Urban Fiction

urban-fiction-160.jpg

Date, Location

Street Lit Discussion Group

This popular street lit discussion group meets monthly at the Powell Branch Library to talk about current and popular titles in contemporary urban fiction.

Pick up a copy of the current title at Powell Branch Library. Refreshments.

Current Titles: Spring 2013

Life - Januay 29 by Leo SullivanLife - Januay 29  
Sullivan, Leo
2005
Hope Evans is an eccentric college student, born and raised in Miami's notorious Pork and Beans Projects. All her life, Hope has dreamed of becoming a lawyer and one day helping her people out of ghetto oppression. By some uncanny fate, Hope meets the handsome thug, Life, in the midst of his desperate attempts to elude a massive police manhunt. Their brief encounter leads to a liaison of lust and passion, but with vast differences they soon part ways. Years later, Hope and Life meet again on opposite sides of a courtroom. Life, one of the biggest drug kingpins in the United States, is on trial for his life. On the other side of the courtroom is Assistant US District Attorney Hope Evans, who is holding a deep, dark secret. The infamous kingpin, Life, is the father of her child. Life is the ultimate tale of murder, sex, drugs and betrayal. (from the publisher)
Gorilla Black : a novel - March 26 by SevenGorilla Black : a novel - March 26  
Seven,
2008
"Seven is the new urban mercenary stealing hearts. You gotta love her!" -Chunichi, the Urban Diva, author of the Gangster's Girl series Bilal Cunningham has grown up in Richmond, Virginia's meanest projects. His mother offers him little love but takes whatever cash Bilal can make to feed her alcohol-fueled life and the men she shares her bed with. Instead of drugs and drink, Bilal devours Shakespeare, Langston Hughes, and the works of other poets, which he can recite verbatim. But when his beloved little brother, Keon, is killed in a shoot-out, Bilal's straitlaced life goes awry. Vengeance lands Bilal in jail for seven years, and when he comes out he's drawn to the streets. By becoming Richmond's top cocaine kingpin, Bilal has all the money he could ever want, though he knows to steer clear of the powder himself. But sexy Starr, the girl he's loved since childhood, can't quite keep clean. Their tumultuous relationship gets even rockier when Starr involves herself with the men who may have been responsible for Keon's death. As friends and foes alike drop dead in the fallout, a shocking truth is revealed, and Bilal's last shred of innocence may be lost forever. From the Trade Paperback edition.
My Brother’s Keeper - May 28 by ReShonda Tate BillingsleyMy Brother’s Keeper - May 28  
Billingsley, ReShonda Tate
2003
In a captivating debut novel that is both humorous and heartwrenching, ReShonda Tate Billingsley -- winner of the Gold Pen Award for Best New Author -- spins an irresistible story that will touch every reader's heart. Aja James hasn't had it easy. She has kept a close watch over her siblings ever since tragedy robbed them of their parents. Tired of carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, Aja is ready for a change. Her best friend, Roxie, knows just what to do -- she sets Aja up on a date with one of the most sought after bachelors in town, handsome sportscaster Charles Clayton. Charles is everything Aja has ever dreamed of -- sensitive, sexy, and charming. But "happily ever after" isn't that simple. While Aja has rebounded from the loss of her parents, her sister and brother have not. Jada is lost in a world of silence with no way for Aja to reach her, and Eric's uncontrollable rage is wreaking havoc on his life. As Aja sees her brother heading down the same violent path that destroyed their family, she makes it her business to stop the cycle -- even if it means putting her own life, and her own chance at love, on hold. My Brother's Keeper is a poignant novel about a resilient family learning that sometimes you have to forgive in order to find the strength to move on.
2