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For those who may be interested in Silver Sparrow, author (and LFPC group member) Tayari Jones was interviewed about the book on NPR on Thursday. They also posted an excerpt from the book. Here's the link:

Barbara- I really like Purple Hibiscus, too. And I almost didn't read it because I wasn't so fond of Half of a Yellow Sun. I'm in the distinct minority on that opinion.

i'm in the same minority as you, rashida.

Wilhelmina, thanks for suggesting the new Tayari Jones book. It looks really, really good. I haven't read any of her other books but have heard really good things about her writing. The book is not available yet in my library system so I'll likely have to purchase it. 

I'll likely start Silver Sparrow after finishing up Jackie Kay's delicious, Trumpet: A Novel . Oh my, this is good!

The Washington Post review of Silver Sparrow

Thanks, Bill! It's great to see this book receiving the attention it deserves.

Adding it to my to read list and between you, me, and the fencepost, I wouldn't be surprised to find in on an upcoming discussion poll.

While I've not, "Read and Recommended", here is a review of Pearl Cleage's latest offering. An author with a significant following among the LFPC membership.

Earlier this month, I read The Air Between Us: A Novel by Deborah Johnson. It's set in Mississippi during the '60s in a small town forced to desegregate. The author skillfully weaves the main characters personal history with the social/political issues of the time. An excellent read.

I agree, Nell - I really enjoyed The Air Between Us: A Novel. It's one of those books that didn't get as much attention as it deserved.

I have already strongly recommended Silver Sparrow, probably a couple of times, but I did want to share that I attended a reading of the book by its author (and LFPC group member) Tayari Jones last night here in Atlanta and it was really wonderful. I had heard her read the beginning of the book several years ago when she was just beginning to write it, so I was happy that she chose to read a chapter from later in the book - "Love And Happiness", for those of you who have read it. Tayari was absolutely radiant when she talked about the joy of writing fiction and how her characters lived in her head and evolved until she found the story that she wanted to tell. She was also very funny! If she's coming to your area on her book tour (), try to attend a reading - I loved it. For those in Georgia, Tayari mentioned that she and Pearl Cleage will have an event together at the Decatur Book Fair that is held every Labor Day weekend. (Decatur is right outside of Atlanta, for those unfamiliar with the area.) The DBF is always my favorite book event of the year.

i propose a new thread for people to recommend/wax lyrical about Silver Sparrow. :)

I'm done! Is there anyone left on Earth who doesn't know that I love this book?

wait. i thought you felt lukewarm about it. now i'm confused.

Leah wrote: "Charles Chesnutt wrote several very relevant books, but the one I just read on a brother and sister who attempt to pass is entitled The House Behind The Cedars."

I'm a big Chestnutt fan. The House Behind the Cedars is his best book, but you might get a kick out of his second novel The Marrow of Tradition.

Wow, just finished Tayari Jones's Silver Sparrow and it really deserves the hype. Well done!
Apparently, the Root thinks so as well:

I've read and really liked by Zadie Smith

Katrina, I bought White Teeth last year but haven't read it yet. However, I absolutely loved On Beauty. Highly recommended!

Columbus wrote: "Katrina, I bought White Teeth last year but haven't read it yet. However, I absolutely loved On Beauty. Highly recommended!" I really liked that one as well. I love her writing style.

I also liked The House at Sugar Beach. Great story!

Thanks, Columbus and Katrina!

Wilhelmina wrote: "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey is high on my to-be-read list. I love Walter Mosley, but his writing varies a lot - I'm glad to hear that this is a good one!"

The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey was very good. I respect Mosley for being a writer that tries new things but sometimes it doesn't always work for me. But this one did.

Also I love his new mystery series starting with The Long Fall. His new protagonist, Leonid McGill, is one of the best new additions to the mystery genre in the past few years.

Doret, we had a good discussion about "Ptolmey Grey" back in March of this year. We keep the discussions open, so if you want to add any comments about the book, I'm sure that we would enjoy hearing your opinions!

I've read the first two McGill books and I'm looking forward to reading When the Thrill is Gone.

Hi Wilhlemina - When the Thrill is Gone is as good as the first two. I also read a lot of YA literature, and I would love to see Twill get his own series. He such a great/well developed character. And there aren't a lot of Black male teen protagonist in YA.

And Mosley is such a prolific writer that he could probably turn out the YA series in a heartbeat!

jo wrote: "this is a great idea! has anyone read The Cancer Journals, by Audre Lorde? i just read it and i would love to hear what people think. do i recommend it? uhm, not sure. i..."

I read a few pages, and I put it down. Guess, I wasn't in the mood for that at the moment.

Doret wrote: The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey was very good. I respect Mosley for being a writer that tries new things but sometimes it doesn't always work for me. But this one did.
"Ptolemy" is on my to-read list too. It's taking me a while to warm up to Leonid McGill, though, after Mosley "killed off" Easy Rawlins.

Doret wrote: "Wilhelmina wrote: "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey is high on my to-be-read list. I love Walter Mosley, but his writing varies a lot - I'm glad to hear that this is a go..."
As a newbie to this grp, I remain a Mosley fan (SF and all) as he continues his Leonid series. This new book is most a most excellent addition.

Katrina wrote: "I also liked The House at Sugar Beach. Great story!"

I just recived The House on Sugar Beach as a gift. Can't wait to read it

Wilhelmina wrote: "And Mosley is such a prolific writer that he could probably turn out the YA series in a heartbeat!"

