“From the farms of Trinidad to the forests of the American West, the tale of Rosa Rendón is hard yet engrossing… The various strands of the story come together to illuminate how power and race can warp a life… A sad, compelling novel about a woman of color who fights against society’s expectation .”
Book of the Little Axe by Lauren Francis-Sharma was reviewed by Library Journal. Follow the link above to read the full review!
“Readers will be intrigued and inspired to dive into further research to understand some of the jargon and learn more about the women profiled here.”
Astronauts by Jim Ottaviani and Maris Wicks received a starred review from School Library Journal! Follow the link above to read the full review.
“If you’re a reader who lives for the thrill and you cant get enough of those plot twists that you’re always trying to predict, this book list is just for you. From bestselling authors you’re already acquainted with, to debut authors making their mark in the genre, we are sure you’ll find something to pique your interest. So make space on your bookshelves, make those library requests, reserve these titles and check out FIFTEEN of our most anticipated thriller, suspense and mystery novels that we will be reading during the Spring 2020 season!”
My Mother’s House by Francesca Momplaisir and The Wife Stalker by Liv Constantine were included in this beautiful round-up! Follow the link above to see the full list.
“He sent her to the ‘nut’ house.
Super producer Brian Grazer’s ex-wife says he once sent her on a private jet to a rehab facility to get treatment for an addiction — to almonds.”
Follow the link above to read the full article!
“Alexander Smalls, who introduced New Yorkers to Afro-Asian-American cuisine when he opened the Cecil in 2013, has always loved Sunday. ‘I give myself permission to do anything and everything and nothing,‘ he said.
Cooking is a second act for Mr. Smalls. Before he opened Café Beulah, his first restaurant, which featured South Carolina Lowcountry fare, in 1994, he was a professional opera singer. In 1990, after starring in ‘Porgy and Bess‘ at the Houston Grand Opera, Mr. Smalls reluctantly left the stage. ‘An operatic career was my dream,’ he said, ’but I was not able to break that glass ceiling as an African-American male.’
He reinvented himself as a chef and restaurateur and cookbook author, most recently winning a James Beard Award for ’Between Harlem and Heaven‘ in 2018. His latest offering, ’Meals, Music and Muses: Recipes From My African American Kitchen,’ a tribute to his South Carolina heritage and the music that inspired him, was published last month. Mr. Smalls, 67, lives in Harlem.”
Follow the link above to read the full article on The New York Times and learn which markets Alexander Smalls recommends.
“If you are an avid reader, there is a time when you come across one of those reads. Those iconic reads, taking you to a place and a world knowing, but unfamiliar. A world that you did not truly know. That you heard of. That you were exposed to. Yet, one that you truly never knew. A prevalent image of your mind for a particular culture of people has been shifted to include other realities of their existence. Reading of that world is initially. . .shocking. The shock is the beauty of it all because it is a shattering of any expectations, that you had. And, because you are surprised, you are compelled to begin an adventure in discovering that world. No matter now uncomfortable it may be.
This is how the journey began in my own, initial readings of Bittersweet Brooklyn, by Thelma Adams. This dynamic world of early 1900’s, Brooklyn, New York Jewish culture is captivating. Not because of the extreme conditions, but because of its complexity. This literary aesthetic conveys the harsh, migration stories of Jewish communities in the urban context of US soiling. Stories in the farcity of Jewish communities having always been united; or having always distributed natural compassion to those who were more unfortunate in their communities highlights this other world of Jewish existence in the United States. Thelma Adams is descriptive and keen in how she leads our reader’s eye into this world.”
Follow the link above to read the full review of Bittersweet Brooklyn by Thelma Adams!
“Edwidge Danticat’s Everything Inside is a finalist for the NBCC Award for Fiction. This short story collection takes us into the intimate depths of characters grappling to communicate with those they love, to rewrite the stories of their lives and sometimes their deaths. The stories are set in Port-au-Prince, Miami and, in one case, an unnamed Caribbean island. More than anything, there is a spare and resounding musicality that unites these eight resplendent stories.
Ms. Danticat’s light and ever ready laughter set the tone of our conversation, the sense of wonder with which she speaks about the power of stories. Just hours after we talked, she was awarded The Story Prize, making her the first ever two-time winner of the prize.”
During this interview, Ms. Danticat shared that she is currently reading My Mother’s House by Francesca Momplaisir! She described this title as “a very powerful book” and one “we’ll be hearing a lot about.” Follow the link above to read more!
Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter appears at #9 on this week’s Mass Market bestseller list in the New York Times! Follow the link above to see the full list.
“Momplaisir’s provocative debut unearths the secrets and dark desires of a Haitian immigrant family man living in an anthropomorphic house in Queens, N.Y. […] Momplaisir’s arresting take on the abuse of male power will long haunt the reader.”
My Mother’s House by Francesca Momplaisir was reviewed in Publishers Weekly! Follow the link above to read the full review.
