Phoebe Robinson

This Pulitzer Prize-winning historical biography covers the extraordinary life of Frederick Douglass, the most important African-American of the nineteenth century. Born a slave, Douglass escaped and went on to become the greatest orator of his day and a leading abolitionist and writer. David Blight's captivating narrative draws upon new information and recently discovered issues of Douglass's newspapers to paint a cinematic portrait of his complex extended family and his two marriages. This is a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the nineteenth century.

This stunning debut novel delves into the forbidden love between two young enslaved men on a Deep South plantation, and the betrayal that threatens to destroy them. Isaiah and Samuel find refuge and intimacy in each other, transforming their barn into a place of solace in a world ruled by vicious masters. However, when an older slave seeks to curry favor by preaching the master's gospel, Isaiah and Samuel's love is seen as a danger to the plantation's harmony. With lyrical writing reminiscent of Toni Morrison, Robert Jones Jr. gives voice to both the enslaved and their oppressors in a story of pain and suffering, inheritance, and the heroic power of love.