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| | Power List of Best-Selling African-American Books Releases Summer 2013 List The Power List, the quarterly compilation of best-selling books written or read by African Americans, released its Summer 2013 list on July 22nd. The Power List is a joint project of AALBC.com, Cushcity.com and Mosaicbooks.com, three Web sites which have promoted African-American literature for more than a fifteen years. Ashley & Jaquavis, the urban fiction duo whose Cartel series has collectively sold more than a million copies, continue to dominate the paperback fiction bestsellers list with four titles among the top ten: Cartel 4, Murderville 2, The Prada Plan 2 and Murderville. Urban fiction author Wahida Clark also had two titles among the paperback fiction bestsellers, Payback Ain’t Enough and Justify My Thug, as well as one, Honor Thy Thug, among the hardcover fiction bestsellers. |
Fiction
1. A House Divided by Kimberla Lawson Roby
2. Makeda by Randall Robinson
3. Sinners & Saints by Victoria Christopher Murray
4. Sugar by Bernice L. McFadden
5. The Perfect Marriage by Kimberla Lawson Roby Nonfiction
1. Confessions of a Video Vixen by Karrine Steffans
2. The Tithing Hoax: Exposing The Lies, Misinterpretations & False Teachings About Tithing by R. Renee
3. Acts of Faith: Daily Meditations for People of Color by Iyanla Vanzant
4. The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson
5. Laying Down My Burdens by Brenda L. Thomas Check out all the Fiction and Non-fiction Best-selling titles |
Dr. Ivan Van Sertima, Dr. Yosef Ben-Jochannan and Dr. John Henrik Clarke These three gentlemen are the most revered and respected historians and teachers of African history in the African-American community. During a broadcast of Gil Noble’s television program Like It Is, these intellectual giants provided their respective reading lists. Some of these titles may be difficult to find and others are frequent AALBC.com best-selling books. All the titles are worth checking out. |
5 Things Writers Must Do To Survive Online Somehow writers have been duped, by large corporations, into believing that the small potential for notoriety is ample compensation for their work, which collectively is used to generate millions and millions of dollars of revenue. I remember how disappointed and angry some writers were when the Huffington-Post was sold to AOL for $315 million. Meanwhile those writers continued to receive no financial compensation for their work. There is a often quoted slogan floating around the Internet, “Information Wants to be Free”. It is almost a cliche, but it also utter nonsense in the context of our capitalist system. Anything of value is always sold and purchased, why is a writer’s work any different? A more accurate slogan might be, “Corporations Want Information for Free ”, so that they may exploit it for monetary again (read the entire article). |
Web Sites That Support, Promote and Sell Books Written by Black Writers While updating this list this morning I was saddened to discover that North Paran’s website has been discontinued. When it first launched, over three years ago, I was impressed by the site’s design but I was more impressed the site’s mission; to donate a book, to a child in need, for every book that was sold. The growth Amazon and social media will never make up for the loss of sites like North Paran. I did however add a site Romance in Color (RIC). RIC is not a new site. The 13 year old site touts itself as "the premier site with a focus on the African-America romance." If you enjoy that genre visit their website. |
Woman of the Woods by Milton J Davis Sadatina, an Adamu girl on the brink of becoming a woman has lived a peaceful life with her family in Adamusola, the land beyond the Old Men Mountains. But tragic events change her life forever, revealing a hidden past that leads her into the midst of a war between her people and those that would see them destroyed, the Mosele. Armed with a spiritual weapon and her feline ’sisters,’ Sadatina becomes a Shosa, a warrior trained to fight the terrible nyokas, demon-like creatures that aid the Mosele in their war against her people. Woman of the Woods by Milton Davis is an action filled, emotionally charged adventure that expands the scope of the world of Uhuru and introduces another unforgettable character to the fabled continent’s heroic legends. |
A Family Affair by ReShonda Tate Billingsley A Family Affair is ReShonda’s 28th book. In it she tells a compelling tale about a family secret and a young woman determined to uncover the truth about her past. Read an excerpt. Billingsley is a former general assignment reporter for KRIV-TV, the Fox affiliate in Houston, Texas. Her novel, Let the Church Say Amen, is being made into a movie that actress Regina King is the directing. Billingsley won a 2012 NAACP Image Award for her book, Say Amen, Again. She was also inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame. |
