KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors, African American Literature

365 Black Books Pauline E. Hopkins Sunday

Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins was born in Portland, Maine in 1859. She was a playwright, journalist, novelist, historian, editor, feminist, public intellectual, supporter of the arts, and an outspoken crusader for African American rights. She is considered a pioneer in her use of the romantic novel to explore social and racial themes and is best known for her 1900 novel Contending Forces: A Romance of Negro Life North and South. 

KRLemmons African American adult fiction, African American Authors, African American Historical Fiction

365 Black Books Sadeqa Johnson Sunday

Sadeqa Johnson came to Detroit Public Library to talk about her book, Keeper of the Lost Children. The story is centered around three characters who are somehow connected to an orphanage in Germany. History is interwoven as the readers learn about an orphanage that took care of mixed race children (white German women, African American men officers) in occupied Germany. In her talk, Ms. Johnson mentioned a documentary film titled Brown Babies which tells the stories of unwanted biracial and bicultural children.