Love his middle grade science ficiton novel 47. Nice rich story. Would love if he did a YA fantasy series.

Wilhelmina wrote: "I thought that we might like to have a folder in which we could talk about books we've read recently by authors of color (other than the monthly discussion book) that we would recommend to others. ..."

THE CIVILIZED WORLD by Suzi Wyss. A lovely book of connected stories that take place in the 1960s in the Central African Republic.

Also, THE GIRL WHO FELL FROM THE SKY. A difficult but page-turning story about a multi-racial girl who comes of age in a white and then black family.

Eugenia wrote: "Also, THE GIRL WHO FELL FROM THE SKY. A difficult but page-turning story about a multi-racial girl who comes of age in a white and then black family."

That was a great book.

i recently read The Opposite House: A Novel by Helen Oyeyemi and i loved it. i highly recommend all of her books.
the writing is poetic. there's a lot of emotion and wisdom in it, reading this touched me very deeply. i really related to the feelings of maja.
this one is a complicated and layered book that alternates between the stories of two women; maja, a black cuban singer living in england and aya, a santeria goddess living in a somewherehouse. the book looks at themes of personal and national identity, placelessness, belonging, family relationships, love, faith, mental anguish (maja looks at this as her personal hysteric).

when asked why maja has a personal hysteric, oyeyemi says, "Yeah, I think it's the young woman thing very much...And it's just this whole kind of almost a pressure to appear and not to be, as if there are parts of yourself that you need to tuck away...
And I think my dad had ideas about, like, the way that, like, women should speak, that they should speak, like, more quietly. And with my brother, he doesn't regulate him at all. And, you know, I think it happens all the time around us that we're kind of, like, being told to just kind of reduce ourselves to kind of a 2-D images of lovely femininity and stuff. And it's kind of a reaction against that. That's what I think the hysteric is. It's kind of aaah. Let me be messy and screamy and shouty, just for once."

this is taken from this interview on npr where helen oyeyemi discusses the opposite house --

TThe Threads Of Time, The Fabric Of History: Profiles Of African American Dressmakers And Designers From 1850 To The Present A great book to read, filled with so much history, plus interesting stories of A/A dressmarkers and designers who ending up sewing their way into history.

thank you emilie and welcome to the group!!!!

thank you, jo!

Small Island - Andrea Levy
The Lonely Londoners - Sam Selvon
Black Mamba Boy - can';t remember the author but the book is brilliant!

I second the nomination of Black Mamba Boy. It was presented on one of the earlier polls, which is where I read about it. The author takes you on an entertaining journey through the Horn of Africa and gives you a nice history lesson along the way. Jama is a great, endearing narrator/protagonist.

It's strange. We've talked about the excellent Small Island so much in this group, I just assumed we've read it. Well, I 2nd the nomination for that as well. I can read it a 3rd time.

Small Island gets a vote from me, too.

I recommend Girl in Translation this was a very good book i could not put it down.

Wilhelmina wrote: "Small Island gets a vote from me, too."

I read and loved Small Island too. I nominated Andrea Levy's latest novel The Long Song in the discussion topic for group read nominations.

I don't know if this counts but: White Woman on a Green Bicycle by Monique Roffey (she is Trinidadian/English) - the book is set in Trinidad during the 40's 50's 60's.

Hey Leah, you are ahead of the game. I'm not certain where this book is headed, but right now I'm loving The Marrow of Tradition! Just a couple of chapters in but I'm taking my time and savoring it. Will check out Cedars as well.

I will also add The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration to my list. Why? Because, I understand it's historical, relevant, entertaining and insightful. Oh, and most importantly, my President picked it up this wk'end while on vacation in MV. That's why!

Columbus wrote: "Hey Leah, you are ahead of the game. I'm not certain where this book is headed, but right now I'm loving The Marrow of Tradition! Just a couple of chapters in but I'm taking my time a..."

I am reading Marrow right now too.. and am feeling the very same way as you! I'm about 65% through the book. So much, so very very much to digest. I cannot wait until discussion!

such a brilliant talent- lost far far to young

I am reading "Grown Folk's Business"By Victoria Christopher Murrary it's in the Urban Christian category
something I would like to get back toand " An Atlas of Impossible Longing" byAnuradha Roy is one of my favorite books so far this year

I just started The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man.

I know I am behind the curve on many of these books, but can I just say what a journey each book has been.

Renee, let me know how you like Ex-Colored Man. I absolutely loved that book. In fact, I think I'll saunter on over to the Members Nominate area and suggest that. In many ways, Ex-Colored Man kind of reminds me of The Marrow of Tradition - our September selection. Not the topic so much, but more for the grand writing style, characters and general feel.

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The book business as I like to call it has opened many doors for many people myself included. I believe that all authors now that were once aspiring authors and writers would agree that putting pen to paper is no easy task. We write day and night. Our minds constantly envisioning our plots, story lines, and characters so that our readers and perspective readers will be able to cry, laugh and totally engulf themselves in the stories we write.
As our individual reading audience grows we become a part of what has been and always will be a significant part of history.
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I realize when I started writing that I was a part of something great and as my audience grows I want them to know that I’m not the only one putting in hard work. So AUTHORS join me, this Thursday 9-1-2011 8 TO 10PM and shout out your name, title of your book or books and what state/country you’re in and remember blog talk radio is international
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Well, I'm new here but I am reading by Lori Johnson and so far I am loving this book.