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	Uptown By Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant In Uptown, when money, power, and real estate are at stake, family bonds and loyalties are strained to the breaking point. Learn More Browse Inside		Hold Love Strong By Matthew Aaron Goodman A young black man struggles to survive in this spellbinding coming-of-age novel about love, hope, and the incredible capacity of the human spirit. Read Excerpt Watch Video
	Stormy Weather By James Gavin A definitive biography on Lena Horne, legendary beauty and African American icon who broke barriers of race and gender in show business. Learn More Browse Inside		A Century and Some Change By Ann Nixon Cooper President-elect Barack Obama reflected on the life of Ann Nixon Cooper on Tuesday, November 4, 2008, singling her out of millions of voters, he said, ... Learn More Read Excerpt

A Paranormal Suspense -- The Hip Hop Manifesto

Every now and then a writer steps out of, and beyond status quo to write from another realm of influence. The fact that in the publishing world there’s a litany of options that authors can tap into for flexibility to be vialble...and in academia we have a process that feed into writing that has a flair for dramatic interlude. We call it divergent thinking -- coming up with fluency, variety and originality. Debut author, Hozeh delivers his story with good fiction and science of the mind for a compelling read...just don’t call it science fiction! In my opinion, I like the term paranormal simply because the genre is a jaunt across conventional lines to make life off the beaten path another stratospheric venture. Hozeh’s book, The Hip Hop Manifesto allows the writer just that. He threads motives around the heart of a story relative to a new order, and a coming of age saga involving a protagonist seeking self-realization and an empowered mindset to manifest (his) reason for being. The gist of the story originates in the 22nd Century and finds our hero El Adrel wandering and wondering amid a myriad of quandaries in search of the maternal sanctum he lost as a child, a sense of maturity where manhood is essential to his survival, and the power of the spoken word, a.k.a. Verbalism -- the dominant religion of the day and the belief system enhanced by the Prophets.

The forces of nature that fuels this story colors a world where El Adrel is muddled by his quest for salvation and his inability to gain a toe-hold on what it means to excel above and beyond expectations of The Four -- heretofore the Mystics who weld extraordinary mental powers, preserving the tradition recorded in ‘the Manifesto’. To understand how the story unfolds is to know that the aforementioned is merely the center of this story as El has no choice but to unravel the mysteries of the belief system centered on the lyrical content and recorded wisdom of rappers and cerebral scribes that are deemed prophets and patriarchs. It was with this understanding that El knew he had to embark on a journey like no other. He sets out across the great plains of an erstwhile, if not wasted United States to find the syllabus of his lost religion -- The Hip Hop Manifesto!

I enjoyed reading the book, despite a slow tedious start that threatened to tax the resolve to go on. What saves the need for continuity is the author’s gift for threading motives around the heart of a story following its plot that had enough verve to mask a few glitches along the way. Those glitches were the author’s penchant for staying too long with a scene where contrast would’ve served a better adjunct for a change of pace. He more than made up for them with a tenacity for diverse settings as the plot thickened with the introduction of a Temptress and a demigod determined to wreck havoc on good intent, and a quest that is El’s to lose face or gain notoriety. The epilog proves to be most intriguing as our El Adrel is forced to make a decision that will color his canvas with hues that would reflect all that would identify success or failure! The New Order is upon him to opt for a triad before him -- Power, Wealth, or the Almighty Voice that could be most tangible than the former or the latter.

If indeed you are enamored with paranormal fiction as I was reading this, embrace this compelling story that should whet your appetite. How can you not enjoy a story with a maxim that promotes finding and exposing what is hidden...that which also reveals how a soul can be saved while the rhythm is right and “the destination is merely temptation, but the journey is sanctified”, so says The Four. The Hip Hop Manifesto is just the tip of the iceberg for this talented writer with much more to add to this magnificent tale. Hozeh weaves this story with the mantra that to ignore your call is to be compelled to search for your identity to be a force within the nature of man to control his own destiny. Buy this book and be enlightened -- the manifesto can be yours with every page-turning delight!

Is Enough Being Done to Bring Black History Month Back to Life?

Is Black History Month becoming staid, laid back and predictable? Better yet, is it really needed and why then, is it offered with the shortest month of the year? Perhaps these questions should be answered accordingly, but how can Black History Month reverberate loudest and for the best reasons including these leading questions? Now comes an author and academician of the highest order who has a plan. Meet Ella L.J. Edmondson Bell, Ph D, who asks mankind to use a different, if not unique strategy for women to look beyond immediate cultural Diasporas to foster ideas of new associations against racial institutions. She feels that developing relationships with people of other races and cultures is a start for reciprocal value in effective social intercourse. Moreover, she also advocates watching each others’ backs to gain familiarity and trust. Bell, and authority on career development has a new book out -- Career GPS, with a strong subtitle -- Strategies for Women Navigating the New Corporate Landscape that is making quite a bit or noise despite the state of our economy. In it, she espouses more of the aforementioned for better plans of action to implement viable initiatives. As we celebrate yet, another month devoted to Black History, the author submits a challenge to weave into our consciousness to somehow find a good cause for the spirit of diversity to brighten our futures. After reading and reviewing the book, I’m convinced that this approach is not only needed, but could be the answer to women coming of age for accountability and overall aceptance. Hear what the good Doctor has to say about bringing Black History Month to life:

Bringing Black History Month to Life By Ella L. J. Edmondson Bell, Ph.D, Author of Career GPS: Strategies for Women Navigating the New Corporate Landscape

“It's Black History Month, when we celebrate and honor those African Americans whose enlightening stories, heroic experiences, amazing discoveries and tremendous contributions are an intricate part of our national fabric.In the corporate world, there might be speakers who talk about what it means to be an African-American manager or leader. Your reading group might choose a book written by an African-American writer, like Toni Morrison, Edward P. Jones or President Obama, that illuminates the cultural nuances that shape the black experience in America. Or you might catch a television special examining the life of Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Shirley Chisholm or, of course, Martin Luther King Jr. These are the expected kinds of activities that the American public has come to expect every February. Recognizing black heritage is important, but I'd like to suggest a different way of celebrating and appreciating Black History Month. Even as we pay tribute to our ancestors, it's time to take a step forward and incorporate the message and meaning of the month into our day-to-day lives all year long. This is more than just a learning experience, but also a valuable exercise in diversity and inclusion that we can bring into our work lives.

So this Black History Month, take a minute and look at your relationships at work. Think of it this way; ask yourself, "who are your allies?" Webster defines an ally as a person who co-operates with another person; a supporter or comrade. At work, they are the collection of people who help each other. They support you when times are tough and celebrate with you when all's good. Having allies in different parts of the company is essential. If you're preparing a presentation on a new product, your friend in R & D can give you the back story, while your ally in marketing can help make your visuals extra snazzy. Allies in the workplace can be men or women, and it's important to have both. But for women what is critically important -- and often overlooked -- is the importance of female allies. Too often, we don't seek each other out as allies. The situation gets even worse across race and culture lines.

So this month, take a minute to look at your allies. Have you developed relationships with people of other races and cultures? Who are the diverse group of people who are watching your back? And since being an ally is a two-way street, whose back are you watching? Who in your crew is a different color than you? If your posse looks a little monochromatic, there is no better time to reach across the color line and establish truly authentic relationships that move beyond race. If you dare, after you look at your workplace allies, examine your personal life? Who's at your table for dinner? Who do your kids play with? Do all your friends look like you? Are you being a role model for a diverse world?

So go ahead and celebrate history's African-American stars. But at the same time, put a modern spin and real-time meaning on the month by bringing the spirit of diversity out of history and into your every-day life."

Haiti On My Mind

Adam Petrillo, an avid reader of the Miami Herald daily newspaper wrote a timely and poignant op-ed piece that caught my attention. I echo his sentiments relative to how fragile our infrastructure is and how likely when we least expect it can become victims much like the people of Haiti. I'm sharing with you his slant along with my paraphrasing to illustrate a viable point: Lest you forget Katrina, God brings attention to that which are destined for change. The challenges we face as the world fathoms Haiti's lamentations, there's much work to be done. I'm convinced like New Orleans before her, that Haiti will not only rebound but wear her new found success with pride! We're not far removed from this tragedy, which brings me to the gist of this essay -- we're all in this together. We cannot ignore the turmoil, nor turn the other cheek for we are all Haitians. There was a scene in the movie Starman where the alien character, played by Jeff Bridges asks the character played by Karen Allen, "Do you know what I find beautiful about your species?" He pauses for a pregnant moment and tells her, "You are at your best when things are worst." This is how I feel now, and how I also feel that others should be as we endeavor to do our individual and collective parts to help this embattled nation.

As the horrific state of affairs continue to plague Haiti, we must continue to remind ourselves that we are all just one disaster away form being Haitians and do everything possible to help our brothers and sisters in their time of need. The 9-11 fiasco is a further reminder of how chaos can grip us and affect our fragile psyches. We never know when terrorists will strike. The frailty of human life transcends race, creed, color or nationality. I had the honor of working in Haiti, and even at one time was married to a proud and ambitious Haiti woman who bore me a loving son. I'm extricably tied to that country in more ways than one. I live in the 'Little Haiti' section of Miami and being among the people further galvanize my love for their culture. Their spirit is indomitable and their propensity to share with others and show kindness and love to strangers is almost boundless. Needless to say it aches my heart to see the destruction and maladies of a people struggling to eke out a living.

Even if you have never met a Haitian or know little of the country or culture, remind yourself that as God's children, "we are all Haitians." There is a popular expression in Creole -- Dieu donne, which literally means 'God gives'. I will continually ask all able-bodied Americans, especially those that look like me to do God's bidding and give any way you can. The silver lining is that the world has a chance to make Haiti right and turn the tables on America's racist Immigration policy toward a positive gain for people of color looking for a new lease on life. It must be rebuilt correctly -- and it can be done only if we all pull together and do all that we can to help because to sit by idly and not care, is a sure epithet to misfortune that may be yours someday!