Vanessa Lillie shares her writing inspiration and tips on The Rhode Show! Follow the link above to watch the full interview.
“EXCLUSIVE: Bella Heathcote (Strange Angel, The Man in the High Castle) is set to headline Pieces of Her, Netflix’s dramatic thriller series based on the 2018 book by bestselling crime author Karin Slaughter. Heathcote will star opposite Toni Collette in the eight-episode series, which comes from an all-female creative team led by Charlotte Stoudt, Bruna Papandrea, Lesli Linka Glatter and Minkie Spiro.”
We are so thrilled to announce this new development! Follow the link above to read the full article and learn more at the Netflix adaptation of Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter.
“For 30 years, these deviled crab cakes were a fixture at Alexander Smalls’ five restaurants, starting with Café Beulah. The recipe comes from his newest cookbook, Meals, Music and Muses: Recipes From My African American Kitchen, written with Veronica Chambers. (I was lucky enough to work with Smalls writing the book’s recipes.) They’re an ideal appetizer for Mardi Gras or any other party and make a great meal too.”
Genevieve Ko shares Alexander Smalls’ recipe for crab cakes in this Los Angeles Times article! Follow the link above to get all of the details.
“Oh, hey there. It’s me again and it’s 2020, so you know what that means… another year for some great books! Now, I’m not ‘new year, new me’ kind of guy (no shade if you are). But one thing that always sparks some excitement for me on January 1 is the prospect of another great year of fantastic books and from the looks of it, 2020 is going to be amazing. Look no further because here are my can’t-miss thrillers of the first half of 2020 that is definitely going to keep you occupied until summer.”
She Reads included The Wife Stalker by Liv Constantine in this fabulous round-up! Follow the link above to read more.
“‘Cooking without a song—in your heart, if nothing else—is like cooking without salt and pepper,’ writes chef Alexander Smalls in Meals, Music, and Muses. Here, recipes grounded in the culinary traditions of the African American South are grouped according to the ‘seven styles of African American music that set the bass line for this medley of meals.’ Fried sweet white corn and a salad of field greens and black-eyed peas are among the ‘green things’ that Smalls associates with gospel music; rice, pasta and grits are the stuff of spirituals. Roast quail, pan-fried rabbit, pork loin roasts? Divas, all. There are biscuits and beans and pie to the tune of jazz, opera, jukebox music and serenades (sweet endings), with the pleasure of Smalls’ storytelling along the way to deepen the flavor.”
Meals, Music, and Muses by Alexander Smalls received a starred review from BookPage! Follow the link above to read more!
“A shockingly original exploration of class, race, and systemic violence . . . This house, tainted by the human evil it contains, is reminiscent of the opening line of Toni Morrison's Beloved. And, like Morrison, Momplaisir uses the tropes of fantasy to try to assert truths that ordinary language and realistic imagery cannot communicate . . . Momplaisir's debut introduces her as an author to watch.”
Follow the link above to read the entire review!
“Watts (Hattie McDaniel: Black Ambition, White Hollywood), a professor of history at California State University, San Marcos, delivers a unique and enlightening portrait of ‘the informal group of black federal employees’ who sought to advance African-American interests during the New Deal… Watts finds drama in committee meetings and unemployment surveys, and expertly tracks her subjects across the maze of federal bureaucracy. The result is a groundbreaking reappraisal of an unheralded chapter in the battle for civil rights.”
The Black Cabinet by Jill Watts received an amazing starred review from Publishers Weekly! Follow the link above to read the full review.
“EXCLUSIVE: Coming off her acclaimed starring role in Unbelievable, Toni Collette is set to headline another Netflix series, Pieces of Her, a dramatic thriller based on the 2018 book by bestselling crime author Karin Slaughter. Minkie Spiro (The Plot Against America) is set to direct the eight-episode series from the all-female creative team of executive producers Lesli Linka Glatter, Charlotte Stoudt and Bruna Papandrea.”
We are so thrilled to share this news! Follow the link above to learn more.
“PHILADELPHIA -- Two of the 2020 Stonewall Book Awards were announced Sunday, Jan. 26 by the Rainbow Round Table (RRT) of the American Library Association (ALA), during the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Exhibits, held January 24-28 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The Stonewall Book Awards are given annually to English-language works of exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience and include the Stonewall Book Awards – Mike Morgan & Larry Romans Children’s and Young Adult Literature Award (announced at the Youth Media Awards press conference on Monday, January 27th), the Stonewall Book Awards – Israel Fishman Non-Fiction Award, and the Stonewall Book Awards – Barbara Gittings Literature Award. The awards will be presented to the winning authors at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Chicago in June.
[…]
Cantoras by Carolina De Robertis and published by Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Penguin Random House, was named the winner of the Stonewall Book Awards - Barbara Gittings Literature Award for 2020. Cantoras is a masterful look at queer love and community, particularly under a dictatorship, a time when even a whisper of nonconformity could mean your disappearance.”
Follow the link above to read the full press release!