Toni Morrison said in order for the slave experience she explores in Beloved to be intimate, language must get out of the way. That’s quite an ironic thing for a writer to say. So, how does that work?... Read More

George M. Johnson's memoir All Boys Aren’t Blue has been characterized as obscene. Here’s a breakdown of why that’s sheer nonsense.... Read More

Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower is an eerily prescient story about an America ravaged by climate change, ruled by private powers, and divided along lines of race, class, and community. But is Butler’s message truly so grim? ... Read More

F rederick Douglass. A towering figure in American history. His name is inextricably linked with the abolition of slavery. He was also one of... Read More.

A ll too often, people thumb their noses at English majors, trivializing the subject as the pointless study of irrelevant stories. But, All American... Read More.

T he Bluest Eye, written by Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, was inspired by a conversation with a childhood friend just as the two young... Read More.

L angston Hughes is best known as a defining figure of the Harlem Renaissance. And, he remains a significant literary figure today. Jason Reynolds'... Read More.

I n this edition of our Power of Books Author Series, we talk with Dr. Michael Datcher, author of Harlem at Four about why... Read More.