The New Basic Black: Home Training for Modern Times

Bates, Karen Grigsby. (Doubleday, c2006)
Shelf Number: 395.08996/B329nI

Originally published a decade ago, The New Basic Black combines a basic etiquette primer with uniquely African American occasions and experiences. Bates advises the reader how to be polite yet assertive when faced with rudeness. This updated edition had added protocol for cell phones, life after 9/11, coping with racial profiling, and explaining terrorism to children. Americans of any race interested in human social behavior will want to check it out.

The Pursuit of Happyness

Gardner, Chris (The Amistad /HarperCollins, c2006)
Shelf Number: 332.62/G2264p/BIOGRAPHY

Will Smith's movie that made such a big splash at Christmas was inspired by Gardner 's true story. Abandoned by his father as a child, Gardner was laid off from a Wall Street job and ended up homeless. But he never abandoned his own son. Now he heads up a multi-million-dollar brokerage firm.

Not a Genuine Black Man, or, How I Claimed My Piece of Ground in the Lily-white Suburbs

Copeland, Brian. (Hyperion, c2006)
Shelf Number: 792.7092/C7824n/BIOGRAPHY

This comic actor/talk show host uses laughter to stave off the depression caused by feeling out of place. Accused of not being black enough, but suffering discrimination from whites, too, he feels like he's straddling an uncomfortable fence. Insight with humor.

One O'clock Jump: The Unforgettable History of the Oklahoma City Blue Devils

Daniels, Douglas Henry. (Beacon Press, c2006)
Shelf Number: 781.65/B6581d/BIOGRAPHY

The Blue Devils were not just an Oklahoma City band, but were hugely influential to the national jazz scene during their touring years (1923-33) and beyond. Daniels interviewed surviving members for a first-hand story of what it was like for a black artist playing in the strictly segregated South and West during the 1920s. Band members included Count Basie, Oran Page, Buster Smith, and Lester Young. The band's demise involved a ride home in a coal car after being cheated out of their salary. A great tribute to the vibrant Oklahoma City music scene of the 1920s and to a band that belongs in the Jazz Hall of Fame.

Oxford Anthology of African-American Poetry

Rampersad, Arnold Editor (Oxford Univ. Press,c2006)
Shelf Number: 811.008/OX982oa

This definitive literary portrait of contrasting visions and styles covers major issues important to African Americans, including poetry on slavery, protest and resistance, spirituality, love and the idea of Africa.

The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook: The Global Migration of African Cuisine

Spivey, Diane (State Univ. of New York Press, c1999)
Shelf Number: 641.59296/SP7616p

This book provides an understanding of how Africa 's flavorful contributions continue to characterize a variety of foods and cultures today.