KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American adult literature, African American Authors

365 Black Books Diane McKinney-Whetstone Friday

Happy birthday Diane McKinney-Whetstone! Born August 14, Diane McKinney-Whetstone is an African American author of eight novels. Her latest novel, Family spirit was published August, 2025. She mines the city of Philadelphia for her material. The blocks and neighborhoods themselves become characters as she tells stories of everyday people existing in families and communities; characters faltering, yielding to their desires, falling, fighting, climbing, reaching for their better selves. Twice awarded the American Library Association Black Caucus Literary Award for Fiction, she is also a recipient of a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts grant.

KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors, African American Fantasy Literature, African American Science Fiction Literature

365 Black Books Charles R. Saunders Sunday

Heavenly birthday wishes Charles R. Saunders! Born July 12, 1946, Charles Robert Saunders was an American-born, Black Canadian author and journalist, a pioneer of the “sword and soul” literary genre with his Imaro novels. Saunders who was born in Pennsylvania, moved to Canada. He died in 2020. His pioneer works are:

KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors

365 Black Books Eric Jerome Dickey Wednesday

Heavenly belated birthday wishes Eric Jerome Dickey! Born July 7, 1961, Eric Jerome Dickey was an African American author. He wrote several crime novels involving grifters, ex-cons, and assassins, the latter novels having more diverse settings, moving from Los Angeles to the United Kingdom to the West Indies, each having an international cast of characters. He died in 2021. Some of his notable works are:

KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors, African American Essays, African American Historical Fiction, African American Nonfiction, African American Poetry, African American Poets

365 Black Books Margaret Walker Tuesday

Heavenly birthday wishes Margaret Walker! Born July 7, 1915, Margaret Walker was an African American poet and author She was part of the African-American literary movement in Chicago, known as the Chicago Black Renaissance. She is known for her book, Jubilee and her poem, For My People. She died in 1998. Here are a few of her notable works:

You can read some of her poems here:

KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors, African American autobiography

365 Black Books E. Lynn Harris Monday

Heavenly belated birthday wishes E. Lynn Harris! Born June 20, 1955, E. Lynn Harris was an African American author. Openly gay, he was best known for his depictions of African-American men who were on the down-low and closeted. He authored ten consecutive books that made The New York Times Best Seller list. He passed away in 2009. Here are just a few of his award-winning books: