Daylian

On a winter’s day, Chris Gardner set off with his nine-year-old granddaughter Brooke to find the harmonica of her dreams. The search sends them on a harrowing adventure that will change both of their lives—and ours. A true fable, Permission to Dream by Chris Gardner is a timeless and timely book for turning dreams into action—beginning right now, from the author of the New York Times bestselling memoir and major motion picture The Pursuit of Happyness. On sale now wherever books are sold. More ▶ Watch Our Videos AALBC videos have been viewed over 1 million times, but I can do a better job of making readers aware of them. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to be sure you are notified when we’ve added a new video. Subscribe to AALBC’s YouTube Channel Recently Published Videos AALBC’s Founder, Troy Johnson, hosts a conversation about the upcoming children’s book Papa’s Free Day Party with the book’s author Marilyn Nelson; Boley, Oklahoma’s Mayor, Dr. Frances Shelton; and Boley Town Historian, Judge Henrietta Hicks. Leading independent children’s book publisher Just Us Books will publish Papa’s Free Day Party, a powerful new picture book by award-winning poet and author Marilyn Nelson, illustrated by award-winning artist Wayne Anthony Still this April. The book is based on the true story of Marilyn’s grandfather, who escaped a racist attack as a child, was taken in by a white family, and went on to build a new life in the all-Black town of Boley, Oklahoma. Watch the video ▶ In this video, esteemed activist, educator, producer, and poet Kalamu ya Salaam describes his latest book, Cosmic Deputy. Representative poems from Salaam’s fifty years (1968 – 2019) of writing are interspersed in an overarching essay tracing the poet’s multitude of influences. Toward mapping a theory of a Black literary aesthetic, Salaam explores the cultural inheritances of Black resistance movements, blues music, and the ways in which these sources and others have shaped not only his own work but Black letters more broadly. This video was recorded at the Community Book Center in New Orleans, Louisiana. Watch the video ▶ Quraysh Ali Lansana is author of 23 books of poetry, nonfiction, and children’s literature. Lansana is currently a Tulsa Artist Fellow and serves as Acting Director of the Center for Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa, where he is also Writer in Residence for the Center for Poets & Writers and Adjunct Professor in Africana Studies and English. Watch the video ▶ d. E. Rogers is a screenwriter and the author of thirteen novels. He is also an 8-time AALBC bestselling author with 5 bestselling books on our site. Here he talks about marketing, selling, and distributing his books. He also talks about how he uses AALBC’s platform to increase his books exposure—it is how he got my attention. His most popular book, on our site, Black States of America: Real Black Power, follows an alternate timeline where President Lincoln lived. Watch the video ▶ 2021 BCLF Short Fiction Story Contest The third annual Brooklyn Caribbean Literary Festival is pleased to announce the 2021 BCLF Short Fiction Story Contest for: 1. BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Caribbean-American Writers' Prize 2. BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Award for Writers in the Caribbean The contest this year calls for stories that resonate with this year’s festival theme, A Tapestry of Words and Worlds, that explores and reveres the connections, ties, and bonds between the Caribbean ancestral lands and the diaspora communities they have birthed. We invite submissions that speak to issues of land, justice, ancestral knowledge, belonging, ownership and oral histories; stories of pain, joy, grief, hope, return to memory; stories that critique and challenge the creative imagination to re-envision the world in the diaspora and the Caribbean. Learn More ▶ Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier online platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – April 14, 2021 - Issue #323

From the author of Queen Sugar—the critically acclaimed series on OWN directed by Ava Duvernay—comes a beautifully rendered collection of essays, poems, photographs, and interviews exploring the vast history of black farming in the American south. Luminous and eye-opening, We Are Each Other’s Harvest by Natalie Baszile is an eclectic collection that elevates the voices and stories of Black farmers, and people of color, helping us reimagine what it means to be dedicated to the soil. Now on sale wherever books are sold. More ▶ AALBC Book Reviews Black Power, Black Lawyer: My Audacious Quest for Justice by Nkechi Taifa In these pages we get the behind the scenes account of her meetings with key leaders in the Black Nationalism and Black Power movements, and as a policy analyst for billionaire George Soros’s Open Society Foundation. Her connections to Black leaders and change makers run the gamut from Minister Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam, to Congresswoman Maxine Waters among many others. Taifa also recognizes freedom fighters in the Black Power movement—Chokwe Lumumba, Geronimo Pratt, Kwame Ture (AKA Stokely Carmichael), Reverend Dr. Ishakamusa Barashango, and Kwame Afo, whose untimely deaths have all but removed them from the annals of history. The true transformative power of Black Power, Black Lawyer, is that it weaves together personal memoir, social justice, and compelling often untold historical narratives, into a rich tapestry that moves Black history to the center of American history, where it belongs. A phenomenal woman in her own right, Taifa's life and experiences as a social justice defender and legal advocate, tell a broader more inclusive story of our history and people, through the lens of one of its staunchest defenders. More ▶ A Conversation: John A. Williams and His Son Dennis A. Williams Back in the winter of 1995, Dennis A. Williams, an accomplished author in his own right, interviewed his dad, an iconic figure in American literature, John A. Williams (1925 – 2015). The love between the two men is evident and worth exploring. “We spoke in the spare living room and on the perfect porch of his Upstate New York hideaway, where he had taught my younger brother , as well as my older brother's children and my own, to shoot, play and understand that they have a special place in the world. It is the place where he is most at home, where all the parts of him come together, from the booklined writer's studio to the fishing dock; where both the collection of jazz records and the telescope aimed at the clear, rural sky can transport his spirit; where his mother's ashes are buried. Because it was an official, taped interview, the occasion seemed oddly formal. But because it was also a synopsis of forty years of such conversations, it was entirely natural. He doesn't change: the Syracuse kid, the poet-philosopher, the compulsive teacher, student, parent and bop-cool hang-out buddy are all alive and well in John A. Williams.” More ▶ A Black Book Website Worth Visiting: The Listening Tree For more than two decades AALBC has shared information about Black-owned brick and mortar bookstores. Last summer the list went viral and it was heartwarming to see so many bookstore enjoy national prominence. I also maintain a list of Black-owned book websites. Ten years ago I wrote an article entitled, “Black Book Websites Need Love Too.” In the article I lamented the fact that we were rapidly losing websites that sold, reviewed, promoted, and celebrated Black books and authors. The loss has continued and the impact is incalculable, because many of the site we lost were simply terrific and irreplaceable. I still maintain the list of Black-owned book websites, and while updating it recently l discovered a video promoting The Listening Tree, a children’s book website. The video features owners, Omar and Kimberly Finley and their family in their store. The video immediately put a smile on my face! Check out their site a consider purchasing a book! Is it Just Me, or are Book Covers More Attractive Today? I look at book covers all day and have done so for almost 25 years. In recent years I’ve discovered some really attractive book covers. When viewed together the images are often awe inspiring. I appreciate I may be in the minority of folks moved by such imagery, but just same, I figured I share. This image happens to be a collection of the newest audiobooks we sell. How Troy Johnson’s African American Literature Book Club Survived In Spite Of am*zon At first, Troy D. Johnson wanted to sell books for commissions under Barnes and Noble’s Affiliate Program. He would place that bookseller’s products on the website he created, with links referring customers to BN.com. It didn’t take long for him to feel the inadequacies of the program. Hoping for better luck, he signed up with am*zon.com’s affiliate program. All went well until am*zon’s commissions became smaller and smaller. Read the full article, by Olayemi Odesanya, at the Network Journal ▶ Talib Kweli Will Discuss His New Memoir at the John Oliver Killens Reading Series The Center for Black Literature presents renowned hip-hop artist and activist Talib Kweli for a discussion about his new book Vibrate Higher: A Rap Story (MCD, 2021). Kweli will be in conversation with Akiba Solomon, senior editor at The Marshall Project. The memoir is a collection of essays that illuminate Kweli’s upbringing, artistic success, and his views that position hip-hop as a political force. Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier online platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – April 6, 2021 - Issue #322

Communicate boldly and effectively like never before with the help and guidance of a #1 New York Times bestselling author and trusted Bishop. In Don't Drop the Mic, Bishop T. D. Jakes speaks to readers about communication and how the ways we speak and interact with others can be part of our everyday ministries. Drawing lessons from Scripture and his own life, Jakes gives career advice for those who have or want to grow into a speaking career, but he also provides clear direction and insight for everyone who gives presentations, writes emails, or talks to other people in their job or home life. There will be practical advice about how to craft insightful and meaningful communications, but the heart of this book is really about how we can communicate more clearly to build community and share the hope of Christ in our everyday lives. The more adept we become at using all available resources to convey our message, the greater our impact. From lovers to litigators, entrepreneurs to entertainers, and bloggers to board members, we all want to communicate more effectively, intimately, and efficiently. Whether you're interviewing for a new position, proposing a new business plan, auditioning for a performance, delivering a report for your committee, teaching Sunday school, or sharing your heart with a loved one, this book will help you become a better communicator. This Newsletter is Sponsored by FaithWords, a division of Hachette Book Group Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – April 1, 2021

2021 National Black Writers Conference Biennial Symposium Saturday, March 27, 2021 Medgar Evers College, CUNY 11: 00 AM – 7:00 PM Presented on Zoom “They Cried I Am: The Life and Work of Paule Marshall and John A. Williams, Unsung Black Literary Voices” Featured program highlights will include a keynote address, roundtable discussions, and dramatic readings. Confirmed speakers include Carole Boyce Davies, Edwidge Danticat, Keith Gilyard, Maryemma Graham, Michael Anthony Green, Lawrence P. Jackson, Evan Marshall, Liza Jessie Peterson, Ishmael Reed, Linda Villarosa, Mary Helen Washington and Jamia Wilson, and a musical tribute by Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch and Seasoned Elegance. Register and Learn More ▶ AALBC Family: Receive $5 off, the already low fee, by using promo code is NBWCFRIEND at checkout. SMU Presents the Dallas Literary Festival: March 26–28 2021 This year’s festival will be held entirely online, free and open to the public. To attend an event, simply go to the Schedule, click on the event page, and follow the link to its Zoom session. AALBC’s Founder, Troy Johnson, will be participating on the Ghostwriting & Self-Publishing Panel, Saturday, March 27, 2021 from 10:00 AM 11:00 AM. The panel will also include, Lutishia Lovely, author of Blind Ambition, Sandy Lawrence, author of Do It Yourself PR Guide, and Marissa Monteilh, author of The Practice Wife. The panel will be moderated by Angie Ransome-Jones, author of Path to Peace . New and Noteworthy Books How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue From the celebrated author of the New York Times bestseller Behold the Dreamers comes a sweeping, wrenching story about the collision of a small African village and an American oil company. Told from the perspective of a generation of children and the family of a girl named Thula who grows up to become a revolutionary, How Beautiful We Were is a masterful exploration of what happens when the reckless drive for profit, coupled with the ghost of colonialism, comes up against one community’s determination to hold on to its ancestral land and a young woman’s willingness to sacrifice everything for the sake of her people’s freedom. More ▶ Bring Back Our Girls: The Untold Story of the Global Search for Nigeria’s Missing Schoolgirls by Joe Parkinson & Drew Hinshaw In the spring of 2014, American celebrities and their Twitter followers unwittingly turned a group of teenagers into a central prize in America’s War on Terror by retweeting #BringBackOurGirls, a call for the release of 276 Nigerian schoolgirls who’d been kidnapped by the little-known Islamist sect Boko Haram. With just a few words, their tweets launched an army of would-be liberators, spies, and glory hunters into an obscure conflict that few understood, in a part of Nigeria that had just barely begun to use the internet. Bring Back Our Girls is a cautionary tale that plumbs the promise and peril of an era whose politics are fueled by the power of hashtag advocacy, More ▶ My Day with the Panye by Tami Charles, Illustrated by Sara Palacios In the hills above Port-au-Prince, a young girl named Fallon wants more than anything to carry a large woven basket to the market, just like her Manman. As she watches her mother wrap her hair in a mouchwa, Fallon tries to twist her own braids into a scarf and balance the empty panye atop her head, but realizes it’s much harder than she thought. BOOM! Is she ready after all? Lyrical and inspiring, with vibrant illustrations highlighting the beauty of Haiti, My Day with the Panye is a story of family legacy, cultural tradition, and hope for the future. More ▶ I Am New Orleans: 36 Poets Revisit Marcus Christian’s Definitive Poem Edited by Kalamu ya Salaam “Who dat? We dat!” This collection is a gathering of the saints. Contemporary writers with an ear to the ground, digging on the sense and sound of what all is going down. Plus, a couple of ancestor scribes whose amazing words and clear-eyed vision remain both accurate and relevant long, long after their physical demise. Hence, here is a compendium of views and visions, which collectively map the outlines of what it means to both be and to miss New Orleans. More ▶ Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – March 23, 2021 - Issue #321

