James Shippy

"A solid marriage, a thriving business, and the esteem of their close-knit Alabama community--Joyce and Odell Watson have every reason to count their blessings. Their marriage has given well-off Joyce a chance at the family she's always wanted--and granted Odell a once-in-a-lifetime shot to escape grinding poverty. But all that respectability and status comes at a cost. Just once, Joyce and Odell want to break loose and taste life's wild side, without...

The activist and comedian examines key events in black history, from the beginnings of the slave trade in Africa and the Middle Passage to the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Lives Matter movement.

"Scrutinized in life, mythologized in death, Tupac Shakur remains a subject of immense cultural significance and speculation nearly thirty years after his murder. Despite a multitude of books, documentaries, and even a feature film, much about Tupac's story remains shrouded and misunderstood. Like many icons who died tragically young, Tupac the man has long been obscured-his edges sanded down, his complexity numbed-by the competing agendas that surround...

"Along the train lines north of New York City, twelve-year-old neighbors Myla and Peter search for the link between Myla's necklace and the disappearance of Peter's brother, Randall. Thrown into a world of parkour, graffiti, and diamond-smuggling, Myla and Peter encounter a band of thugs who are after the same thing as Randall. Can Myla and Peter find Randall before it's too late, and their shared family secrets threaten to destroy them all?"-- Provided...

"Following the Civil War, the Reconstruction era raised a new question to those in power in the US: Should African Americans, so many of them former slaves, be granted the right to vote? In a bitter partisan fight over the legislature and Constitution, the answer eventually became yes, though only after two constitutional amendments, two Reconstruction Acts, two Civil Rights Acts, three Enforcement Acts, the impeachment of a president, and an army...

In the 1990s, four black men, seeking money, power, and respect, discover the ultimate price of making fast cash in the harsh inner city of Washington, D.C.

In this riveting and emotionally powerful historical drama, an ex-FBI agent plunges into the darkest shadows of 1930s Europe, where everything he loves is on the line . . . International consultant Prescott Sweet's mission is to bring justice to countries suffering from America's imperialistic interventions. With his outspoken artist wife, Loretta, and their two children, he lives a life of equality and continental elegance amid Europe's glittering...

"In October 1919, a group of Black sharecroppers met at a church in an Arkansas village to organize a union. Bullets rained down on the meeting from outside. Many were killed by a white mob in what became known as the Elaine Massacre. Others were rounded up and arrested. Twelve of the sharecroppers were hastily tried and sentenced to death. Scipio Africanus Jones, a self-taught lawyer who'd been born enslaved, answered the call and represented the...

"From the best-selling author of My Weird School: a new entry in the cheerful and engaging biography series centered on high-interest historic figures. Did you know that Ruth Bader Ginsburg failed her driving test five times? Or that her real name was Joan? Bet you didn't know that she liked paddle boarding, white water rafting, and riding elephants! She even had a praying mantis named after her. Siblings Paige and Turner have collected some of the...

Already excerpted in the New Yorker, Black Cloud Rising is a compelling and important historical novel that takes us back to an extraordinary moment when enslaved men and women were shedding their bonds and embracing freedom

By fall of 1863, Union forces had taken control of Tidewater Virginia, and established a toehold in eastern North Carolina, including along the Outer Banks. Thousands of freed slaves and runaways

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