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African American Fiction & Non-Fiction July/August 2017
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Main Library Renovation Click on the image below to learn more about Transformation Main.
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New and Recently Released Fiction
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All About Him
by Pat Tucker
The ex-wife of a now-successful singing star blames her former husband and his new wife for all her current woes and vows to get her revenge in this new novel from the author of Somebody Has to Pay.
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Breakfast in Bed
by Rochelle Alers
After losing her job as a professional chef in Manhattan, Tonya Martin heads to New Orleans to follow her dream of opening a restaurant in the Garden District in the second novel of the series following The Inheritance.
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Chasing Down a Dream: a Blessings Novel
by Beverly Jenkins
Jack and Rocky try to plan their wedding while Tamar drops everything for her dying cousin and Gemma tries to foster a pair of orphaned siblings in the latest novel of the series following Stepping to a New Day.
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Can't Stop
by Clifford Johnson
After his family is murdered in a home invasion, Jason "Hot Shot" Gaines sets out for revenge, but first he must hustle up some money on the streets of Dallas.
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Dirty Tricks
by Kiki Swinson
In national best-selling author Kiki Swanson's "Stay Scheming," Karlie Houston is broke, betrayed and running from a bounty on her head; and in Saundra's "Who Can You Trust," struggling bank teller Porsha joins her smart and seductive boyfriend in a plan to steal from the very bank where she works.
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Everybody's Son: a Novel
by Thrity N Umrigar
A lawman struggles to come to terms with the moral fallout of crimes committed by his loved ones when he learns that he was wrongly taken from his biological mother and that his grieving foster father exploited their family's influence to retain custody.
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A Fugitive in Walden Woods
by Norman Lock
After escaping slavery in Virginia, Samuel Long travels the Underground Railroad to Walden Pond where he meets Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne and a host of other transcendentalists and abolitionists and experiences his coming-of-age while his hosts receive a lesson in human dignity.
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Girls From Da Hood 12
by Treasure Hernandez
This collection of urban novellas includes the tales of a drug dealer who winds up in the hospital after coming up $20,000 short in sales and a woman who spent years in the state pen for stabbing the man who attacked her.
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Grand Opening 2
by Carl Weber
Taking over the criminal enterprises of Waycross after a hard-fought battle against their rivals, the Duncan brothers are rocked by the murder of one of their own before discovering that a secret adversary is determined to eliminate their entire family.
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Hollywood Homicide
by Kellye Garrett
Dayna Anderson doesn''t set out to solve a murder. All the semifamous, mega-broke actress wants is to help her parents keep their house. So after witnessing a deadly hit-and-run, she pursues the fifteen grand reward. But Dayna soon finds herself doing a full-on investigation, wanting more than just money--she wants justice for the victim. She chases down leads at paparazzi hot spots, celeb homes, and movie premieres, loving every second of it--until someone tries to kill her. And there are no second takes in real life. ~Book Jacket
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A House Divided
by Donna Hill
After her beloved grandmother dies, journalist Zoie Crawford reluctantly returns home to New Orleans, where she discovers a family secret that will put her personal life and professional career at odds with one another.
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The Idea of You
by Robinne Lee
A middle-aged art gallery owner begins a passionate fling with a member of her daughter’s favorite boy band, who is 19 years her junior, and must fend off rabid fans and insatiable media after their affair becomes a viral sensation.
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A Kind of Freedom: a Novel
by Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
"Evelyn is a Creole woman who comes of age in New Orleans at the height of World War II. Her family inhabits the upper echelon of Black society, and when she falls for no-account Renard, she is forced to choose between her life of privilege and the man she loves. In 1982, Evelyn's daughter, Jackie, is a frazzled single mother grappling with her absent husband's drug addiction. Just as she comes to terms with his abandoning the family, he returns, ready to resume their old life. Jackie's son, T.C., loves the creative process of growing marijuana more than the weed itself. He was a square before Hurricane Katrina, but the New Orleans he knew didn't survive the storm. Fresh out of a four-month stint for drug charges, T.C. decides to start over--until an old friend convinces him to stake his new beginning on one last deal. For Evelyn, Jim Crow is an ongoing reality, and in its wake new threats spring up to haunt her descendants. A Kind of Freedom is an urgent novel that explores the legacy of racial disparity in the South through a poignant and redemptive family history." ~ Book Jacket
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Kintu
by Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
A re-imagined history of Uganda follows the Kintu clan, beginning in 1750 when Kintu Kidda unleashes a curse that plagues his family for generations
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The Last Hack: a Jack Parlabane Thriller
by Christopher Brookmyre
A teen forced to set aside her college ambitions to care for a younger sibling while their mother is in prison is blackmailed by an online predator and must turn for help to reporter Jack Parlabane, whose debt to a person on the wrong side of the law could cost him everything.