Essence Pick and NPR Book of the Year 2020, Lakewood by Megan Giddings is a startling debut about class and race, evoking a terrifying world of medical experimentation—part The Handmaid’s Tale, part The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Now available in paperback, on AALBC, and wherever books are sold. More ▶ Bestselling Books for January/February 2021 Our bestsellers list has been published continuously since 1998 and is the most visible list focused on Black books in existence. You will learn about books selling well, in the Black community, that may never show up on lists published by corporate entities. Fiction: Limitation of Life by d. E. Rogers, the top-selling fiction book, does not come out until Mar 23, but sold well due to a $5-off campaign for preorders. Nonfiction: So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo and Just As I Am by Cicely Tyson were, by far, the bestselling books across all genres this period. Children’s Books: The inaugural Youth Poet Laureate of the United States, Amanda Gorman, has three books on our bestsellers list that have not been published yet! She is the only author to accomplish this feat. Poetry: African American Poetry: 250 Years of Struggle & Song Edited by Kevin Young was the only book of poetry with enough sales to make our list this period (Gorman’s bestselling poetry books are captured on the children’s bestsellers list). Soon to be Released Books by Iconic Authors Be the first to learn about important books before they are published. We maintain a constantly updated list of list of upcoming titles. Discover your next great read before anyone else and spread the word. The Man Who Lived Underground by Richard Wright A previously unpublished novel from the 1940s by the legendary author! Fred Daniels, a Black man, is picked up by the police after a brutal double murder and tortured until he confesses to a crime he did not commit. After signing a confession, he escapes from custody and flees into the city’s sewer system. This is the devastating premise of this scorching novel, a masterpiece that Richard Wright was unable to publish in his lifetime. Written between his landmark books Native Son (1940) and Black Boy (1945), at the height of his creative powers … More ▶ Praise Song for the Widow by Paule Marshall Originally published in 1983, Praise Song for the Widow was a recipient of the Before Columbus Foundation American Book Award, and is presented here in a beautiful new hardcover edition. Praise Song for the Widow, a novel about a Harlem widow claiming new life, features a new original introduction by Opal Palmer Adisa. Paule Marshall was perhaps best known for her novel Brown Girl, Brownstones. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, she was Professor of English at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. She passed away in 2019. More ▶ Crime Partners by Donald Goines Donald Goines, one of the most prolific writers of the 20th century, has influenced many of today's urban writers with his gritty, realistic look at the streets. For the first time in years, his classic Crime Partners is now repackaged and reissued in trade with a whole new look to attract new readers, as well as long-time fans of the legend himself. Prison buddies Billy Good and Jackie Walker made time pulling small jobs here and there. Not a bad living if you liked scraping by. The thing to worry about was the next fix. Nothing else mattered. When Billy and Jackie fell in with Kenyatta, a ghetto lord ready to take back the streets, they thought they'd hit the big time. More ▶ Appeal to Authors, Publishers, and Event Hosts If AALBC sells, reviews, or otherwise promotes your your book or event, consider linking to AALBC from your website or social media. In fact, considering doing that for any indie platform who highlights your work. It is a really small thing to do that can pay big dividends for indie platforms, which ultimately benefits the entire Black Book Ecosystem. Not sure if your work is on AALBC; use our search engine to find out. Want to get your work on AALBC? Learn how. Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier online platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – March 9, 2021 - Issue #320

The U.S. Open has been described as a 14-day Superbowl and for 5 years Katrina Adams was running the show. As the first black woman and youngest person to hold the position of President and CEO of the US Tennis Association, Adams knows a thing or ten about overcoming challenges and achieving greatness, and she’s ready to show you how. Rich with a variety of professional and personal, real-life scenarios, Own the Arena presents invaluable information on meeting life’s challenges. More ▶ New and Noteworthy Books In the Company of Men by Véronique Tadjo This novel of connected vignettes is made richer with interwoven material, ranging from song lyrics and scientific facts to poetry and folk tales. Tadjo brings together a chorus of voices that give shape to the causes and consequences of the Ebola crisis. Beginning with two village boys who venture from their village to hunt in a nearby forest, where they shoot down bats with glee, and cook their prey over an open fire. Within a month, they are dead. The reader hears from a man who communicates with his fiancée through poetry when she is separated from him at a hospital; the sagacious Baobab tree, who warns of the dangers of climate change; and even Ebola itself, a sardonic centuries-old scourge. More ▶ Mouths of Rain: An Anthology of Black Lesbian Thought by Briona Simone Jones A groundbreaking collection tracing the history of intellectual thought by Black Lesbian writers, in the tradition of The New Press’s perennial seller Words of Fire. Taking its title from a poem by Audre Lorde, Mouths of Rain uses “Black Lesbian” as a capacious signifier, which includes writing by Black women who have shared intimate and loving relationships with other women, Black women who have written about Black Lesbians, and Black women who theorize about and see the word lesbian as a political descriptor that disrupts and critiques capitalism, heterosexism, and heteropatriarchy. Mouths of Rain addresses pervasive issues such as misogynoir and anti-blackness while also attending to love, romance, “coming out,” and the erotic. More ▶ Sister Days: 365 Inspired Moments in African American Women’s History by Janus Adams A limited number of autographed, 1st edition, 22-year-old, hardcover copies are available. Throughout history, African American women have tapped hidden sources of strength and inspiration to conquer impossible odds. They have persevered through dangerous times. They have nurtured families, loved knowledge, and pursued dreams as various and different as the women who dreamed them. Along the way, they have forged new identities, fought for human rights, and made history. Janus Adams offers us a daily invitation to share in this life-affirming legacy. More ▶ Black Pearl by Gibran Tariq When Princess Washington, all of a sudden, decides that the church is cheating her out of a social life, she takes it upon herself to see just how green the grass is on the other side of the church’s door. Without delay, Princess chooses a path to the street life where she is pleasantly surprised by the wide variety of sinful temptations. The allure of the streets beckons much too brightly for the young choir-girl who experiments with sex and drugs until she realizes that the road she is on is not a path to self-fulfillment—-but a Highway to Hell! More ▶ Preorder Limitation of Life by d. E. Rogers and Save 31% Everything comes at a cost. When Brodie’s sister dies, her death kills his future... Certain she was murdered for her research and work on building a time machine, he must use her device to go back in time and save her life. But nothing is ever so simple. Betrayed by those he thinks he can trust and with alternate timelines piling up, Brodie quickly discovers that every trip back changes something. More ▶ Books from the African American Children’s Book Fair In case you missed the recent African American Children’s Book Fair you can still check out and purchase the participating author’s books. Appeal to Authors, Publishers, and Event Hosts If AALBC sells, reviews, or otherwise promotes your your book or event, consider linking to AALBC from your website or social media. In fact, considering doing that for any indie platform who highlights your work. It is a really small thing to do that can pay big dividends for indie platforms, which ultimately benefits the entire Black Book Ecosystem. Not sure if your work is on AALBC; use our search engine to find out. Want to get your work on AALBC? Learn how. Switch from Audible to Libro.fm Switch to Libro.fm. With Audible’s membership, “Credits expire immediately upon the cancellation or termination of your membership unless used prior to cancellation or termination.” With Libro.fm you actually own your audiobooks, you are not required to permanently pay a subscription fee to read the audiobooks that you have purchased. Plus, your membership helps support AALBC. Start Your Membership African American Literature Book Club (AALBC.com LLC) can use your favorable reviews. Post a ★★★★★ review to our Google profile. Give AALBC a ★★★★★ Review Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – February 23, 2021 - Issue #319

As the tragic murder of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement has demonstrated, not being racist is not enough. To fulfill the American ideal, to ensure that all people are equal, everyone must be actively anti-racist. Anti-Racist Ally is a pocket-sized guide full of insightful steps anyone can take to be a better ally in the fight against racism. More ▶ New and Noteworthy Books In the Eye of the Storm: My Time as Chairman of Bank of America During the Country’s Worst Financial Crisis by Walter E. Massey with Rosalind Kilkenny McLymont “Walter Massey’s memoir records how one Black man’s leadership saved one of the largest banks in America and the world at a time when the financial industry faced collapse. A Black boy from Jim Crow Mississippi, who cut classes to play jazz, becomes a theoretical physicist and educator, only to be thrust into a role that ultimately helps to pull the country out of its worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. That alone is a fascinating story. Lessons in leadership-under-duress aside, the memoir’s importance lies equally in the insights its backstories provide for students of African-American history, finance, economy, social change, and human nature.” —Rosalind Kilkenny McLymont Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Floyd Cooper Celebrated author Carole Boston Weatherford and illustrator Floyd Cooper provide a powerful look at the Tulsa Race Massacre, one of the worst incidents of racial violence in our nation’s history. The book traces the history of African Americans in Tulsa’s Greenwood district and chronicles the devastation that occurred in 1921 when a white mob attacked the Black community. News of what happened was largely suppressed, and no official investigation occurred for seventy-five years. This picture book sensitively introduces young readers to this tragedy and concludes with a call for a better future. More ▶ Of One Blood by Pauline Hopkins When medical student Reuel Briggs reluctantly attends a performance by the beautiful singer Dianthe Lusk, he can’t help but fall for her. The very next day, their paths cross again when Dianthe’s train crashes. To bring her back from the brink of death, Reuel draws on an eerie power he can’t quite name. Soon, the two are engaged, and Reuel sets off on an archeological expedition to Africa to offset his debts before the wedding. But, in Ethiopia, unexpected danger and terror force him to confront the truth about his lineage, his power, and the history that lives in his very blood. First serialized in Colored American Magazine in 1902, this narrative exemplifies Pauline Hopkins’s incisive writing and interrogates issues of race and history that remain urgent today. This edition is presented by the Horror Writers Association and introduced by award-winning author Nisi Shawl. Read an Excerpt ▶ ’Til I Want No More by Robin W. Pearson A Christian fiction novel with a poignant story of romance, a search for truth, and a journey to redemption. If Maxine could put her finger on the moment when her life went into a tailspin, she would point back twenty years to the day her daddy died. She tells herself he’s the only person who ever really knew and loved her, and if he hadn’t left her behind, her future would’ve been different. No absentee mother, no stepfather, no rebellious ripping and running during her teenage years. And no JD, who gave her wandering young heart a home, at least for a time. More ▶ A Conversation with Go On Girl! Book Club and Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Join Go On Girl! Book Club, Saturday, February 20, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. EST, as they discuss social issues with Eddie S. Glaude Jr., Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, where he is also the Chair of the Center for African American Studies and the Chair of the Department of African American Studies. Glaude is a frequent MSNBC political commentator and author of the AALBC Bestseller, Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own. Learn more and Register ▶ African American Literature Book Club (AALBC.com LLC) can use your favorable reviews. Post a ★★★★★ review to our Google profile. Give AALBC a ★★★★★ Review Dear Reader, As always, you are why we’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, engagement on the site, commenting, social sharing, and advertisements helps support our mission to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – February 16, 2021 - Issue #318

