Blackbirds: Volume 1 - Hardcover

Andre Coleman

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0977379213 ISBN 13: 9780977379217

Publisher: Razor7 Publishing, 2007

Synopsis

Set in the small Southern town of Dernier, Louisiana, during the Jim Crow era, "Blackbirds: Volume 1" tells the story of one summer in the lives of 16-year-old Joshua McCray, his siblings Lincoln and Rita and their parents Robert and Leona - The book is the first in a five volume set following one family from 1955-1970 as they struggle with race, justice, loss and the pain of growing up.

About this title

About the Author:

André Coleman has worked as a professional and freelance reporter for almost 20 years. His work has appeared in Black Voice News, the Daily News, the Burbank Leader, LA CityBeat, LA ValleyBeat, Out Front Magazine and the Pasadena Star-News. A lifelong resident of Altadena, CA. in 1998 he optioned his first screenplay. Currently he is the city reporter for the Pasadena Weekly. "I love the freedom of working for an alternative paper. People read it. At just about every daily paper, circulation is down. Most of them just regurgitate press releases and CNN, and even if they break it CNN will kill them on the follow-up story and give it more coverage in 24 hours than they can in a week. The alternatives are the voice of the people and cover the news CNN and the daily papers are afraid to touch." Coleman currently appears, and occasionally hosts, the political television show Newsrap on Thursday nights, and can be heard from 6 to 7 p.m. Sunday nights on the radio show Barry Gordon from Left Field with longtime actor and talk show host Barry Gordon. He is hard at work on his next novel, which should be out in the next two years Since childhood Coleman has had a love for books, art and film. He got real life lessons in politics in 1969 when his family became the first black family to move into an affluent neighborhood and the next year that school district, Pasadena Unified, became the first school district west of the Mississippi forced to implement court ordered busing. Coleman was one of the first children on the bus. "I am the black experience," he said. "From integration to excellence."

Review:

"Blackbirds: Volume 1" is a haunting tale of loss, love, and redemption. Set in the deep south during a time not so long ago, Blackbirds follows the path of several unforgettable characters that will stay with you long after you've finished the book. -- --Julie Swayze - "Seth's Dominion" and "O'Reilly's Ring"

Taking a bold leap forward from his already-entertaining debut novel A Liars Tale, Andre Coleman undertakes the history of black America over the last 40 years through the eyes of one family, mixing the personal and the political while creating a work that could ultimately stand as the African-American Wonder Years. --Carl Kozlowski - Life the Final Frontier

Blackbirds Volume 1 follows the McCray family of Dernier, La., through hot summer days in 1955 and beyond. Little Richard shouts and Elvis is around the only white boy I ever seen make money by being compared to a colored man, as patriarch Robert McCray observes. Robert has stirred some controversy of his own, daring to buy a television and incurring the wrath of his white neighbors as well as the scorn and intrigue of his own community. But the larger story of Blackbirds is of the children, Lincoln and Joshua, and Volume 1 focuses on their lives with care, humor and a keen ear for dialogue. Historical events such as the murder of George Washington Lee, who dared to vote in the segregated Deep South, are interwoven with skill and concern, and the past breathes painful yet proud. --Susan Compo, Pasadena Weekly

About this edition

• Publisher: Razor7 Publishing
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0977379213
• ISBN 13: 9780977379217
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224