The Island Hunters: A Pirate, a Robber and a Legend Written & Illustrated by N.E. Walford This Boxed Edition is Part I in the exciting series - The Island Hunters - that journeys with one family into the secrets of their African past. Told in 3 books for young readers, this modern fun-filled adventure follows the quest of J.B. Hunter and his brothers into the realms of pirates, ancient tombs and the many legends of the Caribbean - where one family finds their history in the first place on earth. This Boxed Set Edition features: Book I - The Backyard Pirate Adventure, Book II -Trail of the Tomb Robbers, and Book III - The Legend of Brown Eyed James in three paperback editions inside a sturdy collector’s box. |
GhettoHeat Celebrates its 10th Anniversary HICKSON is CEO and founder of GHETTOHEAT . He was born and raised in Harlem, New York, where he still lives. Poverty, pressure and passion drove HICKSON into becoming a self-made ’Hip-Hopreneur’, creating his multimedia company on June 4th 2003 HICKSON has signed fiftteen authors to GHETTOHEAT including, Damon Meadows and Jason Poole, who co-authored the popular novel Convict’s Candy. Little Kim called Convict’s Candy, "Ill" and Wendy Williams described it as, "A must read!" |
Patricia Smith Patricia Smith was born in Chicago in 1955. She is an poet, spoken-word performer, playwright, author, writing teacher, and former journalist. She has published poems in many literary magazines and journals. She is on the faculties of the Stonecoast MFA Program in Creative Writing and the Low-Residency MFA Program in Creative Writing at Sierra Nevada College. She is also a 2008 National Book Award finalist, winner of the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award in Poetry, the Carl Sandburg Literary Award, the National Poetry Series award, the Patterson poetry award two Pushcart prizes, and the Rattle poetry prize. She also won the Robert L. Fish Memorial Award for short story writing and had work selected to appear in both Best American Poetry and _Best American Essay_s. In 2006, she was inducted into the International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent, and she was the recipient of both McDowell and Yadoo fellowships. |
A. Leon Higginbotham Jr. Higginbotham was born on February 25, 1928 in Ewing Township, NJ. He grew up during the Great Depression and the era of Jim Crow laws. He overcame a childhood marked by economic hardship and segregation, and after graduating from Antioch College he attended Yale Law School where he graduated with honors. As a historian, he contributed to more than 100 publications and academic works and produced several critically acclaimed works including In the Matter of Color: The Colonial Period (1978) and Shades of Freedom: Racial Politics and P resumptions in the American Legal Process (1996). During his retirement he delivered over 100 speech es annually to motivate the next generation of people in the United States to continue the fight for racial justice. He is the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and numerous other honors and awards including honorary degrees from more than 60 universities. Higginbotham transitioned on December 14, 1998, in Boston, MA as a result of a stroke. |
Nnedi Okorafor, Ph.D Nnedi is a novelist of Nigerian descent known for weaving African culture into creative evocative settings and memorable characters. In a profile of Nnedi’s work titled "Weapons of Mass Creation", The New York Times called Nnedi’s imagination "stunning". Her novels has won the prestigious, Wole Soyinka Prize for African Literature, the CBS Parallax Award and the Macmillan Writer’s Prize for Africa. Her next novel, Kabu Kabu (Prime Books, October 2, 2013) has been named a Publishers Weekly Top 10 Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Title for Fall 2013. Nnedi holds a PhD in English and currently is a professor of creative writing at Chicago State University. |
God’s Graffiti: Inspiring Stories for Teens by Reverend Romal Tune What makes the opus very relevant is how it relies on scriptures to remind the reader of the humble beginnings which many a Biblical figure had to overcome en route to finally flourishing. Again and again, from the prostitute Rahab, to the abandoned Ishmael, to the orphaned Esther, to the unfairly accused Joseph, we see how these unlikely heroes ultimately conquered their considerable challenges. Written in a down-to-earth style certain to resonate with the targeted demographic, God’s Graffiti simultaneously addresses such salient subjects as bullying, sex, suicide, eating disorders, drugs, alcohol, divorce and abusive relationships. A timeless tool offering profound, faith-based advice for troubled teens in need of reasons to believe in a better tomorrow. |
