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Stumbling Blocks and Other Unfinished Work
Stumbling Blocks expands and contextualizes the unpublished works of the late African American writer Delores Phillips. Born in Cartersville, Georgia in 1950, Delores Faye Phillips spent much of her childhood in Georgia before moving to Cleveland, Ohio. Best known for her 2004 novel The Darkest Child , which follows the Quinn family as they attempt to survive and escape racism, lynchings, and poverty in Jim Crow Georgia during the 1950s, Phillips wrote much more than that. While the novel was met with critical acclaim, little is known about Phillips herself or about her other writings. Indeed, in the 2018 reissue of The Darkest Child , Tayari Jones remarks in the introduction that when she heard Phillips had passed away in 2014, she was “weighted down with longing for the other books that she would never write.�
This volume, then, corrects the misconception that The Darkest Child was Phillips’s only published work. Rather, it establishes her as an experienced and prolific writer who created multi-genre literature throughout her life. It paints a broader picture of Phillips, who was not just a novelist but also a poet and short story writer as well. Just as Alice Walker’s recovery work on Zora Neale Hurston in the 1970s was critical to a revival and appreciation of Hurston as “a genius of the South,� Stumbling Blocks illuminates and expands the legacy of an underrepresented writer who is uniquely situated at the intersections of multiple identities including race, gender, disability, and region.
In addition to the sequel to The Darkest Child , this collection also includes an unfinished third novel ( No Ordinary Rain ), ten poems, seven short stories, contextualizing essays, and an in-depth biography of Phillips. It is also bookended by a foreword from Phillips’s sister, Linda Miller, and an afterword from renowned literary scholar Trudier Harris.
This volume, then, corrects the misconception that The Darkest Child was Phillips’s only published work. Rather, it establishes her as an experienced and prolific writer who created multi-genre literature throughout her life. It paints a broader picture of Phillips, who was not just a novelist but also a poet and short story writer as well. Just as Alice Walker’s recovery work on Zora Neale Hurston in the 1970s was critical to a revival and appreciation of Hurston as “a genius of the South,� Stumbling Blocks illuminates and expands the legacy of an underrepresented writer who is uniquely situated at the intersections of multiple identities including race, gender, disability, and region.
In addition to the sequel to The Darkest Child , this collection also includes an unfinished third novel ( No Ordinary Rain ), ten poems, seven short stories, contextualizing essays, and an in-depth biography of Phillips. It is also bookended by a foreword from Phillips’s sister, Linda Miller, and an afterword from renowned literary scholar Trudier Harris.
408 pages, Paperback
Published October 15, 2023
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About the author
Delores Phillips
4Ìýbooks432ÌýfollowersDelores Phillips was born in Georgia. She is a graduate of Cleveland State University and works as a nurse in a facility for abused women and children in Cleveland. This is her first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
April 2, 2025
Although Stumbling Blocks did not complete the story it did give me some closure on what could have possibly happened to Rozelle, I think .... Since this was in the 1950's she gone on to her resting place.
I want to mention that Laura, Tangy Mae's sister was evil and all that stemmed from Rozelle.
I appreciate Delores Phillips so much for telling this story
I want to mention that Laura, Tangy Mae's sister was evil and all that stemmed from Rozelle.
I appreciate Delores Phillips so much for telling this story
February 13, 2024
Enjoyed the book. So unfortunate that the work was unfinished before Delores Phillips death however, I’m glad I had the opportunity to read her original work rather unfinished or not.
November 6, 2023
incomplete
I was so disappointed in this book. While waiting for years for this sequel, it got to ch 18 and then stopped. It was just getting good but literally just stops. Very disappointed.
I was so disappointed in this book. While waiting for years for this sequel, it got to ch 18 and then stopped. It was just getting good but literally just stops. Very disappointed.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
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