Richard Wright: The Life and Times
Rowley, Hazel
Henry Holt and Company, LLC
2002, 627p.
$18
ISBN 0-8050-7088-5

Hazel Rowley shows how, drawing on recently discovered material to chronicle Wright's extraordinary journey from a sharecropper's shack in Mississippi to international renown as a writer, a fiercely independent thinker, and an outspoken critic of racism.

I Say a Prayer for Me: One Woman’s Life of Faith and Triumph
Anderson, Stanice
Warner: Walk Worthy Press. November.  352p.
ISBN: 0-446-53034-4. $21.95

Anderson is a former reporter for USA-Today.com, who describes her descent into the world of drugs, her years as an addict, and her unbelievable rise to a place of healing after watching the 700 Club on television.

7 Pairs of Black Shoes
Character, Dionne
D’Sole Press, Inc. 62p.
E-mail: diva@dionnecharacter.com
$16.95

As one journeys through Character’s “7 Pairs of Black Shoes,” the poet exudes a voice of passion and pain along with strength and frailty, easily recognizant of the spirited tradition of African-American female writers whose poetic words are full of energy and alive on each page.

Joy: A Novel
Christopher Murray, Victoria
Warner: Walk Worthy Press. October. 384p.
ISBN: 0-446-67944-5. $13.95

This uplifting Christian tale of how Anya Mitchell, an owner of a successful financial services company, deals with the horror of being attacked in her office by a stalker.  It is her faith in God that pulls her through even as she contemplates staying with her fiancé or doing what God wants.

One Shot Harris: Photographs of Charles “Teenie” Harris
Crouch, Stanley
Abrams. October. 168p.
ISBN: 0-8109-3272-5. $35

“Teenie” Harris looked for photo opportunities everywhere—in workplaces, nightclubs, and alleyways.  He had backstage passes for jazz greats and he photographed the daily lives of African Americans during the Civil Rights movement.  Crouch has pulled together a collection of his works and written essays for each photo.

Painted Voices
An Artist’s Journey into the World of Black Writers
Fletcher, Gilbert
CNG Editions. November 2002. 80 pages-hard cover- with 28 author paintings-full color.
ISBN: 0-9716509-0-X. $40

From Ralph Ellison to Toni Morrison, from Zora Neale Hurston to Wole Soyinko, these noted writers all use language that’s different in context, yet connected in struggle. As artistically visual counterparts of their language, the portraits inevitably share several symbols, including fire, music, light and especially, water (the river). The author says as he read the works of these writers, their words became his colors, their stories became his symbols, their sorrows were transformed into shadows, and their inspirations became light. For more information on this book, contact the author Gilbert Fletcher via e-mail at, gfletc@aol.com or through regular mail at 4631 Richardson Ave., Bronx, NY 10470.

George Foreman’s Guide to Life
Foreman, George
Simon & Schuster. January 2003.
ISBN: 0-7432-2499-X. $18

Using stories from his own life, Foreman offers advice on “how to get up off the canvas when life knocks you down.”  As his story goes, Foreman grew up in Houston, in abject poverty, the fifth of seven children. Boxing is what saved him from the streets.

Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea
Giovanni, Nikki
William Morrow. December. 112p.
ISBN: 0-06-009952-6. $16.95

Giovanni does it again with her “poems and not quite poems.”  Well known for her writing during a career that spans 3o years, Giovanni includes sketches and meditations to round out her new collection of personal and political poems.

The World War II Black Regiment That Built The Alaska Military Highway
Griggs, William and Merrill, Philip
University Press of Mississippi. September. 112p.
ISBN 1-57806-504-6. $30

Although the 97^th Army Corps Engineers, an African-American unit, worked extensively on completing the Alaska/Canadian Highway, its substantial role in this mammoth engineering project to defend North America from Japanese attack during WWII has received only scant attention. With this book, William Griggs, the official photographer for the regiment, amends the long-neglected history. Published for the first time are over a hundred of his black and white photos along with captions explaining the official work of the 97^th.

South of Tradition: Essays on African American Literature
Harris-Lopez, Trudier
University of Georgia Press. October. 256p.
ISBN: 0-8203-2433-7. $24.95

Featuring both well-known writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Ralph Ellison, and James Baldwin, these essays also introduce up-and-comers like Randall Kenan, and not so well known writers as Henry Dumas.  In her analysis, Harris-Lopez offers that geography shapes the identity of writers and no less so African American writers.

Gunshots in my Cook-up
Hinds, Selwyn Seyfu
Atria Books. October. 224p.
ISBN: 0-7434-0741. $23

A hip-hop music journalist, Hinds relates “bits and bites” of his life growing up in Brooklyn, NY, through to his more recent years on the inside of the world where police brutality, addiction, suicide, and gun violence is all a mish-mash.

