A coming-of-age memoir about a young boy in rural Arkansas who searches for himself and his distant father through soul music Growing up in rural Arkansas, young Rashod Ollison turned to music to make sense of his life. The dysfunction, sadness, and steely resilience of his family and neighbors was reflected in the R&B songs that played on 45s in smoky rooms. Steeped in the sounds, the smells, the salty language of rural Arkansas in the 1980s, Soul Serenade is the memoir of a pop music critic whose love for soul music was fostered by his father, Raymond. Drafted into the Vietnam War as a teenager, Raymond returned a changed man, “dead on the inside.” After his parents’ volatile marriage ended in divorce, Rashod was haunted by the memory of his itinerant father and his mama’s long forgotten “sunshine smile.” For six-year-old Rashod, his father’s record collection—the music of Aretha Franklin, Bobby Womack, Al Green, and others—provided solace, coherence, and escape. Moving nine times during his childhood, Rashod constantly adjusted to new schools and homes with his two sisters, Dusa and Reagan, and his mother, Dianne. Resilient and tough, while also being distant and punitive, she worked multiple jobs, striving “to make ends wave at each other if they couldn’t meet.” He spent time with his acerbic mother’s mother, Mama Teacake, and her family’s living-out-loud ways, which clashed with his father’s family—religious, discreet, and appropriate—where Rashod gravitated to Big Mama and Paw Paw, his father’s parents. Becoming aware of his same-sex attraction, Rashod felt further isolated and alone but was encouraged by mentors in the community who fostered his intelligence and talent. He became transformed through discovering the writing of Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Nikki Giovanni, and other literary greats, and these books, along with the soulful sounds of the 1970s and 80s, enabled him to thrive in spite of the instability and harshness of his childhood. In textured and evocative language, and peppered with unexpected humor, Soul Serenade is an original and captivating coming-of-age story set to an original beat.

His fathers death prompted him to preserve his family memories for his descendents, but the writing quickly grew into a life essay on farm life, Southern cooking, dogs, small-town life in the 1950s, and the demise of our current culture. The book is written in the authors voice and evokes feelings of Sams, Grizzard, and Rooney. He believes our culture is being slowly destroyed from within by small dogs, cats, bad barbecue, kudzu, fat-free ice cream, cell phones, e-mail, the Internet, childproof lids, hard plastic security packaging, iPods, video players in automobiles, kids not being raised right, rudeness, fast food, moms who dont cook, high school graduates who cant read, long-winded preachers, the disappearance of real Southern cooking, and the popularity of instant grits, Diet Pepsi, and unsweetened tea. His familys history is a goldmine of great food, quirky characters, outlandish actions, and bodacious behavior; he has mined it shamelessly and offers no apologies.

The friends, three professional women and a no nonsense older woman, sat near each other in church. At the Reverend's direction the congregation stood and bowed their heads for prayer. Joy Stanton, an executive assistant, divorcee, and single mom, asked God's forgiveness for the mistakes and misjudgments that changed her role from custodial parent to weekend mom. Leanne Hilliard, a married college professor, prayed for a little girl of her own. She also asked God to mend her broken marriage and to forgive her for the lover she was going to meet as soon as the service was over. Vanessa Becker, a cute, sexy Ad exec, was uncomfortable in the long-sleeved dress she was wearing on this warm Sunday, but it covered the black and blue bruises on her arms. She asked God to make her live-in boyfriend see how much she loved him so the abuse would stop. Doretha Muncie was an older woman who sat two pews up. She said her Amen, and resumed her seat. Her prayer was always the same-she asked God's forgiveness for breaking one of His commandments. The sixth one.

Love. Sickness. Death. Happiness. Accidents. Marriage. Beatings. Laughter. Changes! Susannah Brown exhibited a loving patience and her family sought her out for advice and encouragement which she always provided. Unfortunately the arthritis she had began to take its toll. Jon, Ruths husband, came home from the war with shell shock and experienced many episodes with it to his dismay. Jeff often had nightmares of the war which in some ways were worse than what actually happened. Jeff meets Melody Martin at church, began to date her, eventually married her, despite her handicap, and they had children. Zeb Stuart, Jeffs partner in building furniture, had a horrible experience with bootleg whiskey, despite Prohibition, which led him into serious trouble and a beating. Reggie Barnhouse from Britain came home with Jeff after the war and began to work on the farm. He was a good worker and enjoyed cutting up with Clyde Armour. The time they all lived through was The Roaring Twenties, called that because it was a wild ride. Many changes occurred, such as Prohibition, Henry Fords cars, radio, airplanes, a new kind of music and dancing, womens right to vote, national sports, the KKK, immigration, political corruption, oilfields, Scopes Monkey Trial and the stock market crash of 1929.

Tragedy and triumph leaps from every page of this sensational memoir by Chauncey "Chino Dolla" Stevens. This book chronicles the personal and professional adventure of a boy, blindly chasing his dreams to become a man. After the death of his grandmother Chino Dolla finds himself lost in the city streets of Atlanta, GA surrounded by drugs, money, and murder. Trying to run from his past demons Chino Dolla enters the world of entertainment by starting a record label called MasterMind Music. Through his record label he finds a piece of himself and introduces the world to a charismatic rapper by the name of Yung Joc. After executive producing Yung Joc's 2006 Platinum debut album "New Joc City", Chino Dolla not only finds himself face to face with some of the world’s most famous stars and underworld figures like P. Diddy, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, T.I., Beyonce, Big Meech, Young Jeezy, Janet Jackson, and more. It also brings him face to face with betrayal, deceit and the most horrific tragedy of his life. This well-written, educating, and entertaining memoir delivers a powerful message pertaining to following your dreams and making the right choices in life. A Hustlers Dream 1 is a MUST READ!

From the author of Juggle the Dice and Panorama. An overwhelming narrative about sibling rivalry and its negative effects on an otherwise exciting childhood. Set in a typical African home with a rich cultural heritage, yet infested with third world challenges of poverty, war and deprivation, Adaku battles with overcoming self imposed misery and transcending perceived barriers, limiting her from deploying and appreciating the hidden treasures of her heart.