Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania, to the Inhabitants of the British Colonies
American Indian Stories

The Blacker the Berry: A Novel of Negro Life

The Blacker the Berry (1929), Wallace Thurman’s debut novel, broke new ground as an exploration of issues of “colorism,” intra-racial prejudice, and internalized racism in African American life. Its protagonist, the young Emma Lou Morgan, is simply “too dark” for a world in which every kind of advancement seems to require a light complexion. Seeking acceptance and opportunity, she moves––much like the dark-skinned young Thurman had, four years before the novel’s publication––from Idaho to California to New York. Harlem, the “city of surprises,” is in many ways the novel’s true subject, its low-down, licentious streets, glittering cabarets, and variegated cast of characters offering a rich backdrop for Emma Lou’s ambivalent, picaresque progress.

More Adult, Non-Juvenile Books

  • The 13th installment in the New York Times best-selling series asks: What if Tiana made a deal that changed everything?
  • In a compelling, richly researched novel that draws from thousands of letters and original sources, bestselling authors Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie tell the fascinating, untold story of Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter, Martha “Patsy” Jefferson Randolph—a woman who kept the secrets of our most enigmatic founding father and shaped an American legacy.
  • Combining Zitkála-Šá’s childhood memories, her short stories, and her poetry, American Indian Stories is the origin story of an activist in the making, a remarkable woman whose extraordinary career deserves wider recognition.
  • In Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids, edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith, readers are invited to experience a vibrant collection of stories and poems set at a powwow. This heartwarming anthology celebrates hope, resilience, and the strength of Native communities, showcasing the heroes of their own narratives as they gather to dance, share, and honor their heritage.