December 2016 Newsletter – Great New Books, Best Film of the Year, and More
Cerece Rennie Murphy – Our eNewsletter Sponsor for December
Experience The Love of A Lifetime ~ Two Souls, One Desire, To Find Each Other…Again
The journey begins with Ama and Ekow ~ Two lovers betrothed, then torn apart by an enemy disguised as a friend. And in the midst of an unthinkable bargain, their freedom is sold for a bag of gold. But what their enemies thought would break them only unleashed a power greater than life itself.
From the ancient shores of Ghana to the streets of pre-colonial India, from the burning embers of Oahu to the heart of a nation’s capitol. Their souls risked war, death, and betrayal to bend destiny to their will. Will they survive? Will they succeed? Join them on this timeless journey and see… (Buy To Find You Now)
New Books Coming January 2017
Kindred, by Octavia Butler, is one of my favorite novels. The 4 Time AALBC.com bestselling book was also voted #15 on our list of the Top 100 Books of the 20th Century, and is a QBR 100 Essential Black Book! Kindred is now available as a graphic novel—expanding Butler’s work to an entirely new audience.
Alice Childress, who is most famous for her novel, A Hero Ain’t Nothin But a Sandwich will enlighten a new generation of readers with a new edition of her classic novel about African-American domestic workers, Like One of The Family.
Roxane Gay returns with Difficult Women, a collection of stories of the quirky and vexed human condition. 48 time AALBC Bestselling Author, Kimberla Lawson Roby’s 25th book, Copycat, will be released; and Award-winning Poet Kwame Dawes presents us with a new collection, City of Bones: A Testament.
Let’s Clap, Jump, Sing & Shout; Dance, Spin & Turn It Out!: Games, Songs, and Stories from an African American Childhood by award-winning author Patricia C. Mckissack and illustrator Brian Pinkney not only shows children wonderful games but helps preserve an important aspect of our cultural legacy.
Learn more about these, and more terrific new books, on our curated list of soon to be released books.
She is Global, an Artist, a Movement—Malaika Adero is “Global I Aam” by Patrick A. Howell
Malaika Adero doesn’t call a lot of attention to herself. She does her work methodically and pointedly, beautifully, year after year, decade after decade without a lot of fanfare. All you see of Malaika are the volumes of books that she has birthed as well as the regular celebration of our global village griots and ancestors under the expanse of large colorful wings.
She is part of the 13th-century continuum of West African history from those kingdoms of Ghana, Songhai and Mali. She comes to us from the tradition of the griot—a story teller or praise singer who is a historian and often seen as a community and cultural leader, often times an advisor to persons of royal designation (think Miles Davis, Nelson Mandela, Prince, Toni Morrison, or Spike Lee amongst countless others). Read the full tribute to Ms. Adero.
Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society
Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society, from Austin, Texas, meets the 3rd Friday of each month from February – November usually at the George Washington Carver Museum. They are a group of Black women reading African America authors. Learn more about this Book Club and hundreds of others on our book club listing.
Amazon Owns the Black Book Ecosystem—Does it Matter?
There are very few booksellers (physical stores and online) selling books, independent of Amazon, and making very much money doing it. This is particularly true for booksellers who sell books that are important to the Black community. As a result, Amazon, to our detriment, owns the Black book ecosystem. Amazon not only profits disproportionately from our products they determine which books are important and are seen.
I encourage you to read this research report produced by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. This report brilliantly describes the impact of Amazon’s virtual monopoly and how Amazon is “Stifling Competition, Eroding Jobs, and Threatening Communities.”
African American Film Critics Association Names Moonlight the Top Film of 2016
“Our members had a plethora of outstanding movies, documentaries and TV shows to choose from this year,” says AAFCA Co-founder Shawn Edwards. “It was an exceptional year in terms of the quantity and quality of films about the black experience. And while this by no means solves the diversity issue in the film industry it was definitely refreshing to have such a wide-range of exceptional work to choose from to honor and celebrate with our approval.”
There were several movies released this year that are considered masterpieces. However, it was “Moonlight” that dominated this year’s voting for the 8th AAFCA Awards. The independent film which chronicles the life of a young black man from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami completely resonated with the majority of the members of the association.”
Put Your Book on AALBC.com Until March 21, 2017!
Your book will appear on our Homepage and our Book’s Main Page for the entire winter (December 22, 2016 until midnight March 21, 2017). Get it now.
All Winter Special advertisers will get a 25% discount on the Spring Special. The winter and spring are the busiest seasons of the year on AALBC.com.
Also, if you purchase your Large Book Cover Advertisement we’ll give you a free Author Profile—permanent placement on AALBC.com—as an added bonus!
AALBC.com is the oldest, largest, and most frequently visited website dedicated to books written by or about people of African descent. There is no other website that reaches readers of Black literature more effectively.
Dear Reader,
This, our 240th newsletter, will our last newsletter for 2016. I hope you will be able to enjoy the holiday season with family, friends, and a few good books.
Remember, AALBC.com continues to grow and improve because of your ongoing support. If you value our content, here are four simple things should do to support AALBC.com;
1. Do not use an ad blocker to block AALBC.com’s ads.
Advertisements are AALBC.com’s primary source of revenue. Our ads, which are usually books, are nonintrusive and are actually a great way to discover an excellent read.
2. Share our content.
It is our responsibility to ensure our perspectives and history are shared and known widely.
3. Buy your books through AALBC.com.
If you use Amazon to buy anything, bookmark this link http://aalbc.it/supportaalbc and generate commissions for AALBC.com. Book sales count toward our bestsellers list.
4. Pay for your subscription to our newsletter.
Thanks for reading and supporting Black literature.
Peace & Love,
Troy Johnson,
Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com
You may receive messages like this directly in your email box by subscribing. It may also be read on your Kindle ebook reader, or any device by downloading a PDF version. Enjoy all of our previous eNewsletters and consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing.
AALBC.com eNewsletter – December 15, 2016 – Issue #240
★
