It’s Lit
-
Black History, Black Stories: 7 Books That Center Our Legacies for Longer Than a Month
“No scene from African American literary history is more familiar than that of Frederick Douglass’s learning to read,” reads the opening line of the introduction of Forgotten Readers: Recovering the Lost History of African American Literary Societies, an educational tome that unpacks the long legacy of black literacy and literary acumen; one that began while…
-
Laurence Fishburne Tapped to Narrate Seminal 'Autobiography of Malcolm X' For Audible
Furious Styles will bring his furious style to one of the greatest stories ever told. No, not the Bible. Another one — considered one of the most important memoirs written within the past century. Emmy and Tony award-winning actor Laurence Fishburne has signed on to narrate The Autobiography of Malcolm X for Audible. Marking the…
-
Colin Kaepernick Launches Book Publishing Company, Reveals Plans to Release Memoir in 2020
I’ve said for a while now that I can’t wait to read the inevitable Colin Kaepernick memoir about the trials and tribulations he’s faced throughout his life, and apparently the exiled quarterback can no longer wait, either. Variety reports that the untitled memoir will be released sometime this year as part of a multi-project deal…
-
#BlackStoriesHavePower: Barnes & Noble Suspends Plans to Publish Diverse Editions After Backlash
On this week’s episode of “Books in Blackface,” the book retailer Barnes & Noble decided to “suspend” its controversial Diverse Editions series that was supposed to launch Wednesday in Honor of Black History Month. The series, spearheaded by the chain’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, was a planned rerelease of beloved classics with…
-
VSB's Damon Young Wins Barnes & Noble's Discover Great New Writers Award for What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker
What’s more exciting than any work of fiction? The news that one of our favorite essayists, colleagues and play cousins is being recognized for his brilliance! As reported by Publishers Weekly (and our work Slack), Damon Young’s debut book of essays, What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker, was recently named the nonfiction winner of…
-
Booked, Busy and Black: The Root's Favorite Reads of 2019
With all the writing we do here at The Root, it’s a wonder we find time to read. But for many members of our staff, books remain our first love, so while we reflect on the highlights of 2019, we’re also reminded of some of the great reads we encountered this year. From memoirs to…
-
Doin' Big Thangs: The Root's Michael Harriot Inks a Two-Book Publishing Deal; Will Bring 'Wypipology' to the Masses
He has clapped back at our hate mail weekly; regularly educates us on the inextricable links between American history and racism; has called out Pete Buttigieg on the biases and policies that most affect black America (prompting a sit-down with the presidential hopeful himself); and just this past weekend, The Root’s Michael Harriot broke Black…
-
'We Wanted to Be Together': Whitney Houston's Best Friend Robyn Crawford Shares Their Love Story for the First Time in New Memoir
It has been seven years since the tragic death of iconic singer Whitney Houston, and now her best friend, Robyn Crawford, is opening up about their much-rumored relationship in her new memoir, A Song For You: My Life With Whitney Houston. In an exclusive excerpt with People, Crawford, 58, who now lives a quiet life…
-
Zora Neale Hurston's Lost Harlem Renaissance Stories to be Published in New Short Story Collection
She’s one of the most influential figures in American letters and a hero of the Harlem Renaissance. Now, Zora Neale Hurston fans have a new slate of stories to dig into from the renowned scholar and writer. A new collection of Hurston’s short stories, Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick, will be released…
-
A Black Woman Takes Us Into the Swirl of Bipolar Disorder in New Memoir, I’m Telling the Truth, But I’m Lying
Bassey Ikpi’s I’m Telling The Truth, But I’m Lying, the 43-year-old’s journey into her mental health struggle, is not a traditionally written memoir—neither in its structure nor in its nonchronological narrative. It is poetic, it is revelatory, it is distressing; it is, at times, exhausting. It is a literal entree into the mind of someone…