INCISIVE YET LYRICAL novel captures Berlin and Chicago in the 1980s through the eyes of a gay Black writer. B PLUS

BLACK DEUTSCHLAND
Farrar
2016

RAW, BRILLIANT ESSAYS by Kiese Laymon (with notes from family and friends) unfold a black American experience. B PLUS

SLEUTH EASY RAWLINS’S near death in a brutal crash adds a metaphysical perspective to this intricate LA noir.

THE EXTRAORDINARY LIFE of Eslanda Robeson, influential writer, civil rights activist, and wife of Paul Robeson.

COMPLEX, ALLUSIVE META-NOVEL plays with structure, yet captures the poignancy of a father/son relationship.

COMPELLING, DEEPLY RESEARCHED history of racial segregation and integration in the US military. Eye-opening!

SHOCKING, TOUCHING, SALTY memoir from singer Bettye LaVette follows the highs and lows of her career and life.

I don’t review poetry here, but I cannot help taking a minute to rave about the new collection of poems by the late, great Lucille Clifton.  The poems are beautifully curated, the book design is clear and readable, and the foreword by Toni Morrison was touching in its recognition of Clifton’s gifts.  Do think about buying this if you’re a poetry fan—or maybe even if you aren’t!  Clifton was a strong and distinctive voice, and the power of her work cannot be denied.

AN INSPIRING MEMOIR follows a man’s search for his birth parents, brothers and sister. Touching and direct!

ELEGAIC, MOVING RE-IMAGINING of the lives of Emmett Till, the girl who loved him, and her family. A triumph.