Darius Stewart’s lyrical memoir voices the complexities of being Black, gay, and Southern
Be Not Afraid of My Body: A Lyrical Memoir, the second book by Knoxville native Darius Stewart, takes readers on a journey of self-discovery as it unearths the complexities of his childhood and investigates life after addiction and health challenges, including an HIV diagnosis.
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Poet William Woolfitt considers his West Virginia heritage in The Night the Rain Had Nowhere to Go
William Woolfitt’s new poetry collection, The Night the Rain Had Nowhere to Go, pays homage to generations of his people in mine-riddled West Virginia. Woolfitt will appear with Linda Parsons, Earl S. Braggs, Rita Quillen, Susan O’Dell Underwood, and others at “A Gathering of Madville Poets” at Addison’s Bookstore in Knoxville on September 7.
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Keith Wood paints a portrait of a Memphis baseball team and the Black community that loved it
Keith Wood, a leading scholar of sports in Memphis, reconstructs the history of the Memphis Red Sox, a longstanding team in the Negro Leagues and a pillar of the city’s Black community.
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Andrea Ringer rewrites the history of the circus from the workers’ perspective
From trapeze artists to roustabouts to elephants, the golden age of the American circus depended on its workers. Andrea Ringer’s Circus World tells their story.
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Poet Danita Dodson reflects on the loss of her father
Between Gone and Everlasting, Danita Dodson’s most recent poetry collection, explores the many facets of grief after the loss of a parent. Dodson will appear at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville on October 10.
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A madcap murder investigation helps a family cope with a loved one’s death in Fowl Play
“It’s kinda hard to hunt for a murderer,” declares young Chloe Alvarez, “when you don’t want to remember that a person is dead.” Chloe is the narrator and main character of Nashville writer Kristin O’Donnell Tubb’s latest middle-grade novel, Fowl Play, and she is desperate to know what really happened to her Uncle Will. Fowl Play is scheduled for release on July 30, and a launch event will be held at the Nashville Zoo at Grassmere on August 2.
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