DescriptionSummer 1943. Harlem is a never-ending carnival in the second year of the war. Yet underneath the glitter, its black residents remain second-class citizens, and the neighborhood is a tinderbox, waiting for a match. Along these restless streets, two very…
DescriptionInto a memoir that is gripping, funny, heartbreaking, and unforgettable, Walter Dean Myers richly weaves the details of his Harlem childhood in the 1940s and 1950s: a loving home life with his adopted parents, Bible school, street games, and the vitality of his neighborhood. Although Walter spent much of his time either getting into trouble or on the basketball court, secretly he was a voracious reader and an aspiring writer. But as his prospects for a successful future diminished, the values he had been taught at home, in school, and in his community seemed worthless, and he turned to the streets and his books for comfort. Here in his own words is the story of one of the strongest voices in children's and young adult literature today.
DescriptionThirty-something writer Regina lives in Harlem with her four-year-old daughter. And no matter what she does, drama follows her wherever she goes. Her world is thrown for a loop when shady Little Joe re-enters her life looking for some action. Unfortunately, her lingering feelings for her congressman ex-husband aren't helping either. But Regina's not the only one with issues. Her best friends Tamika, Yvonne, and Puddin' are all dealing with no-account men of their own. Drawing strength from one another, these four women keep it real on the streets of New York City. Sassy and endearing, the spirited women of Satin Nights stick together through thick and thin.
DescriptionTwo-time Grammy Award-winner Maya Angelou performs her memorable fourth volume of autobiography, which began so auspiciously with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings . The Heart of a Woman sings with Maya Angelou's eloquent prose and is filled with unforgettable vignettes of famous people, from Billie Holiday to Malcolm X. Even more central is Maya Angelou's chronicle of the joys and the burdens of being a black mother in America and how the son she has cherished so intensely and worked for so devotedly finally grows to be a man.
DescriptionFor a person who has not encountered John McPhee's lively writing, The Second John McPhee Reader is the perfect introduction. McPhee, author of Coming Into the Country, and Assembling California punctuates his delightful prose with a…
DescriptionNo fiction could be more unique and uplifting than this real-life biography of Rachel Deborah Shilsky, the daughter of an angry Orthodox Jewish rabbi in the South who runs off to Harlem, marries a black man, becomes a Baptist, and founds an all-black church. And puts 12 children through college! James McBride recalls his confusion as a black child of a white mother, the hardships of his childhood, and his own flirtation with drugs and violence, in the struggle to make peace with his own identity. Performed by Andre Braugher and Lainie Kazan, this extraordinary and best-selling memoir offers a special reflection on race and identity, a beautiful tribute to a mother from her son.
DescriptionUpstate is an absolutely stunning, powerful coming of age novel filled with tragedy, struggle, love, and triumph; it is a modern The Color Purple . Set in New York in the '80s and '90s, Upstate tells the story of two young lovers, Antonio and Natasha, torn apart by tragedy and struggling to survive against all odds. When a horrific tragedy sends Antonio to jail, their worlds turn upside down. Antonio struggles to stay alive on the inside; Natasha battles society on the outside. Over the course of 10 years, they share an intimate correspondence as their lives change dramatically and they often have only each other to turn to. Will fate bring them back together, or will they remain forever apart? Ripe with unforgettable characters and two haunting voices, Upstate is an audio program not to be missed.