Fire in My Soul
Holmes Norton, Eleanor
Atria Books. January 2003.

ISBN: 0-7434-0787-3. $25

The story of U.S. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, who is known as the “Warrior on the Hill”, is told through a series of conversations with Joan Steinau Lester.  It was Norton who demanded a Senate hearing for Anita Hill and drafted the guidelines on sexual harassment.

Rock My Soul: Black People and Self-Esteem
Hooks, Bell
Atria Books. January 2003
ISBN: 0-7434-5605-X. $23

Scholar and visionary, Bell Hooks explores how political and cultural barriers keep African Americans from achieving emotional well being.

Love Frustration: A Novel
Johnson, RM
Simon & Schuster. October. 352p.
ISBN: 0-7432-2773-8. $23

Jason Abrahms’ relationships seem to always fail and after nightclubbing and one-night stands, he gives up on love. Then he meets Faith who takes him on a romance that turns out to be too-good-to-be-true.  Jason’s attempt to pay her back for using him isn’t as simple as he thought.

Some of Us Did Not Die
Jordan, June
Basic Books. September. 304p.
ISBN: 0-465-03692-9. $26

Over her 47-year career, Jordan has become known for her ….  This collection of essays, which range from the political—discussing the legacy of the civil rights movement—to the more personal—discussing her experiences as a single mother.

Vernon Can Read!
Jordan, Vernon E, Jr. with Annette Gordon-Reed
Basic Books. January.  352p.
ISBN: 0-465-03697. $16

This memoir tells the incredible life story of the long-time friend of former President Clinton.  Jordan grew up in Atlanta and tells of his first summer job driving a banker around town.  During his boss’s afternoon naps, Jordan would read, which was astonishing to the white man.  Jordan has dedicated himself to the civil rights movement, survived the murder attempts of a white racist, and was once the president of the National Urban League.

The Content of my Character
King, Yolanda
Rodale Books. November. 256p.
ISBN: 1-57954-609-9. $23.94

Yolanda, who is Martin Luther King, Jr.’s eldest child, shares with readers her private memories of her father and examines his dream of racial equality and what it means to her as an African American woman.  Includes a foreward by Coretta Scott King.

Destiny’s Style
Knowles, Tina
Regan Books: HarperCollins. October. 224p.
ISBN: 0-06-009777-9. $23.95

The mother of Beyoncé, a member of the girl group Destiny’s Child, Knowles also designs the trio’s outfits.  Here she gives the girls’ “bootylicious fashion, beauty, and lifestyle secrets using photographs and personal stories.

Acting Out: A Novel
Little, Benilde
The Free Press. January 2003
ISBN: 0-684-85480-5. $24

Having given up her beloved independence to marry and have children with the hope that family life would make up for it, Ina West is grossly disappointed when her husband walks out. Working through financial hardship and death in her family, Ina deals with the most difficult questions women face.

Nelson Mandela’s Favorite African Folktales
Mandela, Nelson, editor
Norton Books. November. 144p.
ISBN: 0-393-05212-5. $24.95

The oral tradition is still alive and well and Mandela wishes for the practice of storytelling never dies. He selected thirty-two African stories for his book, which will satisfy readers of any age.

The Great Wells of Democracy
Marable, Manning
Basic Books. November. 288p
ISBN: 0-465-04393-3. $26

Professor of History of Political Science at Columbia University, Marable is “reconstructing race and politics in the 21^st century” as he looks beyond the strategies of liberals who brought affirmative action, to a new democracy.  For example, Marable proposes re-enfranchisement of felons and reparations for slavery that “injects capital into the black community.”

Sharing the Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr., the Movement, and Me
McDonald, Dora
Hill Street Press. October.  240p.
ISBN: 158-8180-840. $24.95

McDonald was more than just the personal secretary to M. L. King, Jr., she was confidante and aide. Now she writes about her life over the eight years she spent working for King, until his death in 1968. McDonald’s book reveals the lesser-known private King.

The Book of Sarahs: A Memoir of Race and Identity
McKinley, Cartherine E.
Counterpoint Press. October. 320p.
ISBN: 1-58243-259-7. $25

McKinley was adopted and raised by a white couple in a New England town during the late 60s and early 70s when few Black or bi-racial children were adopted by whites. Now living in New York City, McKinley traces her coming-of-age years and her search for her birth family only to learn that her mother and half-sister were named Sarah, the name she originally held.

