PositiveBooklistJoseph eschews the usual easy oppositional narratives of educated versus working-class, Christian versus Muslim, integration versus separatism, lobbying versus grassroots activism, and non-violence versus self-defense to emphasize their political affinities and shared struggle ... Most intriguingly, Joseph portrays King and Malcolm X as political and diplomatic mavericks heroically coping with attempts by the FBI; politicians of various ideologies, including sitting presidents; the mainstream press; and even former allies to deflect, deny, and discredit their moral crusade against American racism and racial violence and their assertion of Black American dignity and civic significance. Joseph’s fresh and perceptive dual biography may rekindle political unity in a time of increasingly granular identity politics, sensationalism, and fear.
James McBride
PositiveBooklistMcBride creates tragedies, funny moments, major plot twists, and cultural and generational clashes. A sense of shared struggle emerges as diverse characters develop emotionally while navigating a world that’s changing for better and for worse. While historical fiction fans will appreciate the richly detailed approach to Brooklyn’s grittiness, McBride’s neighborhood saga ultimately sets a new standard for multidimensional fiction about people of color.
Steven Wright
PositiveBooklistWright explores the themes of loyalty, perception versus reality, corruption, and racism, balancing absurd situations and deep-seated issues with wry, self-deprecating humor ... Wright has created a sharply contemporary Faustian tragicomedy with parallels to the TV series Scandal.
Marcia Chatelain
PositiveBooklistThe relationship between McDonald’s, the undisputed champion in the fast food realm, and Black America has been complicated, even fraught. The company’s marketing and outreach efforts have presented its business as responsive to the needs of Black communities contending with generational poverty and political disenfranchisement. Chatelain undercuts this narrative, however, by contextualizing, from an arguably Marxist perspective, the historical advantages that enabled McDonald’s to rise above the competition, the charges of racist practices and exploitation that led Black communities to protest its presence in their neighborhoods, and its multigenerational campaign to repair its image, particularly in promoting Black franchises and supporting Black franchisees ... Chatelain doesn’t flinch from addressing these difficult questions, and readers will be inspired to rethink the role of capitalism in black empowerment.
Richard Bell
PositiveBooklistBell tells each boy’s story, including detailed accounts of their endurance in the face of unimaginable cruelty and iniquity, and recounts the exposure of those who were responsible ... An examination of the motivations of the white men who intervened as well as those of the kidnappers and slavers provides further insight into the political and economic forces at work. Rigorously researched, heartfelt, and dramatically concise, Bell’s investigation illuminates the role slavery played in the systemic inequalities that still confront Black Americans.
Chris L. Terry
PositiveBooklistWhile Terry doesn’t make Lucius’ role clear right away, his characterization, humor, and sensuality allow the reader to smell his sweat and feel his nervousness when he asks out his crush. Overall, this is a welcome tale that undercuts stereotypical portrayals of Blackness ... Terry\'s biracial punk musician\'s struggle with his Black identity and the novel\'s edgy humor will intrigue literary YAs.