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Little Boy Lost
by J. D Trafford
When eight-year-old Tanisha Walker comes to attorney Justin Glass for help in finding her missing brother Devon, his inquiry comes to a halt when the bodies of Devon and twelve other African American boys are discovered in a mass grave.
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The One I've Waited For
by Mary B Morrison
Mercedes resolves to hold onto her hard-won life when the man she married for security begins to fall in love with a manipulative mistress, while her television star sister, Devereaux, is shattered by revelations about her fiancé.
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Playing With Temptation
by Reese Ryan
North Carolina pro footballer Nate Johnston built his reputation on talent, drive and good sportsmanship. But a devastating recent loss derails his team's shot at winning the championship...and Nate's career when a compromising video goes viral. In need of a miracle, the star wide receiver feels ambushed when his brother enlists media consultant Kendra Williams to do damage control. The reignited desire for the woman he once wanted to spend forever with can only cause Nate deeper heartache. Walking away from the man she loved seven years ago is the biggest regret of Kendra's life. Now her son needs a closer relationship with his father...and Kendra needs to win back Nate's trust. After breaking his heart, repairing his career is the least she can do to help save his dream. Powerful passion still smolders between them, tempting the former lovers to move beyond their painful past. Will the emergence of a jealous ex with a vicious revenge scheme sabotage their second chance at a future and a family that's almost within reach? ~ Book Jacket
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The Prey of Gods
by Nicky Drayden
A tale set in a futuristic South Africa where technology and a booming economy make life more comfortable, an unconventional Zulu girl becomes her community's defender against such challenges as a popular hallucinogen, an artificial intelligence uprising and a murderous demigoddess.
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Seducing Abby Rhodes
by J. D Mason
A woman who has been experiencing strange things in her new home is shocked when a handsome mans shows up at her door describing a murder that took place there.
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Sin of a Woman
by Kimberla Lawson Roby
Using the methods of her vindictive ex-husband to fix her damaged reputation after a humiliating public divorce, Raven Black is horrified when her choices have consequences for innocent people.
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The Supremes Sing the Happy Heartache Blues: a Novel
by Edward Kelsey Moore
The late-in-life marriage of two infamous natives of an Indiana community attracts the return of a famous guitar bluesman while compelling numerous locals to resolve long-standing disputes, from a philanderer who would prove his faithfulness, to a transgender woman who would live authentically.
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The Talented Ribkins
by Ladee Hubbard
A wildly inventive novel tells the story of Johnny Ribkins, a 72-year-old African-American antiques dealer and patriarch of a gifted family, the members of which sometimes stumble in their efforts to succeed in life.
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They Call Me Crazy
by Nikkea Sharee
There had been a time when Gina had plotted to kill her abusive husband. So when she is charged for his murder, the fact that she had finally moved past the pain was of little consequence. This turn of events causes her to face her demons with the help of a sarcastic psychologist and a detective determined to find out the truth. What happens when taking matters into one's own hands backfires? They Call Me Crazy is the highly anticipated sequel to You Don't Know Crazy. ~ Book Jacket
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Toni
by L. J. Alonge
A less-than-stellar player on her community basketball team relies on her strength to manage on her own when she is repeatedly benched by her wise coach while her teammates agree with the decision.
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What We Lose: a Novel
by Zinzi Clemmons
"From a debut author of rare, haunting power, a stunning novel about a young African-American woman coming of age--a deeply felt meditation on race, sex, family, and country. Raised in Pennsylvania, Zinzi Clemmons's heroine Thandi views the world of her mother's childhood in Johannesburg as both impossibly distant and ever present. She is an outsider wherever she goes, caught between being black and white, American and not. She tries to connect these dislocated pieces of her life, and as her mother succumbs to cancer, Thandi searches for an anchor - someone, or something, to love. In arresting and unsettling prose, we watch Thandi's life unfold, from losing her mother and learning to live without the person who has most profoundly shaped her existence, to her own encounters with romance and unexpected motherhood. Through exquisite and emotional vignettes, Clemmons creates a stunning portrayal of what it means to choose to live, after loss. An elegiac distillation, at once intellectual and visceral, of a young woman's understanding of absence and identity that spans continents and decades, What We Lose heralds the arrival of a virtuosic new voice in fiction."