Douglass’ Women: A Novel
Parker Rhodes, Jewell
Atria Books. October. 416p.
ISBN: 0-7434-1009-2. $25

According to Parker Rhodes’ story, two women fell in love with Frederick Douglass!  One was a free woman of color, who was his wife for forty-four years and the mother of his children.  The other was his mistress, a German heiress, who provided Douglass with mental and intimate companionship for almost 30 years.

West of Rehoboth: A Novel
Pate, Alexs D.
HarperCollins. September. 256p.
ISBN: 0-380-80042-X. $12.95

Twelve-year-old Edward Massey and his family spend summers in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware every year.  While his mother works on the “colored only” side of the beach resort, Edward and his sister are free to roam the beach.  However, it is his relationship with his Uncle Rufus that is the focus of this compelling tale.

Another Day at the Front: Dispatches from the Race War
Reed, Ishmael
Basic Books. November. 224p.
ISBN: 0-465-06891-X. $24

Reed has always maintained that African Americans are constantly at war with certain elements of the white population. In this collection of essays, Reed explores the different levels on which this war happens while he offers his skillful brand of social criticism.

Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare
Roberts, Dorothy
Basic Books. January. 341p.
ISBN: 0-465-07059-0. $16.50

Roberts sees a crisis—the disproportionate number of Black children in the foster care system, even as child-welfare policies punish parents instead of tackling the issue and its root causes. Roberts supports her argument using research and conversations with mothers dealing with the child-welfare system in Chicago as well as stories of women struggling to make things better.

Following the Dream: An Intimate Memoir of Growing Up King
Scott King, Dexter with Ralph Wiley
Warner Books: January 2003. 320p.
ISBN: 0-446-52942-7. $24.95

Dexter talks about losing his father Martin Luther King, Jr., when he was seven years old and what it has been like growing up in the shadow of the tremendous memories of his father’s legacy.  It is an inspiration to read of his adolescent years and how he’s lived with A.D.D.

Separate, But Equal: The Photographs of Henry Clay Anderson
Public Affairs. November. 160p.
ISBN: 1-58648-092-8. $35

Relaying life under segregation in Greenville, MS, these photographs taken throughout the 50s and 60s of fairly prosperous blacks, are accompanied by an essay by Clifton L. Taulbert.  Also included is an interview with the late photographer.

E.A.R.L: The Autobiography of DMX
Simmons, Earl as told to Smokey D. Fontaine
Morrow: HarperEntertainment. October. 288p.
ISBN: 0-06-018826-X. $24.95

Earl Simmons, a.k.a. DMX, was born in a housing project, but that did not deter him.  His life there and on the streets were stimulation enough to help him rise to the level of major stardom in the rap industry.

The Fundamentals: 8 Plays for Winning the Games of Business and Life
Thomas, Isiah
HarperCollins. November. 240p.
ISBN: 0-06-66-2075-9. $14.95

Ex-NBA player and head coach of the Indiana Pacers, Thomas is also well known as a successful businessman.  His eight fundamentals for life and business include choosing role models and mentors; maintaining a consistent, guiding mission; building or creating self-reliance and inner strength; and savoring and sharing life’s blessings.

Black Swan
Van Clief-Stefanon, Lyrae
University of Pittsburgh Press. November. 96p.
ISBN: 0-8229-5787-6. $12.95

Van Clief-Stefanon’s have won myriad awards for her poems because of her creative mix of myth and stories of the Bible.  This collection is evokes every emotion as she explores  loss, hope, and the promise of salvation.

What Color is a Conservative?: My Life and My Politics
Watts, J.C., Jr. with Criss Winston
HarperCollins. September. 304p.
ISBN: 0-06-019436-7. $24.95

Watts’ life began on the “poor side of the tracks” and has led to his becoming a preacher, congressman, and father of five. Readers get to learn how he feels about race and his view that there is nothing contradictory about the phrase “Black Republican.”

This Far by Faith: Stories from the African-American Religious Experience
Williams, Juan and Quinton Dixie
William Morrow. November. 352p.
ISBN: 0-06-018863-4. $29.95

This companion to the PBS series of the same name, combines photographs, interviews, and commentaries by clergy to cover the effect of religion on the life of the African American from slavery on.

Always True to You in My Fashion
Wilson Wesley, Valerie
William Morrow. November. 320p.
ISBN: 0-06-018883-9. $23.95

Known for her Tamara Hayle mystery series, Wilson Wesley writes an entertaining story of three single women who are simultaneously caught in the web of the charming Randall Hollis, who is rich, good-looking, and everything a woman would want. It’s the stuff of life as these women learn about the healing power of love.

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Corinne Nelson is a contributing writer who has written for the Library Journal.