reading!
Myles graduated from Alverno College with a bachelor’s degree in community leadership and development. As she got older, Myles dabbled in acting and music. Eventually she began blogging, which became where she would first review books. “My priority was to try to get people who didn’t read to start reading,” Myles notes. “I only did it for a little bit and then pivoted, but it did help me ramp up my writing skills a lot.”
In 2021, Myles teamed up with book publisher Penguin Random House to curate “Black Like We Never Left,” a read-a-thon celebrating Black literature. Their debut program focused on Toni Morrison, challenging readers to finish one of her novels (Beloved, Song of Solomon or Sula) in a week. Upon the read-a-thon’s conclusion, Myles did her first author interview with Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Following the success of “Black Like We Never Left,” Penguin Random House offered Cree Myles the role of curating an Instagram platform focusing entirely on Black literature, officially launching her career as a “Bookstagrammer.” Myles’ husband coined the platform’s name.
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All Ways Black organizes book recommendations by categories. Genres span romance, queerness, science fiction, humanities, spirituality, children’s books, cookbooks and more - all written from a Black experience. The platform’s Instagram highlights new releases, poses reading challenges such as D.E.A.R. (Drop Everything and Read) sessions, holds awards galas, and shares Myles’ commentary on different books and topics.
True Impact
Myles is cognizant of whiteness that permeates through the publishing world while she strives to promote books that truly impact her, adding, “It’s important that Black writers have a chance for their books to be celebrated. I also think that Black writers deserve real literary criticism; it’s diminutive to pretend that they don't because that would rob us of our humanity as well.”
Her latest author interviews are with Percival Everett and Phillip B. Williams. A writer herself, Myles’ 2022 essay “Modern Horror Is the Perfect Genre for Capturing the Black Experience” for the Electric Literature website.
“With the way that our attention spans are constantly in competition with different things, I love that books help slow you down,” Myles contends. “I’m attracted to that. I think it would help society as a whole if we moved slower, more deliberately and more critically. We can’t let our imaginations shrivel up, and that’s what books help solve. Reading a good story is rebellious.”
Cree Myles is soon launching a podcast with fellow Bookstagrammer Chinelo (@interestedinblackbooks), plus she is working on piloting a variety show. For James Baldwin’s 100th birthday this year, Myles plans to collaborate with Penguin Random House on an interview series focusing on the late author’s cultural impact. She also coaches local track team Milwaukee Speed.
“You won’t always remember the details,” Myles concludes, “but you’ll never forget what a book did to you.”
Visit All Ways Black on Instagram @allwaysblack and Cree Myles @creemyles.