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New and Recently Released Non-Fiction
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Black Detroit: a People's History of Self-Determination
by Herb Boyd
The author of Baldwin's Harlem blends memoir and reportage in an examination of the dynamic culture, politics, economics and spiritual life of Detroit that discusses the city's history and significance within the African-American legacy.
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Blind Spot
by Teju Cole
The New York Times photography critic and award-winning author pairs more than 150 images with lyrical text to explore his complex relationship to the visual world through his great passions—writing and photography—in a testament to the art of seeing.
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Chester B. Himes: a Biography
by Lawrence Patrick Jackson
An account of the improbable life of the controversial writer explores Himes' middle-class origins, imprisonment, creative experiences during World War II and eventual escape to Europe, where he became famous for his Harlem detective series and its themes of sexuality, racism and social injustice.
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Chokehold: Policing Black Men
by Paul Butler
An African American former federal prosecutor and author of Let's Get Free uses new data to argue that white men commit the majority of violent crime in the United States and discusses the problem of black-on-black violence and how to keep communities safer without relying so much on the police.
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The Cooking Gene: a Journey Through African American Culinary History in the Old South
by Michael Twitty
Sifting through stories, recipes, genetic tests and historical documents, a renowned culinary historian, in a memoir of Southern culinary tradition and food culture, traces his ancestry through food, from Africa to America and slavery to freedom, and the charged politics surrounding the origins of soul food, barbecue and all Southern cuisine.
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Cuz: the Life and Times of Michael A.
by Danielle S. Allen
The author tells the harrowing story of how her cousin was imprisoned at the age of 15 for attempted carjacking, serving a sentence of 14 years, and how she took him in upon his release, only to lose him to the deadly streets of South Central L.A.
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Have Black Lives Ever Mattered?
by Mumia Abu-Jamal
"'This collection of short meditations, written from a prison cell, captures the past two decades of police violence that gave rise to Black Lives Matter while digging deeply into the history of the United States. This is the book we need right now to find our bearings in the chaos'--Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States; 'Mumia's writings are a wake-up call. He is a voice from our prophetic tradition, speaking to us here, now, lovingly, urgently'--Cornel West; 'He allows us to reflect upon the fact that transformational possibilities often emerge where we least expect them'--Angela Y. Davis; In December 1981, Mumia Abu Jamal was shot and beaten into unconsciousness by Philadelphia police. He awoke to find himself shackled to a hospital bed, accused of killing a cop. He was convicted and sentenced to death in a trial that Amnesty International has denounced as failing to meet the minimum standards of judicial fairness. In Have Black Lives Ever Mattered? Mumiagives voice to the many people of color who have fallen to police bullets or racist abuse, and offers the post-Ferguson generation advice on how to address police abuse in the United States. This collection of his radio commentaries on the topic featuresan in-depth essay written especially for this book to examine the history of policing in America, with its origins in the white slave patrols of the antebellum South and an explicit mission to terrorize the country's Black population. Applying a personal, historical, and political lens, Mumia provides a righteously angry and calmly principled radical Black perspective on how racist violence is tearing our country apart and what must be done to turn things around. Mumia Abu-Jamal is author of many books, including Death Blossoms, Live from Death Row, All Things Censored, and Writing on the Wall"--Provided by publisher
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Innocent: a Spirit of Resilience
by Kevin McLaughlin
Opwonya Innocent was born three years after unrest started in northern Uganda and three years before the formation of the anti-government Lord's Resistance Army led by Joseph Kony. Death came to his village when he was only seven, and soon his parents required him to sleep miles away from home for safety. At ten he was abducted by Kony's army and taken to a training camp for child soldiers, where brutality and violence became his new reality. After a narrow escape he was taken by government soldiers to a counseling center before returning to his family, now without the guidance of a father. Since that time, Innocent has exhibited extraordinary resilience, pushing through these and many other challenges, ultimately securing a position which has allowed him to come to the aid of countless children in Uganda facing much of the same hardship. The book reveals, in his own words, Innocent's struggle to heal from the trauma he experienced, a growing awareness of a desire to help others and his tireless effort to realize meaningful, positive change. Innocent's inspiring story embodies the triumph of hope and determination over pain, trauma and fear. ~ Book Jacket
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Invisible No More: Police Violence Against Black Women and Women of Color
by Andrea J Ritchie
Invisible No More is a timely examination of how Black women, Indigenous women, and women of color experience racial profiling, police brutality, and immigration enforcement. Placing stories of individual women--such as Sandra Bland, Rekia Boyd, Dajerria Becton, Monica Jones, and Mya Hall--in the broader context of the twin epidemics of police violence and mass incarceration, it documents the evolution of movements centering women's experiences of policing and demands a radical rethinking of our visions of safety--and the means we devote to achieving it. ~ Book Jacket
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Kennedy and King: the President, the Pastor, and the Battle Over Civil Rights
by Steven Levingston
A revelatory account of the contentious relationship between the 35th President and Martin Luther King, Jr. throughout the tumultuous early years of the Civil Rights movement shares insights into their profound influence on one another and the important decisions that were inspired by their rivalry.
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Playing Hurt: My Journey from Despair to Hope
by John Saunders
A candid memoir by the late ESPN and ABC Sports broadcaster reveals his longtime battle with depression and his investigations into modern medical and homeopathic treatments, exploring how the disease affected his career and relationships and gave him insight into living a positive life.
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Policing the Black Man: Arrest, Prosecution, and Imprisonment
by Angela J. Davis
A comprehensive, thought-provoking analysis of the key issues behind the BlackLivesMatter movement features 12 essays by some of America's most influential criminal justice experts and legal scholars, including Equal Justice Institute Director Bryan Stevenson, NAACP Legal Defense Fund President Sherrrilyn Ifill and John Jay College of Criminal Justice President Jeremy Travis.
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Queen of Bebop: the Musical Lives of Sarah Vaughan
by Elaine M. Hayes
An account of the life of the influential jazz artist and civil rights advocate shares additional insights into her lesser-known contributions as an African-American woman, drawing on inside sources to discuss her creative process and challenge misperceptions about her character.
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Rabbit: the Autobiography of Ms. Pat
by Patricia Williams
The popular comedian traces her youth in Atlanta's most troubled neighborhood at the height of the crack epidemic, discussing the experiences with an alcoholic mother, four siblings, petty crime and prostitution that led to her becoming a mother at age 13 before resolving to secure a better life for her children.
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A Stone of Hope: a Memoir
by Jim St. Germain
The co-founder of the Preparing Leaders of Tomorrow nonprofit for at-risk youth shares the story of his experiences as an impoverished alcoholic's son who participated in illegal gang activities before a rehabilitation program saved his life and gave him purpose.
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Strong in the Broken Places
by Quentin Vennie
The author describes how he conquered addiction and unhappiness through his "wellness trinity" of juicing, yoga, and meditation.
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Surpassing Certainty: What My Twenties Taught Me
by Janet Mock
"Riveting, rousing, and utterly real, Surpassing Certainty is a portrait of a young woman searching for her purpose and place in the world--without a road map to guide her. The journey begins a few months before her twentieth birthday. Janet Mock is adjusting to her days as a first-generation college student at the University of Hawaii and her nights as a dancer at a strip club. Finally content in her body, she vacillates between flaunting and concealing herself as she navigates dating and disclosure, sex and intimacy, and most important, letting herself be truly seen. Under the neon lights of Club Nu, Janet meets Troy, a yeoman stationed at Pearl Harbor naval base, who becomes her first. The pleasures and perils of their union serve as a backdrop for Janet's progression through her early twenties with all the universal growing pains--falling in and out of love, living away from home, and figuring out what she wants to do with her life. Despite her disadvantages, fueled by her dreams and inimitable drive, Janet makes her way through New York City while holding her truth close. She builds a career in the highly competitive world of magazine publishing--within the unique context of being trans, a woman, and a person of color. Long before she became one of the world's most respected media figures and lauded leaders for equality and justice, Janet was a girl taking the time she needed to just be--to learn how to advocate for herself before becoming an advocate for others. As you witness Janet's slow-won success and painful failures, Surpassing Certainty will embolden you, shift the way you see others, and affirm your journey in search of self"--Provided by publisher
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A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun: the Life & Legacy of Gwendolyn Brooks
by Angela Jackson
In A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun, fellow Chicagoan and award-winning writer Angela Jackson delves deep into the rich fabric of Brooks’s work and world. Granted unprecedented access to Brooks’s family, personal papers, and writing community, Jackson traces the literary arc of this artist’s long career and gives context for the world in which Brooks wrote and published her work. It is a powerfully intimate look at a once-in-a-lifetime talent up close, using forty-three of Brooks’s most soul-stirring poems as a guide. ~ Book Jacket
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Looking for More Great Books? Contact your librarian or try...
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My Next 5 For personalized reading recommendations from Durham County librarians, you may want to try My Next 5! Simply complete an online form to tell us a little about what genres, books, and authors you like (or dislike). A DCL librarian will review your submission and reply within three days with a list of the next five books you should read.
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