Insignificant Others: Erotic Novellas by Pynk and Carol Taylor Award winning authors, Pynk and Carol Taylor have written two original tales for Insignificant Others. Fans will love both stories, which have one thing in common: Sex. While the writing styles and purposes of these two women are different, the result is an enjoyable and satisfying read. Insignificant Others: Erotic Novellas will appeal to readers for whom steamy sex is not enough. Grab this book if you need it Triple X. |
Ryan Coogler The “Fruitvale Station” Interview and Film Review Cooglar is the 27-year-old writer and director if the powerful film Fruitvale Station, which has recieved awards at both the Cannes and Sundance film festivals. Fruitvale Station is a bittersweet biopic chronicling the last day in the life of Oscar Grant, a 22 year-old black man shot in the back by a cop on a train platform in Oakland, California on New Year’s Day 2009. The case became a cause cél bre because the killing was caught on camera by numerous passengers. Be sure to read the film review and learn more about this terribly tragic story. |
Rising from Ashes - Documentary Chronicles Rise of Rwanda Cycling Team Over the course of a hundred days in 1994, the East African nation of Rwanda experienced an ethnic cleansing which consumed the lives of nearly a fifth of the population. The mass slaughter came as a consequence of a revolt by the majority tribe, the Hutus, against the Tutsis, a minority which, with the help of the country’s European colonizers, had enjoyed a higher social and economic status for centuries. A few years after the cessation of the civil war, American bike racing legend Jock Boyer was looking for a chance at redemption in the wake of being paroled after serving time in prison… in Rwanda, he took on the unenviable challenge of coaching the national cycling team. And over the next six years he trained them while teaching them how to compete on the level of World-Class athletes with the hope of one day qualifying for the Olympics. |
Big Words - Rap Group Reunites on 2008 Election Day in Dream Deferred Drama It’s November 4, 2008, and Brooklyn is bristling with anticipation about the impending election returns to see whether or not Barack Obama will be the nation’s first African-American president. But the magic of the moment is pretty much lost on John aka MC Wordsmith (Dorian Missick), James aka Jay-V (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Terry aka DJ Malik (Darien Sills-Evans), despite the fact that they’re black and hail from the ‘hood. Back in the early Nineties, the three shared a brief promising career as the Down Low Poets, a fledgling hip-hop group which produced a video, two singles and an unreleased album before disappearing from the record-biz radar. The band disbanded, went their separate ways and lost touch entirely. |
Harlem Book Fair 2013: Video, Photos & Awards The Harlem Book Fair, now in its 15 year, hosts a large street fair where you will find a variety of booksellers, food and other types of vendors. There is also a full day’s worth of panel discussion and workshops. C-Span2’s BookTV broadcast many of these live. The video is a small sample of what I experienced during the street fair. This video features; Black and Nobel & G Street Chronicles; Azarel, Author & CEO of Life Changing Books; Thomas Long, author of Money Kings; Chaka Adams, Author of A View of the Bridge; and Patrick Oliver, Writer & Literary Activist. |
Prodigy of Mobb Deep on His Novella, H.N.I.C. Albert "Prodigy" Johnson Talks about this new novella H.N.I.C. With H.N.I.C., Prodigy inaugurates Infamous Books, a revolutionary partnership that pairs the Infamous Records brand with Brooklyn-based independent publisher Akashic Books. Infamous Books’ mission is to connect readers worldwide to crime fiction and street lit authors both familiar and new. Future releases include works by national best sellers JaQuavis Coleman, K’wan, Miasha, and others. |
The Book Look Xtra Check out exclusive footage from the Delta Sigma Theta 100 Authors’ Pavilion and listen to the soulful sounds of R&B Diva Chante Moore at the Deltas’ Centennial Literary Cafe. The authors showcased included Michael Vick, Victoria Christopher Murray, Mary B. Morrison, ReShonda Tate Billingsley, Kimberla Lawson Roby & more. |
The African American Literary Awards Show is an entertainment event production company with a focus on writers and authors. AALAS produces an annual literary awards show to recognize, honor, celebrate and promote the outstanding achievements and contributions that African-American authors and writers make to the publishing, arts and entertainment industries.
Click here to vote for this year’s honorees |
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