History has been written almost exclusively from the white perspective. Written by the voice of Black consciousness, Dick Gregory the incomparable comedian and human rights activist, revisits history from the Black perspective. Originally published in 1972, Gregory examines numerous aspects of culture and history, from the slave trade, police brutality, to the 1968 Civil Rights Act. This essential classic continues to speak to us today. More about No More Lies ▶ A Conversation with Go On Girl! Book Club about Love Stories Please join GOG! for a conversation with Denise Williams author of How to Fail at Flirting, Edwina Martin Arnold author of the Chocolate Friday romance series and Donna Hill author of Confessions in B-Flat Feb 13, 2021 05:00 PM in Eastern Time Learn More ▶ New and Noteworthy Books The Body Is Not an Apology, Second Edition: The Power of Radical Self-Love by Sonya Renee Taylor The Body Is Not an Apology offers radical self-love as the balm to heal the wounds inflicted by these violent systems. World-renowned activist and poet Sonya Renee Taylor invites us to reconnect with the radical origins of our minds and bodies and celebrate our collective, enduring strength. As we awaken to our own indoctrinated body shame, we feel inspired to awaken others and to interrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression against all bodies. This second edition includes stories from Taylor’s travels around the world combating body terrorism and shines a light on the path toward liberation guided by love. In a brand new final chapter, she offers specific tools, actions, and resources for confronting racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, and transphobia. And she provides a case study showing how radical self-love not only dismantles shame and self-loathing in us but has the power to dismantle entire systems of injustice. More ▶ Your Name Is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow, Illustrated by Luisa Uribe Frustrated by a day full of teachers and classmates mispronouncing her beautiful name, a little girl tells her mother she never wants to come back to school. In response, the girl’s mother teaches her about the musicality of African, Asian, Black-American, Latinx, and Middle Eastern names on their lyrical walk home through the city. Empowered by this newfound understanding, the young girl is ready to return the next day to share her knowledge with her class. Your Name is a Song is a celebration to remind all of us about the beauty, history, and magic behind names. Your Name is a Song includes back matter perfect for parents, educators, caregivers, and young readers who want to learn more about the names featured in the story. The “Glossary of Names” lists each name’s meaning, origin, and pronunciation. Additionally, readers can use a listed link to access an online video of the author pronouncing all the names in the book. More ▶ Opal’s Greenwood Oasis by Quraysh Ali Lansana and Najah-Amatullah Hylton, Illustrated by Skip Hill The year is 1921, and Opal Brown would like to show you around her beautiful neighborhood of Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Filled with busy stores and happy families, Opal also wants you to know that “everyone looks like me.” In both words and illustrations, this carefully researched and historically accurate book allows children to experience the joys and success of Greenwood, one of the most prosperous Black communities of the early 20th Century, an area Booker T. Washington dubbed America’s Black Wall Street. Soon after the day narrated by Opal, Greenwood would be lost in the Tulsa Race Massacre, the worst act of racial violence in American history. As we approach the centennial of that tragic event, children have the opportunity through this book to learn and celebrate all that was built in Greenwood. More ▶ Vibrate Higher: A Rap Story by Talib Kweli Before Talib Kweli became a world-renowned hip hop artist, he was a Brooklyn kid who liked to cut class, spit rhymes, and wander the streets of Greenwich Village with a motley crew of artists, rappers, and DJs who found hip hop more inspiring than their textbooks (much to the chagrin of the educator parents who had given their son an Afrocentric name in hope of securing for him a more traditional sense of pride and purpose). Eventually, childhood friendships turned into collaborations and Kweli gained notoriety as a rapper in his own right. From collaborating with some of hip hop’s greatest—including Mos Def, Common, Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, and Kendrick Lamar—to selling books out of the oldest African-American bookstore in Brooklyn, and ultimately leaving his record label and taking control of his own recording career, Kweli tells the winding, always compelling story of the people and events that shaped his own life as well as the culture of hip hop which informs American culture at large. More ▶ 2021 National Black Writers Conference Biennial Symposium “They Cried I Am: The Life and Work of Paule Marshall and John A. Williams, Unsung Black Literary Voices” Saturday, March 27, 2021, 11: 00 AM – 7:00 PM Presented on Zoom The 2021 National Black Writers Conference Biennial Symposium will celebrate the life and works of the late Paule Marshall and John A. Williams. Featured program highlights will include a keynote address, roundtable discussions, and dramatic readings. Confirmed speakers include Carole Boyce-Davies, Edwidge Danticat, Keith Gilyard, Maryemma Graham, Michael Anthony Green, Lawrence Jackson, Evan Marshall, Liza Jessie Peterson, Ishmael Reed, Linda Villarosa, Mary Helen Washington, and Tulivu-Donna Cumberbatch. For more information, visit The Center for Black Literature ▶ Give AALBC a 5★ Review! Google controls the discoverability of websites in search, a favorable review helps Please send complaints directly to me troy@aalbc.com Dear Reader, I currently work out of an office in the Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the site of one of the most violent and destructive scenes of racial violence to take place in America, known today as the Tulsa Race Massacre. The 100th anniversary of this tragedy is May 31 – June 1, 2021. For almost a century this event was deliberately hidden, but today this is no longer the case. It not about pointing out yet another injustice perpetuated against Black people in this country, it is about accurately telling our history, so that we can learn and heal from it. Books like Opal’s Greenwood Oasis can help prepare youngsters to begin to understand this history, for it is not just Tulsan history, it is American History. Part of AALBC’s mission is to use books to tell our stories, which are too often not told or distorted. As always, you are why I’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, spreading the word, engagement on the site (commenting and social sharing), and advertisements helps support this effort to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – February 9, 2021 - Issue #317

The creator of the internationally popular, multiple award-winning blog MsAfropolitan applies an Africa-centered feminist sensibility to issues of racism and sexism, challenging our illusions about oppression and liberation and daring women to embrace their power. Sensuous Knowledge: A Black Feminist Approach for Everyone by Minna Salami is now available in paperback, this thought provoking essay collection explores questions central to how we see ourselves, our history, and our world. More ▶ 29th Annual African American Children’s Book Fair – Today! The 29th Annual African American Children’s Book Fair will be held virtually on Saturday, February 6, 2021, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST. Hosted by the African American Children’s Book Project (AACBP), the book fair is one of the oldest and largest single-day events for children's books in the country. Register Now. Here is a preview of many of the books which will be available for sale this year and video from last year’s fair. New Books Published This Week Love Is a Revolution by Renée Watson In Love Is a Revolution, plus size girls are beautiful and get the attention of the hot guys… When Nala Robertson reluctantly agrees to attend an open mic night for her cousin-sister-friend Imani’s birthday, she finds herself falling in instant love with Tye Brown, the MC. He’s perfect, except … Tye is an activist and is spending the summer putting on events for the community when Nala would rather watch movies and try out the new seasonal flavors at the local creamery. In order to impress Tye, Nala tells a few tiny lies to have enough in common with him. As they spend more time together, sharing more of themselves, some of those lies get harder to keep up. As Nala falls deeper into keeping up her lies and into love, she’ll learn all the ways love is hard, and how self-love is revolutionary. Prayer for the Living by Ben Okri Topical and timely, Booker Prize-winning author Ben Okri’s new collection of twenty-four short stories blurs parallel realities and walks the line between darkness and magic. Playful, frightening, shocking—these stories from a writer at the height of his power will make you think, or make you laugh. Sometimes they’ll make you want to look away, but they will always hold your gaze. These are stories set in London, in Byzantium, in the ghetto, in the Andes, and in a printer’s shop in Lagos. Characters include a murderer, a writer, a detective, a woman in a dream, a man in a mirror, a little girl, a prison door, and the author himself. Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain Four Hundred Souls is a unique one-volume “community” history of African Americans. The editors, Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain, have assembled ninety brilliant writers, each of whom takes on a five-year period of that four-hundred-year span. The writers explore their periods through a variety of techniques: historical essays, short stories, personal vignettes, and fiery polemics. They approach history from various perspectives: through the eyes of towering historical icons or the untold stories of ordinary people; through places, laws, and objects. While themes of resistance and struggle, of hope and reinvention, course through the book, this collection of diverse pieces from ninety different minds, reflecting ninety different perspectives, fundamentally deconstructs the idea that Africans in America are a monolith—instead it unlocks the startling range of experiences and ideas that have always existed within the community of Blackness. I Am the Rage by Martina McGowan I am The Rage is a poetry collection that explores racial injustice from the raw, unfiltered viewpoint of a Black woman in America. Dr. Martina McGowan is a retired MD, a mother, grandmother, and a poet. Her poetry provides insights that no think piece on racism can; putting readers in the uncomfortable position of feeling, reflecting, and facing what it means to be a Black American. This entire collection was created during 2020, many shortly after the deaths of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, to name but a few. A Great Way to Enjoy Audiobooks and Support AALBC Introduce your friends to Libro.fm, so they too can support AALBC with their audiobook purchases. As our thanks for spreading the word, you’ll receive a free audiobook when they start their membership! Now is the perfect time for your friends to make the #AudiobookSwitch to Libro.fm. When they start their membership and use the code SWITCH they’ll get two audiobooks for the price of one ($14.99). Unlike Audible, Libro.fm’s audiobooks are DRM-free, which means you own the audiobook — you can listen to them on any device, anywhere, anytime, through any app that will play them. Check out our continuously updated list of 100 New Audio Books You’ll Love ♥ and start enjoying audiobooks today! Refer Friends to Libro! Earn Free Stocks Through Robinhood — No Gimmicks If you want to begin investing in the stock market, Robinhood is an excellent way to do it and it does not any initial investment. All of the funds in my account were from stocks earned from referrals. You don't need any money in your account to earn free stock. For everyone you invite to join, you’ll both earn a reward stock. As soon as your friend signs up and links their bank account, Robinhood will credit each of your accounts with a reward stock. You can receive up to $500 in reward stocks each calendar year. Join Now! Dear Reader, Occasionally, I'll recommend a non-book related service, like Robinhood, in this newsletter. When I do that it is because it is a service I actually use and believe may benefit you. Paid sponsors are always disclosed at the end of the newsletter. I’m proud of all of our sponsors, but Amistad’s (an imprint of HarperCollins) books are just a pleasure to share with you! As always, you are why I’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscriptions, book purchases, suggestions, spreading the word, engagement (commenting and social sharing), and advertisements helps support the effort to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – February 2, 2021 - Issue #316

“Just As I Am is my truth. It is me, plain and unvarnished, with the glitter and garland set aside.” —Cicley Tyson Just As I Am is the stunning life-story of Academy, Tony, and three-time Emmy Award winning actress and trailblazer, Cicely Tyson, detailing her incredible six-decade career on and off screen. It is a personal testimony of how her experiences—some magnificent, others sorrowful, some on screen, many away from it—have given birth to the woman she is still becoming. More ► New Books and Noteworthy Books Blood Grove by Walter Mosley Walter Mosley returns with a new installment in his extremely popular Easy Rawlins mystery series! Blood Grove is a crackling, moody, and thrilling race through a California of hippies and tycoons, radicals and sociopaths, cops and grifters, both men and women. Easy will need the help of his friends—from the genius Jackson Blue to the dangerous Mouse Alexander, Fearless Jones, and Christmas Black—to make sense of a case that reveals the darkest impulses humans harbor. The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr. A singular and stunning debut novel about the forbidden union between two enslaved young men on a deep south plantation, the refuge they find in each other, and a betrayal that threatens their existence. Isaiah was Samuel’s and Samuel was Isaiah’s. That was the way it was since the beginning, and the way it was to be until the end. In the barn they tended to the animals, but also to each other, transforming the hollowed-out shed into a place of human refuge, a source of intimacy and hope in a world ruled by vicious masters. But when an older man—a fellow slave—seeks to gain favor by preaching the master’s gospel on the plantation, the enslaved begin to turn on their own. Isaiah and Samuel’s love, which was once so simple, is seen as sinful and a clear danger to the plantation’s harmony. A Man Who Is Not a Man by Thando Mgqolozan “His straightforward no-frills prose tells an effective story of a botched circumcision and its consequences.” —Zakes Mda A Man Who is Not a Man is an evocative story about a young Xhosa man’s trauma and lifelong shame after a rite-of-passage circumcision goes wrong. This botched circumcision is framed as a personal failure, stripping young Lumkile of his humanity, social support system, and labelling him “a failed man.” This powerful coming of age novel follows Lumkile’s journey into manhood, from petty theft and violence in Cape Town, to education and first love in the village, and finally to the harrowing isolation of a mountain hut. With language that moves from raunchy and comical, to tender and earnest, A Man Who is Not a Man challenges the code of silent suffering expected of men, and provides a subversive depiction of masculinity, in all its varied forms. The Missing American by Kwei Quartey Mystery Writers of America have nominated The Missing American as for the 2021 Edgar Allan Poe Awards, which honors the best in mystery fiction, non-fiction, and television. The Missing American tells the story of Accra private investigator Emma Djan’s first missing persons case, which leads her to the darkest depths of the email scams and fetish priests in Ghana, the world’s Internet capital. ALA Announced 2021 Youth Media Awards The American Library Association (ALA) announced the top books, digital media, video and audio books for children and young adults – including the Caldecott, Coretta Scott King, and Newbery awards which we track. Below are the Black writers and illustrators who won awards or were honored. The Coretta Scott King Awards and Honors The Coretta Scott King (CSK) Awards and Honors are presented annually by the American Library Association to honor African-American authors and illustrators who create outstanding books for children and young adults. Before the Ever After, written by Jacqueline Woodson, is the CSK Author Book winner. R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, illustrated by Frank Morrison, is the CSK Illustrator Book winner. the CSK John Steptoe Award for New Talent (Author) went Tracy Deonn for her YA novel, Legendborn. Learn about the nine 2021 The Coretta Scott King Honored books ► John Newbery Medal and Honors First awarded in 1922, The John Newbery Medal is awarded annually by the American Library Association for the most distinguished American children’s book published the previous year. Virginia Hamilton, in 1975, was the first African American writer to win the medal. Box: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford, Illustrated by Michele Wood received a Newbery Honor this year. Randolph Caldecott Medal & Honors The Randolph Caldecott Medal is awarded to the most distinguished American picture book for children. This year Me & Mama by written and Illustrated by Cozbi A. Cabrera and A Place Inside of Me: A Poem to Heal the Heart by Zetta Elliott, Illustrated by Noa Denmon received honors this year. In the 84-year history of this award a Black woman has never won the Randolph Caldecott Medal Read More ► Other Youth Media Awards Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and Honors Named for Dr. Seuss, this award is given each year to authors and illustrators “of the most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States.” Ty’s Travels: Zip, Zoom! written by Kelly Starling Lyons, Illustrated by Nina Mata received a Seuss Geisel Honor. William C. Morris Award and Honors go to debut books published by a first-time author writing for teens. Morrisa Honors, this year included; Black Girl Unlimited: The Remarkable Story of a Teenage Wizard by Echo Brown; and The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed. Check out the The American Library Association's press release for all of the award winning and honored books. Troy Johnson on Wisconsin Public Radio I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Wisconsin Public Radio’s Larry Meiller who hosts a radio program and book club. I shared with him a variety of recommended reads and how I got started with AALBC. Check out the interview. Dear Reader, As always, you are why I’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, suggestions, spreading the word, engagement on the site (commenting and social sharing), and advertisements helps support this effort to celebrate Black books and authors. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – January 26, 2021 - Issue #315

Elegantly written and exhaustively researched, The Rib King is an unsparing examination of America’s fascination with black iconography and exploitation that redefines African American stereotypes in literature. Set in the early twentieth century and centered around the black servants of a down-on-its heels upper-class white family, it is a powerful story that offers a fresh and searing critique on race, class, privilege, exploitation, and revenge. Learn More ▶ New Books Jump at the Sun by Alicia D. Williams, Illustrated by Jacqueline Alcantara From the Newbery Honor winning author of Genesis Begins Again comes, the first picture book biography written about Zora Neale Hurston, a shimmering picture book that shines the light on Zora Neale Hurston, the extraordinary writer and storycatcher extraordinaire who changed the face of American literature. Zora was a girl who hankered for tales like bees for honey. Now, her mama always told her that if she wanted something, “to jump at de sun,” because even though you might not land quite that high, at least you d get off the ground. So Zora jumped from place to place, from the porch of the general store where she listened to folktales, to Howard University, to Harlem. And everywhere she jumped, she shined sunlight on the tales most people hadn’t been bothered to listen to until Zora. The tales no one had written down until Zora. Tales on a whole culture of literature overlooked…until Zora. Until Zora jumped. More ▶ Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson This harrowing story follows an enslaved woman forced to barter love and freedom while living in the most infamous “Devil’s Half-Acre,” a slave jail, where the enslaved are broken, tortured, and sold every day in Richmond, Virginia Born on a plantation in Charles City Virginia, Pheby Delores Brown has lived a privileged life. Shielded by her mother’s position as the plantation’s medicine woman, and cherished by the Master’s sister, she is set apart from the others on the plantation, belonging to neither world. More ▶ Julian Bond’s Time to Teach: A History of the Southern Civil Rights Movement by Julian Bond A masterclass in the civil rights movement from one of the legendary activists who led it. Compiled from his original lecture notes, Julian Bond’s Time to Teach brings his invaluable teachings to a new generation of readers and provides a necessary toolkit for today’s activists in the era of Black Lives Matter and #MeToo. Bond sought to dismantle the perception of the civil rights movement as a peaceful and respectable protest that quickly garnered widespread support. Through his lectures, Bond detailed the ground-shaking disruption the movement caused, its immense unpopularity at the time, and the bravery of activists, some very young, who chose to disturb order to pursue justice. More ▶ The Life I’m In by Sharon G. Flake The powerful and long-anticipated companion to The Skin I’m In, Sharon Flake’s bestselling modern classic, presents the unflinching story of Char, a young woman trapped in the underworld of human trafficking. Now in Sharon Flake’s latest and unflinching novel, The Life I’m In, we follow Charlese Jones, who, with her raw, blistering voice speaks the truths many girls face, offering insight to some of the causes and conditions behind the complex system of men who take advantage of vulnerable teens in the underbelly of society. While Char might be frightened, she remains strong and determined to bring herself and her fellow victims out of the dark and back into the light, reminding us why compassion is a powerful cure to the ills of the world. More ▶ Wrath by Victoria Christopher Murray The award-winning author of Lust, Envy, and Greed — soon to be Lifetime movies — delivers an unforgettable story of a marriage at the breaking point in Wrath, the explosive new novel in the Seven Deadly Sins series. Sparks fly when Chastity and Xavier meet, and their whirlwind romance feels almost too good to be true. Before long, cracks begin to show in Xavier’s perfect façade, and it is only a matter of time before everything comes crumbling down. When Xavier’s wrath erupts at a level Chastity has never seen, who will it destroy forever? Murray’s inspiration for the book’s plot originated with her desire to tell a story grappling with domestic abuse after her Delta Sigma Theta sorority sister was tragically murdered by her husband in 2018. More ▶ Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes For centuries, accomplished women—of all races—have fallen out of the historical records. The same is true for gifted, prolific, women poets of the Harlem Renaissance who are little known, especially as compared to their male counterparts. Each poem is paired with one-of-a-kind art from today’s most exciting female African-American illustrators, including: Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Cozbi Cabrera, Pat Cummings, Nina Crews, Laura Freeman, Jan Spivey Gilchrist, Ebony Glenn, April Harrison, Ekua Holmes, Keisha Morrison, Daria Peoples-Riley, Andrea Pippins, Shadra Strickland, and Elizabeth Zunon. More ▶ One Night in Miami — A Brilliant Film One Night in Miami, is a fictionalized account of an evening that Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Malcolm X spent together after Clay’s defeat of Sonny Liston for boxing’s heavyweight title. It was one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time, an excellent character study that brilliantly showcases the struggles, triumphs, and often conflicting ideologies of these four legendary Brothers. It humanized these young men, providing interesting perspectives on many issues including the origin of Sam Cook’s iconic song, “A Change is Gonna Come;” Ali’s condemnation of Malcolm X, for leaving the Nation of Islam; Jim Brown’s views of activism versus economic empowerment; all in a country reckoning with overt, and institutionalized, white racism. The knowledge two of these men would be murdered within the year of that night made the story even more poignant. This film also marks Regina King’s directorial debut. One Night in Miami opened Dec 25, 2020 in a limited theatrical release. I say “mask up” and watch this movie on the big screen if you can. Did you see it? ▶ Troy Johnson & AALBC Acclimating to Tulsa, Oklahoma “Troy Johnson is settling into his new life as a Tulsa resident, checking out all the local eats and awaiting the day the music scene comes back swinging. After spending most of his career in the defense and financial services industries, Troy founded The African American Literature Book Club (AALBC.com) in March of 1998. Today, AALBC.com is the oldest, largest, and most frequently visited website dedicated to books written by or about people of African descent.“ This article was published by the folks at 36 Degrees North, Tulsa’s basecamp for entrepreneurs, startups and innovators, who have welcomed me with open arms. Read the Full Article ▶ Dear Reader, As always, you are why I’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, and advertisements helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – January 19, 2021 - Issue #314

An Afrofuturist odyssey, Infinitum tells the story of Aja Ọba, a revered African King cursed with immortality. Spanning the dawn of civilization to intergalactic travel, King Aja witnesses the enslavement of his people, the Civil Right movement, and the future’s first contact with an alien species. Stunningly emotional and evocative, Infinitum presents a unique cosmic experience you won’t soon forget. Learn More ▶ AALBC’s Top 10 Bestselling Books for 2020 Thanks to you, 2020 was AALBC’s best year for book sales — ever! The increase in sales was spurred in reaction to the murder of George Floyd. Readers, of all backgrounds, showed an huge interest in books dealing with racism. More importantly, these readers also made an effort to buy these books from Black-owed bookstores. For many bookstores the level of sales was unprecedented. Many of the stores were facing failure, due to the pandemic. The surge in sales prevented stores from going under. On behalf of all booksellers, Thank you! Children’s books, especially picture books, have been selling extremely well for the last 18 months. Sulwe, the six-time AALBC bestseller, by Lupita Nyong’o and Illustrated by Vashti Harrison is the bestselling children’s book of all time. I Can Be Anything! Don’t Tell Me I Can’t by Leo & Diane Dillon has been an AALBC bestseller every period we’ve reported since September 2019. The Top 10 Bestselling Books for 2020 (based upon number of books sold) 1. How to Be an Antiracist 2. So You Want to Talk About Race 3. White Fragility 4. Whose Knees Are These? 5. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness 6. The Fire Next Time 7. Between The World And Me 8. A Black Woman Did That 9. Sulwe 10. His Truth Is Marching on: John Lewis and the Power of Hope Also check out the books that made our Bestsellers List the most number of times in 2020. These are the bestselling books that have sold most consistently throughout 2020. Black Health and Healing: 24 Hour Virtual Summit This summit will spotlight top medical experts and entertainers who will discuss the most critical health topics. AALBC’s Troy Johnson will lead a discussion by Dr. Dina Strachan, an internationally-recognized, Harvard and Yale educated, board-certified dermatologist, and the founder and director of Aglow Dermatology, a premiere medical and cosmetic dermatology practice in New York City. Our title of our presentation will be “Does Your Doctor Really Need to be Black?” African-Americans lag all demographics in health outcomes in the United States. The higher mortality rates of Black American from Covid-19 is the latest alarming statistic. CNN recently reported on a study that showed; Black newborn babies in the U.S. are three times more likely than White Babies to die when looked after by White doctors. This panel will explore reasons for this discrepancy and what you can do about it. Register Now Why I No Longer Blog I’m not ending the sharing of my ideas and opinions — I’m just no longer doing it on a dedicated blog. Anything I would have shared my blog will be shared on our discussion forums. My most recent discussion forum content may be found here. Independent discussion forums remain one of the only, and I’d argue best, places to share, discuss, and debate ideas. We are not interested in mining your data, exploiting your privacy, or manipulating your behavior. We are simply interesting in reading and sharing ideas. Consider joining us ▶ Dear Reader, As always, you are why I’ve been able to make AALBC the premier platform for books by, or about, Black people. Your paid subscription, book purchases, and advertisements helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – January 12, 2021 - Issue #31

