Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writing, Paperback

A literary rent party to benefit the Hurston/Wright Foundation of African-American fiction, with selections to savor from bestselling authors as well as talented rising stars.

Not since Terry McMillan's Breaking Ice have so many African-American writers been brought together in one volume. A stellar collection of works from more than fifty hot names in fiction, Gumbo represents remarkable synergy. Edited by bestselling luminaries Marita Golden and E. Lynn Harris, this collection spans new and previously published tales of love and luck, inspiration and violation, hip new worlds and hallowed heritage from voices such as:

- Edwidge Danticat
- Eric Jerome Dickey
- Kenji Jasper
- John Edgar Wideman
- Terry McMillan
- David Anthony Durham
- Bertice Berry
...and many, many more

Also featuring original stories by Golden and Harris themselves, Gumbo heralds the debut of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Awards for Published Black Writers (scheduled for October 2002), and all advances and royalties from the book will support the Hurston/Wright Foundation. Combining authors with a variety of flavorful writing, Gumbo will have readers clamoring for second helpings.

About author(s):A distinguished essayist and novelist, Marita Golden is the author of nine books, including the bestseller LONG DISTANCE LIFE. Also the president and founding director of the Hurston/Wright Foundation, she lives in Washington, D.C.

E. Lynn Harris is a former IBM computer sales executive and a graduate of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. He is the author of seven previous novels, including, the NYT bestselling ANY WAY THE WIND BLOWS, and NOT A DAY GOES BY(which debuted in the #2 position on the NYT list). In 1996, JUST AS I AM was awarded the "Novel of the Year" prize by the Blackboard African American Bestsellers, Inc. ABIDE WITH ME and IF THIS WORLD WERE MINE were both nominated for NAACP Image Awards and IF THIS WORLD WERE MINE won the James Baldwin Award for Literary Excellence. He divides his time between New York and Chicago.