Damn Near Dead

“Some [of the stories] are hilarious; many are sad; all are the kind of stuff that makes Miss Marple look like a Girl Scout.”—Dick Adler, Chicago Tribune An original anthology. A collection of twenty-seven original “geezer noir” stories by some of today’s top crime writers, including John Harvey, Laura Lippman, Ken Bruen, Colin Cotterill, and more. Bill Crider’s “Cranked” was nominated for the Edgar and Anthony awards and won the Derringer Award. Megan Abbott’s “Policy” was nominated for the Anthony Award and became the basis for her novel Queenpin, which won the 2008 Edgar Award.

A riveting account of life as a closeted professional athlete from gay NFL player O’Callaghan, against the backdrop of depression, opioid addiction, and the threat of suicide. “[O’Callaghan’s] story is one of beautiful vulnerability, and it further shows the importance of knowing you aren’t alone.” —Oprah Daily, recommended by Gayle King Ryan O’Callaghan’s plan was always to play football and then, when his career was over, kill himself. Growing up in a politically conservative corner of California, the not-so-subtle messages he heard as a young man from his family and from TV and film routinely equated being gay with disease and death. Letting people in on the darkest secret he kept buried inside was not an option: better death with a secret than life as a gay man. As a kid , Ryan never envisioned just how far his football career would take him. He was recruited by the University of California, Berkeley, where he spent five seasons, playing alongside his friend Aaron Rodgers. Then it was on to the NFL for stints with the almost-undefeated New England Patriots and the often-defeated Kansas City Chiefs. Bubbling under the surface of Ryan’s entire NFL career was a collision course between his secret sexuality and his hidden drug use. When the league caught him smoking pot, he turned to NFL-sanctioned prescription painkillers that quickly sent his life into a tailspin. As injuries mounted and his daily intake of opioids reached a near-lethal level, he wrote his suicide note to his parents and plotted his death. Yet someone had been watching. A member of the Chiefs organization stepped in, recognizing the signs of drug addiction. Ryan reluctantly sought psychological help, and it was there that he revealed his lifelong secret for the very first time. Nearing the twilight of his career, Ryan faced the ultimate decision: end it all, or find out if his family and football friends could ever accept a gay man in their lives.

The follow-up to the Edgar Award-nominated original "geezer noir" crime anthology Damn Near Dead.

Carolyn Wilkins grew up defending her racial identity. Because of her light complexion and wavy hair, she spent years struggling to convince others that she was black. Her family’s prominence set Carolyn’s experiences even further apart from those of the average African American. Her father and uncle were well-known lawyers who had graduated from Harvard Law School. Another uncle had been a child prodigy and protégé of Albert Einstein. And her grandfather had been America's first black assistant secretary of labor. Carolyn's parents insisted she follow the color-conscious rituals of Chicago's elite black bourgeoisie—experiences Carolyn recalls as some of the most miserable of her entire life. Only in the company of her mischievous Aunt Marjory, a woman who refused to let the conventions of “proper” black society limit her, does Carolyn feel a true connection to her family's African American heritage. When Aunt Marjory passes away, Carolyn inherits ten bulging scrapbooks filled with family history and memories. What she finds in these photo albums inspires her to discover the truth about her ancestors—a quest that will eventually involve years of research, thousands of miles of travel, and much soul-searching. Carolyn learns that her great-grandfather John Bird Wilkins was born into slavery and went on to become a teacher, inventor, newspaperman, renegade Baptist minister, and a bigamist who abandoned five children. And when she discovers that her grandfather J. Ernest Wilkins may have been forced to resign from his labor department post by members of the Eisenhower administration, Carolyn must confront the bittersweet fruits of her family's generations-long quest for status and approval. Damn Near White is an insider’s portrait of an unusual American family. Readers will be drawn into Carolyn’s journey as she struggles to redefine herself in light of the long-buried secrets she uncovers. Tackling issues of class, color, and caste, Wilkins reflects on the changes of African American life in U.S. history through her dedicated search to discover her family’s powerful story.

Detective Darby Adler is about to hand in her badge. After inadvertently taking the mantle of Warden of Knoxville, Darby has painted a huge target on her back. With bridges burned and the ABI on her tail, she’ll have to decide between staying a small-town detective or leaning into her new role. It’s not only her job on the line—it’s her life. Who says small towns are boring?

A twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Charles Johnson’s National Book Award-winning masterpiece—"a novel in the tradition of Billy Budd and Moby-Dick…heroic in proportion…fiction that hooks the mind" (The New York Times Book Review)—now with a new introduction from Stanley Crouch. Rutherford Calhoun, a newly freed slave and irrepressible rogue, is lost in the underworld of 1830s New Orleans. Desperate to escape the city’s unscrupulous bill collectors and the pawing hands of a schoolteacher hellbent on marrying him, he jumps aboard the Republic, a slave ship en route to collect members of a legendary African tribe, the Allmuseri. Thus begins a voyage of metaphysical horror and human atrocity, a journey which challenges our notions of freedom, fate and how we live together. Peopled with vivid and unforgettable characters, nimble in its interplay of comedy and serious ideas, this dazzling modern classic is a perfect blend of the picaresque tale, historical romance, sea yarn, slave narrative and philosophical allegory. Now with a new introduction from renowned writer and critic Stanley Crouch, this twenty-fifth anniversary edition of Middle Passage celebrates a cornerstone of the American canon and the masterwork of one of its most important writers. "Long after we’d stopped believe in the great American novel, along comes a spellbinding adventure story that may be just that" (Chicago Tribune).

Lightnin couldnt deny he saw hisself as a politico, spent a good deal of his time fantasizin bout what life was like in Bling City; walkin the celebrated streets uptown there made legendary by great past fiery Black leaders, remindin Black peoples of hard won triumphs yes, but also of they stolen pasts; endangered futures, collective devisive vision, and a social consciousness made less urgent durin the Clinton years. He felt a tremendous mutual callin, a soberin comfortable chill. Wit one stunnin blow in the the election of Barack Obama, the once robust, but now pitifully feeble, challengin activist and nationalist element in the body of Black culture, was left on the world stage to sputter and disappear into itself like spit on a hot iron. Yet it seemed all things was politically possible now as he recalled where he was, hearin the impossibly true news that a Black man was now the President of the United States. Hed never forget it. The Presidents Club lounge on the south side of Promise, re-named in the aftermath of the election was an explodin mix of yelps, tears, laughter, hugs and prayers with people holdin on to strangers, friends, and family, and toastin the occasion wit heroic amounts of alcohol. Obama couldna won without the white votes and the accompanyin blocs that came wit them, but just as many white folks wasnt ready for a Black President. The trump was that the democratic process was ready, and in America sometimes processes triumph over peoples. Remarks floated through the air a plenty. Thank God! Thank you! Oh! Thank-you God. He fuck-ing did it!! God dammit he did it!! The get it done soul anthem; Aint No Stopping Us Now a mainstay in the pantheon of Black music was on auto-re-run on jukeboxes everywhere, pourin out of social clubs, homes and taverns too; but most certainly there at the Presidents Club. Look at him! Obamarama time! ..Huh? yelled out a tipsy male customer, his eyes fastened to the huge TV screen. Standin tall with his Black woman. Caint mistake that sistah, for nothin cept Black! And them two pretty kids! The brother tipped his kufi as people applauded his words, jubilance gleamin on every face in the place. Someone clinked a glass for quiet and actually got enough of it to be heard, My group is going across the street to the church to put a prayer in right now. Jesus needs immediate feedback on this. a young woman said as she slapped high fives with a contingent of ten others. And the comments continued. Now we gon git some government by the original kings. Look at Ope! Cryin n shit A young brother called out. She gon be the next Presidenther and HillHillll be the V.P. Hillll be the President if Bill got anything to do wit it. somebody countered. Yeah. Theyll let Ope be National Security Advisor, since Condileesi already broke that in for a sistah... Mufuckas laughed. Maybe they was right Lightnin thought. Maybe the time for his dreams was now. Wasnt a Black President in the United States the imprimatur of proof

Growing up in Chicagos South Side was not easy for author Aetius D. Harris, who went by Columbus George, or Colo, in the story, Poke Dog in his youth. Born in 1968, he chronicles his struggles to fit in among his peers and stay on a righteous path. In his memoir, Harris details tales of his childhood and his experiences with the criminal life. He also recalls the spiritual fight that ensued for his soul. He is focusing on a period in his life from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s. In that time, his god-fearing mother did her best with raising him. That being; he still found himself drawn toward the Black Disciples organizations love, structure & protection, in that order! This autobiography explores his progression from child to young adult. A journey driven by a will to survive, succeed and achieve goals. His obstacles are his skin color and his intellect. He uses his wits to maneuver the South side of Chicagos wickedness!

Six-Guns Blazing contains two explosive short novels featuring historical figures from the Old West in wildly fictional new adventures. The first, Wyatt Earp and the Devil Incarnate, pits the legendary lawman and his right-hand man, Doc Holliday, against a deadly serial killer leaving a trail of dead bodies in his wake. The second novella, Emmett Dalton Rides Again!, imagines notorious bank robber Emmett Dalton picking up his guns as an elderly man in 1933 and robbing banks alongside the likes of John Dillinger and Machine Gun Kelly. This book contains graphic violence and is not suitable for readers under the age of 18.

The Floating Opera and The End Of The Road are John Barth's first two novels. Their relationship to each other is evident not only in their ribald subject matter but in the eccentric characters and bitterly humorous tone of the narratives. Both concern strange, consuming love triangles and the destructive effect of an overactive intellect on the emotions. Separately they give two very different views of a universal human drama. Together they illustrate the beginnings of an illustrious career.