In honor of Zora Neale Hurston’s birthday and the paperback publication of Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick, Amistad is proud to offer this unprecedented free audiobook giveaway of Their Eyes Were Watching God. The giveaway is only valid Thursday, January 7th 2021. Redeem Your Free Audiobook ▶ The Best African American Children’s Picture Books for 2020 This list was compiled by the African American Children’s Book Project (AACBP). They have supported the literary needs of the nation since 1992. The not-for-profit organization was formed to promote and preserve children’s literature written by or about African Americans. Since its inception they have emphasized, “A Book Opens Up a World of Opportunities.” Their signature event is The African American Children’s Book Fair — since 1992 — is one of the largest single-day gatherings for diverse children’s books in the country. Picture books are one of the most popular categories purchased at this event. Twenty-Twenty was a banner year for Black picture books. While there was a lot of buzz about children’s social justice titles many missed some of the best books of our generation featured on our list. The AACBP believes if you want to educate on social justice you have to teach Black history. Review the entire list and consider purchasing a book for a youngster in your life. Bestselling Books for November/December - 2020 Our bestsellers list has been published continuously since 1998 and is the most visible list focused on Black Books in existence. You will learn about books selling well, in the Black community, that may never show up on lists published by larger corporate entities. There were 61 bestselling books in the four categories we track; Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Children’s Books (which includes all genres and age ranges, from Board Books to Young Adult) . F.R.E.S.H. Book Festival: January 8 – 9, 2021 The F.R.E.S.H. Book Festival is an engaging weekend of entertainment in the forms of film, books, author presentations, focus groups, and of course, good music. Traditionally, authors travel to F.R.E.S.H. for a time to network with fellow authors, meet with readers and fans, and yes, sell books! In 2021, F.R.E.S.H. goes virtual and international with BAMM! Books Authors Movies & Music. F.R.E.S.H. Book Festival 2021 promises to be epic, as they celebrate 10 years of bringing authors, readers, and the community together! AALBC’s participated in the 2020 Festival and will be participating again this year on Friday. Check out the Virtual Program Guide for the Festival. Eric Jerome Dickey Passes (July 7, 1961 – January 3, 2021) I just learned of Eric’s passing a few minutes ago. He transitioned on Sunday and was just 59 years old. The entire literary community is devastated, because Eric, besides being an entertaining writer, was just a good Brother. Eric published at least 30 novels, over a career that spanned almost a quarter of a century. He has consistently dominated AALBC’s bestsellers lists and is one of our Top 100 Bestseller Authors. In 2000, he was voted one of our “50 Favorite African-American Authors of the 20th Century.” He will be missed. Dear Reader, Eric Jerome Dickey’s loss hit me hard, and my initial reaction was that the book world sustained a great loss. But that is the wrong way to look at it; the reality is the world has been made much richer because Eric was with us for almost 60 years. His books will continue to bring joy and smiles to the faces of many more readers. I will do my part to celebrate his legacy. As always, you are why I’ve been able to provide this platform to celebrate Black culture through books. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – January 5, 2021 - Issue #312

The AALBC bestseller, Bourbon Street, by Leonce Gaiter, is back in print! The thrilling New Orleans noir is back. In 1958, Alex Moreau plays his rich, powerful white father’s minions like chess pieces as he fashions revenge for his mother’s death, and long-sought freedom from his father’s iron grip. “It has been a long while since I read a book as complex and gorgeous as Bourbon Street… a sheer joy to read from beginning to end.” —AALBC Recently Reviewed Books Badass Black Girl: Questions, Quotes, and Affirmations for Teens by M.J. Fievre “Black girls are often seen as more mature and in need of less protection than other students in the same age group. This is known as an adultification bias. Because of this, when Black girls express strong or contrary views, adults view them as challenging authority or, more fundamentally, simply assume a girl’s character is just plain ‘bad.’ Instead of being heard and understood, Black girls are too often treated like they have an attitude problem or are a threat. Studies have shown this can lead to some serious consequences for Black girls who are brave enough to speak up when they face injustice. For example, Black girls in school are more than five times more likely than white girls to be suspended from school.” More ▶ Sweet Sorrel Stand by Yolanda T. Marshall Teaching kids about money from an early age can help them learn healthy financial habits that will last a lifetime. Yolanda T. Marshall, shares her Caribbean heritage in this fun and educational picture book. Marshall uses her culture to teach valuable lessons to young children. She shows children how they can create their own business, earn extra money, and have some fun while doing it. The story revolves around two children, Rose and Nicholas, and their love for a sorrel drink, which they turn into a business. More ▶ Authors You Should Know Businessman Extraordinaire, 94 Year-Old Tom Wood Wood is the first Black person to take their company public and the first be on a major U.S. bank’s board of directors. I had the pleasure of meeting Tom a couple of weeks ago. The video I created really can not do justice the man and his accomplishments. People like Tom must be recognized more, and AALBC’s coverage is our small contribution. Tom also published his memoir, Anna’s Boy, this month, and it is chock full of fascinating stories featuring personalities from Martin Luther King to David Rockefeller. Videos: Three Terrific Black-Owned Bookstores from FL to AR I visited three wonderful Black-Owned Bookstores this month and recorded videos of the owners. I visited Pyramid Art, Books & Custom Framing in Little Rock, AR; DARE Books in Longwood, FL; and Best Richardson African Diaspora Literature & Culture Museum in Tampa, FL. These stores have been in business an average of 31 years! If you live near, or happen to visit the area these stores are located in, visit them. Learn about these and almost 100 other Black-owned bookstores ▶ Dear Reader, This will be our last newsletter for 2020. I pray 2021 will bring us all closer together both spiritually and physically. The global pandemic has caused a great deal of personal and financial loss. The highlight of the year was the tremendous support, people of all colors, showed each other. While the media tends to focus on the negative, the real story is that people have demonstrated a tremendous capacity to support one another — when it matters most. For this reason, I know we will come out of this pandemic better than ever. My hope is that AALBC will help enrich 2021 through the stories we share. Despite the pandemic, you are why I’ve been able to provide this platform to celebrate Black culture through books. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Legba Books. Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – December 22, 2020 - Issue #311

A thought-provoking and heartbreaking memoir, Think Black illuminates the fast pace of technology and the slow pace of race relations. Award-winning writer, Clyde Ford, tells the story of his father, John Stanley Ford, the first black software engineer at IBM, revealing how racism insidiously affected his father’s view of himself and their relationship. Buy Now ▶ New Books Long Time Coming: Reckoning with Race in America by Michael Eric Dyson (Autographed) A first edition hand signed book by Michael Eric Dyson is a collector’s item. Long Time Coming grapples with the cultural and social forces that have shaped our nation in the brutal crucible of race. In five beautifully argued chapters—each addressed to a black martyr from Breonna Taylor to Rev. Clementa Pinckney—Dyson traces the genealogy of anti-blackness from the slave ship to the street corner where George Floyd life was taken—and where America gained its will to confront the ugly truth of systemic racism. Ending with a poignant plea for hope, Dyson’s exciting new book points the way to social redemption. Buy Now ▶ My Baby Loves Valentine’s Dayby Jabari Asim, Illustrated by Tara Nicole Whitaker The My Baby Loves Valentine’s Day board book, celebrates all the lovely things that Baby discovers about Valentines Day: Baby loves hearts made of paper and lace. Baby loves kisses and a loving embrace. Baby loves pretty red roses… Celebrate all the lovely things Baby discovers about Valentine’s Day! This Own Voices board book, the perfect gift for a new baby, Buy Now ▶ The 39 Most Critically Acclaimed Books of 2020 The books included on this list were published, or republished, in 2020 and you were the critics. All the titles on this list distinguished themselves in multiple ways; they won awards; were selected for inclusion on major book club reading lists; or made AALBC’s bestsellers list. Our annual lists continues to grow, as books continue to accumulate additional acclaim. Our 2019 list recognizes 119 books, and our list go back over 70 years. Dear Reader, Anyone who knows me, knows AALBC.com is a labor of love. Whether it is a relationship, or vocation, when love is retuned there is nothing better. Thank you Reader for the love and support — AALBC can not grow without it. As always, you are why I’ve been able to provide this platform to celebrate Black culture through books. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – December 15, 2020 - Issue #310

“A curation of love for Black dialect, Black freedom, Black cool, Black culture, Black joy, and Black women.” —Bestselling Author Damon Young. In the vein of Roxane Gay’s Bad Feminist and Issa Rae’s The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, but wholly its own, a provocative, humorous, and, at times, heartbreaking collection of essays of womanhood, of blackness, and the possibilities they both contain. Girl Gurl Grrrl by Kenya Hunt both illuminates our current cultural moment and transcends it. Hunt blends the popular and the personal, the frivolous and the momentous in a collection that truly reflects what it is to be living and thriving as a black woman today. More ▶ Book clubs are a great resource for AALBC. They share information about the books they are reading, host terrific events, and provide for support writers. Go on Girl! and Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society have been supporters of AALBC.com for years. Check out their reading lists; they always select excellent reads. Go On Girl! Book Club Reading List Launched in 1991, Go On Girl! Book Club is one of the largest national reading organizations in the U.S. for Black women. Their reading list spans almost three decades. You may review the complete list below. You’ll definitely discover some great books and authors. Added Bonus: If you purchase all 6 books from the January – June 2021 list you will get free shipping and no sales tax (unless you ship to the state of Florida). Plus, half of the profit from the sales of all books on the Go On Girl! reading list will be donated to the Go On Girl! Book Club’s Scholarship Fund. Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society’s Reading List Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society meets the 3rd Friday of each month from February – November primarily at the George Washington Carver Museum. They are a group of Black women reading African America authors. 2021 marks the 29th year for the Folktales’ Black Women’s Literary Society. New Books The 5th Little Girl: Soul Survivor of the 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing by Tracy Snipe with Sarah Collins Rudolph Once described by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as “one of the most tragic and vicious crimes ever perpetrated against humanity,” the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Alabama, instantly killed four little girls. The 5th little girl, twelve-year-old Sarah Collins, was left temporarily blind by the bomb set off by white supremacists. In this intimate first-hand account, Sarah imparts her views on topics such as the 50th year commemoration, restitution, and racial terrorism. Her story also delves into the bond between Sarah and her mother, Mrs. Alice Collins (Africa World Press, Nov 24). King of the Rising by Kacen Callender King of the Rising is the searing conclusion to an unflinching and powerful Caribbean-inspired fantasy series about colonialism, resilience and defiance. A revolution has swept through the islands of Hans Lollik and former slave Loren Jannik has been chosen to lead the survivors in a bid to free the islands forever. But the rebels are running out of food, weapons and options. And as the Fjern inch closer to reclaiming Hans Lollik with every battle, Loren is faced with a choice that could shift the course of the revolution in their favor — or doom it to failure. Do Not Disturb! Meditating… by Adijah & Atiya Brabham Breathe in… Breathe out… Blow away that grumpy pout! Nia and Nori are back! In this cheerful picture book, the sisters explore mindfulness techniques to manage their emotions. They take readers into their lives sharing their happy thoughts. Through out the book, the sisters practice deep breathing and visualization meditation to create their calm space; hugging grandpa, playing games with friends, riding a bike and flying a kite are some of things they visualize. They learn to reset, be still and present. Gibran Tariq’s — From Wrong to Write! “For most of my life, I was the guy most wannabee thugs wished they could be. Officially declared a ‘menace to society,’ I was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for my role as mastermind of a series of daring bank robberies in the 70s. Two involved shootouts. One with the police. The other with a citizen in a bank parking lot where I narrowly missed being killed. While confined, I took part in an even more daring prison escape... From the start, there appeared to be a household conspiracy to convert me into a writer. By the time I was ten, I possessed a private library fit for a scholar, had a new typewriter, a big desk, and plenty of blank paper. By 11, I had mastered the dictionary, was a whiz at Scrabble, and was an honor roll student in school. At twelve, I had completed my first novel.” More ▶ Dear Verdel: A Letter from Ina Yalof It has been decades since you kept house for my family, but I still think of you every so often. Perhaps now more so than ever, as the Black Lives Matter movement has had such an impact on our current day culture. I live in New York City now, but still I have begun to consider what it must have been like to walk in your shoes back then. Particularly in a place such as where I grew up, land of sun and fun, Coppertone and coconuts, warm sand and salty waves. It was post card perfect our home town. We grew up in a cocoon: Beautiful, safe Miami Beach, Florida. But Miami Beach in the Fifties was also a paradigm of segregation, even though as an adolescent I’m pretty sure I was unfamiliar with the word. In place were unspoken “laws” – were they ever truly laws? - that kept us “protected and secure.” From what, I never quite understood. One such law stated: “Negros (the term used in those days, and so I shall carry it through) had to be off the Beach or inside after dark. No exceptions.” More ▶ Dear Reader, Stories are really at the heart of what I love to share. Normally I share stories that are captured in books, but there are so many wonderful ones that shared with me via email or posted on our discussion forums. Gibran and Ina’s stories, shared above, are examples. Gibran is active on our discussion forums you can read and engage with him and other intriguing personalities. As always, Reader thank you for your business and support. You are why I’ve been able to provide this platform, for going on 24 years, to celebrate Black culture through books. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – December 8, 2020 - Issue #309

Black Owned Bookstore List As most of you know I maintain a list of Black-Owned bookstores, which I’ve recently updated. Your bookstore, , is on the list. If you click your store's name, or photo, you will be taken to a page dedicated to your store that provides more detailed information. On the heels of George Floyd’s murder, this list went viral. Many people, most of them white, were extremely interested purchasing books on "antiracism" from Black-owned, bookstores. Some stores experienced a record level of sales as a result. The email address I’m using to email you now, p******@e******.com, is from the information shared on AALBC’s list of stores. If you would like to add correct or add information simply email me the updates. If you discover I'm missing a store or one needs to be deleted let me know that too. Why am I Sending this Email? I believe stores that focus on Black books are an asset to any community they are in. I've visited most of your stores and actively promote them. The list above, which I've maintained for over 20 years is an example, but I've also covered events in your stores and of course purchased books. I'll use this mailing list to share information with you that can benefit your store. If you have information to share you can send it to me, or I can simply send you the mailing list. It is not very long just 78 stores (US based indies only). If you do not want to receive this email simply hit the unsubscribe button at the top, or bottom, of this email. Driving Sales for Specific Books What who happen if we decided use our collective influence to make a book a bestseller? Is it possible for us to raise the profile of a book such that the rest of the country has to take notice. What about publishing our own bestsellers list? Many of us have titles that are selling extremely well, but are relatively obscure to the general public. There is an untapped market for these books. We need to be able determine which books are important and drive the conversation. Together we have more influence than we can possibly have individually. These are just some thoughts. What do you think? Do You Know Linda Duggins? We have true advocates for our stores, working in mainstream publishing. All of you should know Linda Duggins. If you've attended any of our Black Pack Parties you already know Linda. Linda has done a wide variety of things in the Black book world including co-founding the Harlem Book Fair, which is where we met back in 1999. I encourage you to get to know Linda; she may be reached at Linda.Duggins@hbgusa.com. Linda, in her role as Senior Director of Publicity for the Grand Central Publishing (an imprint of Hachette), has given me the heads up on two Black writers with books coming out early next year, Naima Coster and Leesa Cross-Smith. One way Linda has been a resource for AALBC is by providing me with early notice about good books. She does not reach out to me with info on all her projects, so when she does reach out I pay attention. Naima and Leesa will be having a conversation, on Tuesday, December 1, 2020 from 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Here’s a link to the event on Crowdcast: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/zd77k807. Check it out if you can. ★ Bookstore Email #1 November 19, 2020

Black Owned Bookstore List As most of you know I maintain a list of Black-Owned bookstores, which I’ve recently updated. Your bookstore, , is on the list. If you click your store's name, or photo, you will be taken to a page dedicated to your store that provides more detailed information. On the heels of George Floyd’s murder, this list went viral. Many people, most of them white, were extremely interested purchasing books on "antiracism" from Black-owned, bookstores. Some stores experienced a record level of sales as a result. The email address I’m using to email you now, p******@e******.com, is from the information shared on AALBC’s list of stores. If you would like to add correct or add information simply email me the updates. If you discover I'm missing a store or one needs to be deleted let me know that too. Why am I Sending this Email? I believe stores that focus on Black books are an asset to any community they are in. I've visited most of your stores and actively promote them. The list above, which I've maintained for over 20 years is an example, but I've also covered events in your stores and of course purchased books. I'll use this mailing list to share information with you that can benefit your store. If you have information to share you can send it to me, or I can simply send you the mailing list. It is not very long just 78 stores (US based indies only). If you do not want to receive this email simply hit the unsubscribe button at the top, or bottom, of this email. Driving Sales for Specific Books What who happen if we decided use our collective influence to make a book a bestseller? Is it possible for us to raise the profile of a book such that the rest of the country has to take notice. What about publishing our own bestsellers list? Many of us have titles that are selling extremely well, but are relatively obscure to the general public. There is an untapped market for these books. We need to be able determine which books are important and drive the conversation. Together we have more influence than we can possibly have individually. These are just some thoughts. What do you think? Do You Know Linda Duggins? We have true advocates for our stores, working in mainstream publishing. All of you should know Linda Duggins. If you've attended any of our Black Pack Parties you already know Linda. Linda has done a wide variety of things in the Black book world including co-founding the Harlem Book Fair, which is where we met back in 1999. I encourage you to get to know Linda; she may be reached at Linda.Duggins@hbgusa.com. Linda, in her role as Senior Director of Publicity for the Grand Central Publishing (an imprint of Hachette), has given me the heads up on two Black writers with books coming out early next year, Naima Coster and Leesa Cross-Smith. One way Linda has been a resource for AALBC is by providing me with early notice about good books. She does not reach out to me with info on all her projects, so when she does reach out I pay attention. Naima and Leesa will be having a conversation, on Tuesday, December 1, 2020 from 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Here’s a link to the event on Crowdcast: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/zd77k807. Check it out if you can. ★ Bookstore Email #1 November 19, 2020

From Tina Lifford, the sage teacher and breakout star of the critically acclaimed OWN network drama, Queen Sugar, comes The Little Book of Big Lies. A blend of personal anecdotes and meaningful, practical—and most important, actionable—advice, this invaluable book teaches the life skills you need to nurture the inner you and move beyond the past. Tina guides you on a journey of self-discovery that will help you turn shame into self-acceptance, self-rejection into self-love, blame into freedom, and old hurt into power. Black Writers Sweep $50,000 Kirkus Prize Again! First awarded in 2014, The Kirkus Prize is one of the richest literary awards in the world, with a prize of $50,000 bestowed annually to authors of fiction, nonfiction, and young readers’ literature. It was created to celebrate the 86 years of discerning, thoughtful criticism Kirkus Reviews has contributed to both the publishing industry and readers at large. For the second year in a row, Black writers have won all three categories! New Books Confessions in B-Flat by Donna Hill The year is 1963. In Harlem, the epicenter of Black culture, the fight for equality has never been stronger. The time is now. Enough is enough. Yet even within its ranks, a different kind of battle rages. Love thy neighbor? Or rise up against your oppressors? Jason Tanner has just arrived in New York to help spread the message of his mentor, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., of passive resistance, while beat poet Anita Hopkins believes the teachings of Malcolm X with all her heart: that the way to true freedom is "by any means necessary." When Jason sees Anita perform her poetry at the iconic B-Flat lounge, he’s transfixed. And Anita has never met anyone who can match her wit for wit like this… One movement, two warring ideologies—can love be enough to unite them? Meeting at the Table: African-American Women Write on Race, Culture and Community Edited by Tina McElroy Ansa and Wanda Smalls Lloyd In the aftermath of the tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many other African Americans, plus the worldwide protests that followed, editors Ansa and Lloyd, created a project to bring voices of African-American women together to honestly and transparently share how race and culture have affected them in ways related to their families, their careers and their communities. The essays in Meeting at the Table: African American Women Write on Race, Culture and Community will not only enlighten readers, but offer paths into the vital conversations across racial, cultural and communal divides. How to Make a Slave and Other Essays by Jerald Walker For the black community, Jerald Walker asserts in How to Make a Slave “…anger is often a prelude to a joke, as there is broad understanding that the triumph over this destructive emotion lay in finding its punchline.” It is on the knife’s edge between fury and farce that the essays in this exquisite collection balance. Whether confronting the medical profession’s racial biases, considering the complicated legacy of Michael Jackson, paying homage to his writing mentor James Alan McPherson, or attempting to break free of personal and societal stereotypes, Walker elegantly blends personal revelation and cultural critique. The result is a bracing and often humorous examination by one of America’s most acclaimed essayists of what it is to grow, parent, write, and exist as a black American male. Walker refuses to lull his readers; instead his missives urge them to do better as they consider, through his eyes, how to be a good citizen, how to be a good father, how to live, and how to love. Lubaya’s Quiet Roar by Marilyn Nelson, Illustrated by Philemona Williamson In this stirring picture book about social justice activism and the power of introverts, a quiet girl’s artwork makes a big impression at a protest rally. Newbery Honor winner and National Book Award finalist, Marilyn Nelson and fine artist Philemona Williamson have come together to create this lyrical, impactful story of how every child, even the quietest, can make a difference in their community and world. Young Lubaya is happiest when she’s drawing, often behind the sofa while her family watches TV. There, she creates pictures on the backs of her parents’ old protest posters. But when upsetting news shouts into their living room, her parents need the posters again. Book Reviews Blind Light by Glenda R. Taylor In 2001, visionary social justice advocate, Glenda R. Taylor was struck with a potentially devastating illness that took most of her sight. Instead of retreating from the public, she used it as a time of reflection and investigation. In Blind Light she asks the questions: What happens when one loses her vision in the midst of a successful career? What does the mind experience and how does it then translate reality? Her collection of poems tries to answer these questions. In her Preface, award-winning author and literary critic, Elizabeth Nunez writes that “Blind Light is a brilliant and compelling work… a deeply spiritual journey that allows the reader entry into the world of quantum physics, where Truth illuminates reality.” More ► Dear Reader, I'm making substantial investments in technology to improve our online bookstore. I'll begin announcing these enhancements in the new year. As always, thank you for your business, support, an emailed comments. You, and the support of our sponsors, are the only reason I’ve been able to celebrate Black books for over 23 years. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – November 17, 2020 - Issue #307

AALBC Bestselling Books October 2020 Fiction: Walter Mosley’s “touching and contemplative” short story collection, The Awkward Black Man, makes Walter a 23-Time AALBC bestselling author with 10 AALBC bestselling books! Nonfiction: The top selling book, across all genres, this period is His Truth Is Marching on: John Lewis and the Power of Hope by Jon Meacham. Children’s Books: Children’s sales are led by Jabari Asim’s all-time bestselling board book on AALBC, Whose Knees Are These? Poetry: Moments, the Minutes, the Hours: The Poetry of Jill Scott is our bestselling poetry book this period, continuing to sell well 12 years after it was published. Our bestsellers list has been published continuously since 1998 and is the most visible bestsellers list focused on Black Books. As a result, you will learn about books selling well, in the Black community, that may never show up on lists published by the NY Times, USA Today, and others. New Books Different and the Same by Adijah & Atiya Brabham In this vividly illustrated children’s picture book, identical twins Nia and Nori share all the ways they are exactly alike … and also completely different. Adijah & Atiya Brabham, republished Different and the Same in a larger size — great for reading with a child. The new version also sports the AALBC Bestseller seal! The original version is a 2-time AALBC bestseller (Nov 1, Prairieclover Publishing). A Promised Land by Barack Obama Reflecting on the presidency, Obama offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of U.S. partisan politics and international diplomacy. Obama brings readers inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond (Nov 17, Crown Publishing Group). Pre-order A Promised Land, in print, by midnight November 4th, and get a free audiobook. Judge’s Girls by Sharina Harris Beloved Georgia judge Joseph Donaldson was known for his unshakable fairness, his hard-won fortune—and a scandalous second marriage to his much-younger white secretary. Now he’s left a will with a stunning provision. In order to collect their inheritance, his lawyer daughter Maya, her stepmother Jeanie, and Jeanie’s teen daughter, Ryder, must live together at the family lake house. Maya and Jeanie don’t exactly get along, but they reluctantly agree to try an uneasy peace for as long as it takes… (Oct 27, Kensington Books) African American Poetry: 250 Years of Struggle & Song Edited by Kevin Young A literary landmark: the biggest, most ambitious anthology of Black poetry ever published, gathering 250 poets from the colonial period to the present Across a turbulent history, from such vital centers as Harlem, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and the Bay Area, Black poets created a rich and multifaceted tradition that has been both a reckoning with American realities and an imaginative response to them. Capturing the power and beauty of this diverse tradition in a single indispensable volume, African American Poetry reveals as never before its centrality and its challenge to American poetry and culture (Oct 20, Library of America). Book Reviews The Clan of Southern Man by John Valentine Any serious student of African-American history could point to the rich, informative contents of two iconic publications: Chancellor Williams’ The Destruction of Black Civilization and Cheikh Anta Diop’s The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality. These two titanic resources have fired up the imagination and academic resolve of many scholars surrounding their subject, and John Valentine’s The Clan of Southern Man, promises to elevate the ongoing debate about the origins of humankind. Valentine, a historian and Egyptologist, is committed to getting to the genesis of the toxic global ills plaguing our community and developing world. Born the son of a poor sharecropper in rural Mississippi, the author knows the dual scourges of racism and prejudice firsthand. More ▶ Issa Rae Celebrates Eso Won Books Located in the historic neighborhood of Leimert Park in Los Angeles California. Eso Won is one of the country’s oldest and most venerated Black-owned bookstores in the country. Recently, actress, author, and producer Issa Rae, showed some love for Eso Won by acknowledging the store’s impact on her career in a wonderfully produced video and by making a large donation to the store to support local schools. If you happen to be lucky enough to live in Los Angeles you also have access to both Malik Books and Reparations Club. You may learn about these terrific stores and others, across the country, on AALBC’s list of Black-owned Bookstores. The 2020 National Black Writers Conference The 15th National Black Writers Conference Will be Held Virtually from Wednesday, November 11 to Saturday, November 14, 2020 Presented by the Center for Black Literature at Medgar Evers College, CUNY, the theme of this year’s Conference is “Activism, Identity, and Race: Playwrights and Screenwriters at the Crossroads.” The Conference is a public gathering of writers, scholars, literary professionals, theater and film luminaries, students, and the public. Panelists and special guests will examine the ways race, identity, politics, and popular culture shape the production of plays, films, and television shows. The four-day event features a Summit Keynote, roundtable conversations, panel discussions, a town hall, film screenings, author readings, writing workshops, local vendors, and much more. More than 60 playwrights, screenwriters, poets, and scholars will participate. The Conference will honor playwrights, screenwriters, documentarians and filmmakers: Carl Clay, Dominique Morisseau, Stanley Nelson, Voza Rivers, and Richard Wesley. AALBC Runs Several Discussion Forums Since 1998, AALBC has run several discussion forums; in fact, prior to the rise of social media our discussion forums were incredibly popular and active. Even today, some of our site’s most popular content is on our discussion forums. Recently, I decided to formally stop blogging, because any information I want to share I can post on our Black Literature Forum or on the #ReadingBlack club. On the discussion forums others can engage with my information in a far richer manner. The forums are a platform where you can maintain your privacy and anonymity if you choose, and you definitely don’t have to worry about being manipulated by some algorithm. Dear Reader, This November I’m relocating AALBC to Tulsa, Oklahoma! Why Tulsa? Well anyone who knows me knows I love to travel. I’ve visited all 50 states, camped in Dry Tortugas, skied the back bowls of Vail, and drove to the geographic center of the United States just for kicks. Yeah, I’m guy LOL! For that past couple of years, I’ve been flirting with the idea of living in different places. I learned about a program called Tulsa Remote, really like what I saw, and was accepted into the program. If you are currently based near Tulsa reach out. As always, Reader thank you for your business and support. You are why I’ve been able to provide this platform, since 1998, to celebrate Black culture through books. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – November 3, 2020 - Issue #306

Here we have the classic recipe. Blend love, sex, romance, deception, raw ambition and intrigue. Add to it a dash of lust, trust, betrayal, friendship and revenge, a light sprinkle of today’s entertainment industry. Stir, and you have commingled all the key ingredients. Hollywood insiders, take note. There is a really good film on the horizon here. ~ Today’s Black Woman “Robyn Williams demonstrates the literary talent of Terry McMillan as she cleverly and creatively reveals a very provocative and loving relationship centered in mutual respect, love, and trust.” ~ Deborah Baylis, Citizen News “Robyn Williams has crafted a riveting, seductive novel that deftly explores Black male-female relationships from a refreshing perspective… There is a genuine passion evident in her writing that is unmistakable, and that simply should not be missed.” ~ Ronald E. Childs, Black Elegance Laughter + Love = Twin Peaks of Happiness! Robyn Williams is the author of three bestselling novels, Preconceived Notions, A Twist of Fate, and A Fool’s Paradise. A lover of romantic suspense, her books have been featured in Essence, Emerge, Heart and Soul, Ebony, and Ebony Man magazines. Actresses Angela Bassett and Vanessa Williams have lauded her works as “a delightful read.” Noted for her talent for characterization, Robyn uses emotional insightfulness to highlight the capricious nature of relationships. Her novel, A Fool’s Paradise, combines suspense and the supernatural. Under various pen names, she has written nearly ten fictional eBooks and has edited and collaborated on several non-fiction projects for writers, teachers, and pastors. A huge literacy advocate, Robyn founded The Bestow Foundation, a non-profit literacy organization dedicated to improving literacy skills of Chicago-area adults and families. A strong believer in the importance of community-based programs, Robyn served as Program Manager for Operation Change Chicago (OCC), a non-profit which focuses on improving the health outcomes for senior citizens in African American and Latino communities. It was through her volunteerism with OCC’s parent organization, Movement Is Life, that Robyn was inspired to obtain her Master’s Degree in Health Communication from Northwestern University. Promoting health interventions that decrease disabilities in the lives of senior citizens is one of her areas of interest. Robyn co-authored the non-fictional work, Deception in the Pews, a hard-hitting piece that challenges believers across all religions to protect their worship. A graduate of Tennessee State University, Robyn resides in Chicago. She is basking in the #RenaissanceResurgence of her earlier works and is excited to be penning her latest novel, Pieces of a Dream. This Newsletter is Sponsored by Robyn Williams Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing.

“The only thing I regret is getting caught.” —Doris Payne Diamond Doris by Doris Payne is the sensational and entertaining memoir of the world’s most notorious jewel thief—a black woman who defied society’s prejudices and norms to carve her own path, stealing from elite jewelers to live her dreams. Now in paperback! Deesha Philyaw Earns National Book Award Finalist Deesha is the author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies which features stories about four generations of characters grappling with who they want to be in the world, caught as they are between the church’s double standards and their own needs and passions. AALBC first learned of Deesha’s work over a decade ago and are pleased to see her writing receive so such critical acclaim. Yesterday, Deesha shared these words about AALBC’s impact. “Thank you, Troy, for modeling, through AALBC, something very important to me: unapologetic Blackness. Unapologetic love for Black people, our books, our stories. I’m proud to have written an unapologetically Black book. And I thank you for your dedication to celebrating and supporting Black writers and our creative work, and for bringing readers and writers together on the AALBC forum.” —Deesha Philyaw, 2020 National Book Award Finalist for Fiction Book Reviews Life: Four Quarters Plus Overtime by Floyd L. Griffin Jr. Life: Four Quarters Plus Overtime, is truly wisdom from the ages. In this self-help guide. Floyd Griffin Jr., a man of many notable experiences, examines the development of human life, with each life stage coming under the microscope. Often, with books that purport to impart wisdom, it helps if the author is accomplished and experienced. From his publicity, Griffin is exactly that. He has been a Vietnam helicopter pilot, army colonel, college football coach, professor, businessman, state senator, and a mayor. Griffin sums up the premise of the book with a quote by George Washington Carver, an early achiever in our community: “How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life you will have all of these.” More ▶ New Books All Because You Matter by Tami Charles, Illustrated by Bryan Collier Targeted to early readers, All Because You Matter is a lyrical, heart-lifting love letter to Black children: reminding them how much they matter, that they have always mattered, and they always will. Accompanied by illustrations by renowned artist Bryan Collier, a four-time Caldecott Honor recipient and a nine-time Coretta Scott King Award winner or honoree, All Because You Matter empowers readers with pride, joy, and comfort, reminding them of their roots and strengthening them for the days to come (Genre: Prejudice & Racism) Rise Up: Confronting a Country at the Crossroads by Al Sharpton When the young Alfred Charles Sharpton told his mother he wanted to be a preacher, little did he know that his journey would also lead him to prominence as a politician, founder of the National Action Network, civil rights activist, and television and radio talk show host. His enduring ability and willingness to take on the political power structure makes him the preeminent voice for the modern era, a time unprecedented in its challenges. In Rise Up, Reverend Sharpton revisits the highlights of the Obama administration, the 2016 election and Trump’s subsequent hold on the GOP, and draws on his decades-long experience with other key players in politics and activism, including Shirley Chisholm, Hillary Clinton, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and more (Genre: Political Science). Scavenger: A Mystery by Christopher Chambers Chambers, author of A Prayer for Deliverance and Sympathy for the Devil (an NAACP Image Award nominee) brings a 21st-century take on hardboiled noir tales in Scavenger, a gripping thriller underscored by themes of race, homelessness, hustling, and the savagery—and salvation—of the human psyche. The novel centers on Dickie Cornish, a Black streetwise survivor living in a homeless camp near D.C.’s Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Framed for the murder of two of his closest friends and facing life in prison, Dickie crosses paths with wealthy ex-Homeland Security Secretary, Jamie Bracht. Bracht offers him a chance at a new life if Dickie can navigate an underground world to uncover a prize Bracht will stop at nothing to acquire (Genre: Mystery & Detective). New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Saba) Edited by Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani The limited-edition box set is a project started in 2014 to ensure the publication of up to a dozen chapbooks every year by African poets through Akashic Books. The series seeks to identify the best poetry written by African poets working today, and it is especially interested in featuring poets who have not yet published their first full-length book of poetry. The eleven poets included in this box set are: Michelle Angwenyi, Afua Ansong, Adedayo Agarau, Fatima Camara, Sadia Hassan, Safia Jama, Henneh Kyereh Kwaku, Nadra Mabrouk, Nkateko Masinga, Jamila Osman, and Tryphena Yeboah (Genre: African Poetry). Dear Reader, October marks the start of AALBC’s 24th year in business! It has been some ride. We had a record year in book sales in 2019, and if we stopped selling books today, 2020 would beat 2019’s sales. Advertising sales and services to authors are also at all time highs. It is not unusual for AALBC to show over 1 million web pages to readers in a 30 day period. Reader, I can not over emphasize that your business, support, constructive critique, and kind words are what fuels this operation. AALBC is validated by you. As always, thank you for your business and support. You are why we continue to celebrate Black books, and culture, for almost a quarter of a century. Your paid subscription helps support this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – October 7, 2020 - Issue #305

Wade and Cheryl Hudson Launch Interview Series: “Just Us &” “Just Us &,” is a new interview series hosted by Wade and Cheryl Hudson, founders of Just Us Books. The series features conversations between the Hudsons and book creators, as well as others who help get books into the hands of readers, such as librarians, educators and booksellers. The series is an extension of their storytelling and community building “These conversations help us connect, learn more about each other and the important work we’re all doing, says Wade Hudson, CEO of Just Us Books.” For over 30 years, this power couple has been instrumental in every aspect of producing quality literature for young people, featuring Black characters. The interview with Rita Williams-Garcia, is a great example, from the series, of Wade and Cheryl uplifting and celebrating those who help create great children’s books. Check out the series and discover a terrific book for a young person in your life. Walter Mosley and W. Paul Coates: Zoom Conversation Join the Conversation and Reading Sunday, October 4th at 6 p.m. Eastern Time Buy the Book from AALBC Today Walter Mosley has proven himself a master of narrative tension, both with his extraordinary fiction and gripping writing for television. The Awkward Black Man collects seventeen of Mosley’s most accomplished short stories to showcase the full range of his remarkable talent. Mosley presents distinct characters as they struggle to move through the world in each of these stories —heroes who are awkward, nerdy, self-defeating, self-involved, and, on the whole, odd. He overturns the stereotypes that corral black male characters and paints a subtle, powerful portrait of each of these unique individuals. Click to Register AALBC Book Reviews Panorama: The Missing Chapter: From the Memoir Views from the Cockpit by Ross Victory With unadorned, bold language, and unafraid to show the emotional damage to his heart and life, Ross moves from one shattering episode to the next, not considering if each pivotal moment shows him in an unflattering light. “As it applies to this story, I believe that sometimes one person holds two keys – one key to unlock our physical selves and the other key to unlock our nonphysical selves. Hold this person tight. Sometimes separate people hold separate keys. Hold them tight. When it’s over, all that will matter is our story, our suffering we’ve endured and what we did next.” Those are urgent, courageous words from a Black man confronting the challenges of his sexual orientation, guilt, cultural prejudice, and gender bias. It takes a lot to stand up and honestly speak your truth. More ▶ Dear Reader, The collective impact of W. Paul Coates, and Cheryl and Wade Hudson, is immeasurable. I’ve worked with these trailblazing-book-people for the better part of two decades, and was aware of their work before AALBC was ever conceived. I’m proud to call them not just business associates, but friends. It would not be an exaggeration to say that AALBC could not exist without them. Reader AALBC also cannot exist without your paid subscriptions to our newsletter. It is not just me, or you, who make AALBC possible, it is truly a community effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – September 29, 2020 - Issue #304

The musician and Hip Hop legend reimagines the writing handbook in this memoir and guide that incorporates the soulful genius, confidence, and creativity of a master artist (Amistad, September 15, 2020). Longlist for the 2020 National Book Awards Announced The mission of the National Book Foundation is to celebrate the best of American literature, to expand its audience, and to enhance the cultural value of great writing in America. National Book Awards are given five categories: Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Translated Literature, and Young People’s Literature. Twelve books, written by Black writers, were Longlisted for the 2020 National Book Award. The first African-American writer to win a National Book Award was Ralph Ellison for Invisible Man in 1953 Book Reviews Sincerely Speaking Spiritually by Joseph S. Spence Like many successful self-help books, Sincerely Speaking Spiritually, celebrates verses of faith and inspiration in the Holy Word. Its author, Joseph Spence Sr., takes his role seriously as one of the Faithful, praising all things Biblical, harking back to its glorious content including the Songs of Solomon and Psalms. Filled with poetic prayers, the book offers reflection and insight during troubled times. Spence writes in his dedication that he wishes for readers to embrace God’s blessing, and seek wholeness: “…those who are dedicated to uplifting heads held low to inspire them to see a new light and day.” “Poetic prayers, in reality, are God’s words spoken in a different form and style for great understanding and is a unique precious language of grace and reverence,” writes Spence. This collection of verse, spiritual observations, and praise songs stresses the joy of communicating with the Divine. If we examine the meaning and value of prayer in African-American literature, we will see its influence in the work of scribes such as Lucille Clifton, Alice Walker, Arna Bontemps, James Weldon Johnson, Langston Hughes, and Maya Angelou. More ▶ New Books Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson Award-winning author Tiffany D. Jackson delivers another riveting, ripped-from-the-headlines mystery that exposes horrific secrets hiding behind the limelight and embraces the power of a young woman’s voice. When legendary R&B artist Korey Fields spots Enchanted Jones at an audition, her dreams of being a famous singer take flight. Until Enchanted wakes up with blood on her hands and zero memory of the previous night. Who killed Korey Fields? Before there was a dead body, Enchanted’s dreams had turned into a nightmare. Because behind Korey’s charm and star power was a controlling dark side. Now he’s dead, the police are at the door, and all signs point to Enchanted. New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Saba) Edited by Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani The limited-edition box set is a project started in 2014 to ensure the publication of up to a dozen chapbooks every year by African poets through Akashic Books. The series seeks to identify the best poetry written by African poets working today, and it is especially interested in featuring poets who have not yet published their first full-length book of poetry. The eleven poets included in this box set are: Michelle Angwenyi, Afua Ansong, Adedayo Agarau, Fatima Camara, Sadia Hassan, Safia Jama, Henneh Kyereh Kwaku, Nadra Mabrouk, Nkateko Masinga, Jamila Osman, and Tryphena Yeboah. Call for Submissions for Black Sci-Fi Anthology Flame Tree Press Announces a Call for Submissions. Deadline: September 30, 2020 Flame Tree Press is looking for short stories by black contemporary writers to complement a selection of classic tales by early black writers of speculative fiction, such as Martin Delany, Edward Johnson, Pauline Hopkins and W.E.B. Dubois, whose first-hand experience of slavery and denial created their living dystopia. With a foreword by Alex Award-winning novelist Temi Oh, an introduction by Sandra M. Grayson, author of Visions of the Third Millennium: Black Science Fiction Novelists Write the Future (2003), and invaluable support from Tia Ross and Black Writers Collective, this latest offering in the Flame Tree Gothic Fantasy series focuses on an area of science fiction which has not received the attention it deserves. Dystopia, apocalypse, gene-splicing, cloning, colonization and much more can be explored here – in fantastic stories, whether informed by the black experience or not. Read the details on how to submit here. Dear Reader, I need, and rely on, your feedback. Sometimes we may feel providing feedback is a waste of time, because no one will read it, or take it seriously. Let me assure you, I take all feedback seriously. That does not mean I can implement, or agree with, every suggestion, but I do consider, and appreciate, all the feedback I get. My goal is to continuously improve this newsletter, the AALBC.com website, the online book sales operation, and the services I provide to publishers and authors. As always, thanks so much for your business and support. Reader, you are why we have been able to celebrate Black books, and culture, for almost a quarter of a century, and your paid subscription helps fuel this effort. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – September 22, 2020 - Issue #303

Acclaimed journalist Ellis Cose explores one of the most essential rights in America — free speech — and reveals how this Constitutional right has been coopted by the wealthy and politically corrupt, while reminding us we can take our rights back and offering a clarion call for activism and change. Learn More ▶ 4,092 Authors are Profiled on AALBC.com Today, 4,092 authors are profiled on AALBC.com. It is perhaps the largest, curated, list of Black writers ever compiled, and the list is constantly growing! A typical author profile is like an author website. You’ll find a photo, bio, and detailed information on each of the author’s books. You’ll also find videos, interviews, book reviews, which are often exclusive, and of course you can purchase the author’s books as well. We love to raise the profile of authors who are independently published and to help you discover these hidden gems. Author d. E. Rogers debuted as the top fiction bestseller, last month, with Black States of America: Real Black Power (REGI Books, Aug 11, 2020). Consider reading authors beyond the handful getting all the mainstream media’s attention — you may be surprised, and pleased, by what you discover. AALBC Sell Books — Plenty of Them! Over the years AALBC has invested, and will continue to invest, a lot of energy in promoting other booksellers. A rich environment for Black books requires a variety of booksellers, web-based, brick and mortar, pop-up — you name it. In recent months as the support of Black owned booksellers has grown, our list of stores that support Black literature has gone viral. Which has been great. More and stronger booksellers will help ensure readers will find the books and authors they are most likely to enjoy. AALBC is proud to be part of that effort. Walter Mosley and W. Paul Coates: Zoom Conversation Join W. Paul Coates and Bestselling author, Walter Mosley for a Zoom Conversation and Reading Sunday, October 4th at 6 p.m. Eastern Time Walter Mosley has proven himself a master of narrative tension, both with his extraordinary fiction and gripping writing for television. The Awkward Black Man collects seventeen of Mosley’s most accomplished short stories to showcase the full range of his remarkable talent. Mosley presents distinct characters as they struggle to move through the world in each of these stories —heroes who are awkward, nerdy, self-defeating, self-involved, and, on the whole, odd. He overturns the stereotypes that corral black male characters and paints a subtle, powerful portrait of each of these unique individuals. Click to Register Dear Reader, I’d like to thank everyone who purchased a copy of Voices of the Harlem Renaissance. I was raised in Harlem and feel a sense of pride for the period, so I was honored to be asked to write a new introduction for the book, which will make our next bestsellers list. I’m happy about that, because it will help keep the work of these writers in our collective consciousness and help introduce them to a new generation of readers. As always, thanks so much for your business and support. Reader who are why we have been able to celebrate Black books, and culture, for almost a quarter of a century. Peace and Love, Troy Johnson Founder & Webmaster, AALBC.com This Newsletter is Sponsored by Amistad Consider sponsoring our eNewsletter or a dedicated mailing. ★ AALBC.com eNewsletter – September 15, 2020 - Issue #302