Tasha Cobbs Leonard Wins 2024 GRAMMY, Debut Book ‘Do It Anyway: Don’t Give Up Before It Gets Good’ Out This Spring!

Hello World,

Congratulations to Tasha Cobbs Leonard, who has earned the 2024 Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song Grammy Award for her collaboration track with American rapper and artist Lecrae, “Your Power.” This marks the Billboard Gospel Artist of the Decade’s second career win!

“God is great and greatly to be praised,” said Tasha Cobbs Leonard on social media after learning about the Grammy win. “Thank you to everyone who played a part in making this song an amazing tool for the kingdom! I’m so grateful.”

“We couldn’t be more thrilled for Tasha Cobbs Leonard on her second GRAMMY win,” said J Gaines, Executive Director, Motown Gospel. “We are honored to partner with her as she continues to impact the world with her music and message.”

 

Recently, Tasha Cobbs Leonard announced she is releasing her debut book titled Do It Anyway: Don’t Give Up Before It Gets Good, out via WaterBrook May 7. Known by millions not only for her stellar voice, but for her contagious smile and positivity, Cobbs Leonard reveals a new side of herself for the first time, sharing very personal moments of unforeseen challenges like infertility, weight struggles, grief, and debilitating depression to profoundly demonstrate the transformative power of resilient faith and perseverance.

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Two Novels About Black Queens To Read During Black History Month: ‘The Queen of Sugar Hill’ & ‘The American Queen’

Hello World,

As it is Black History Month, I want to highlight two recently released novels about Black queens that illuminate Black history

The Queen of Sugar Hill: A Novel of Hattie McDaniel by ReShonda Tate

 

Bestselling author ReShonda Tate presents a fascinating fictional portrait of Hattie McDaniel, one of Hollywood’s most prolific but woefully underappreciated stars—and the first Black person ever to win an Oscar for her role as Mammy in the critically acclaimed classic film Gone With the Wind.

It was supposed to be the highlight of her career, the pinnacle for which she’d worked all her life. And as Hattie McDaniel took the stage in 1940 to claim an honor that would make her the first African-American woman to win an Academy Award, she tearfully took her place in history. Between personal triumphs and tragedies, heartbreaking losses, and severe setbacks, this historic night of winning best supporting actress for her role as the sassy Mammy in the controversial movie Gone With the Wind was going to be life-changing. Or so she thought.

Months after winning the award, not only did the Oscar curse set in where Hattie couldn’t find work, but she found herself thrust in the middle of two worlds—Black and White—and not being welcomed in either. Whites only saw her as Mammy and Blacks detested the demeaning portrayal. As the NAACP waged an all-out war against Hattie and actors like her, the emotionally conflicted actor found herself struggling daily.

Through it all, Hattie continued her fight to pave a path for other Negro actors, while focusing on war efforts, fighting housing discrimination, and navigating four failed marriages. Luckily, she had a core group of friends to help her out—from Clark Gable to Louise Beavers to Ruby Berkley Goodwin and Dorothy Dandridge.

The Queen of Sugar Hill brings to life the powerful story of one woman who was driven by many passions—ambition, love, sex, family, friendship, and equality. In re-creating Hattie’s story, ReShonda Tate delivers an unforgettable novel of resilience, dedication, and determination—about what it takes to achieve your dreams—even when everything—and everyone—is against you.

Below is information about the upcoming stops on ReShonda’s book tour!

Thursday, February 8, 2024
Booksigning and Discussion
In Conversation with Tiffany L. Warren
Politics & Prose Bookstore – Union Market
1270 5th St NE
Washington, DC
7pm
Saturday, February 17, 2024
Booksigning and Discussion
With Victoria Christopher Murray

Rose State University
Oklahoma City, OK
4-6pm
Saturday, February 24, 2024
Booksigning and Discussion

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library
Charlotte, NC
5pm
Sunday, February 25, 2024
Booksigning and Discussion

Book Boutique
100 Columbiana Circle
Columbia, SC
2pm
Monday, February 26, 2024
Booksigning and Discussion

Keith Summey North Charleston Library
3053 Rivers Avenue
Charleston, SC
5:30pm

The American Queen by Vanessa Miller 

 

There is only one known queen who truly ruled a kingdom on American soil.

Transformative and breathtakingly honest, The American Queen is based on actual events that occurred between 1865 – 1889 and shares the unsung history of a Black woman who built a kingdom as a refuge for the courageous people who dared to dream of a different way of life. As seen on Good Morning America: GMA 15 New Books to Read!

Over the twenty-four years she was enslaved on the Montgomery Plantation, Louella learned to feel one thing: hate. Hate for the man who sold her mother. Hate for the overseer who left her daddy to hang from a noose. Hate so powerful there’s no room in her heart for love, not even for the honorable Reverend William, whom she likes and respects enough to marry.

But when William finally listens to Louella’s pleas and leads the formerly enslaved people off the plantation, Louella begins to replace her hate with hope. Hope that they will find a place where they can live free from fear. Hope that despite her many unanswered prayers, she can learn to trust for new miracles.

Soon, William and Louella become the appointed king and queen of their self-proclaimed Kingdom of the Happy Land. And though they are still surrounded by opposition, they continue to share a message of joy and goodness–and fight for the freedom and dignity of all.

The American Queen weaves together themes of love, hate, hope, trust, and resilience in the face of great turmoil. With every turn of the page, you will be transported to a pivotal period in American history, where oppressed people become extraordinary heroes.

Below is information about Vanessa’s book tour!

 

Any thoughts?

 

Join ‘New York Times’ Bestselling Author of ‘Why Fathers Cry At Night’ Kwame Alexander In Conversation With Victoria Christopher Murray TONIGHT at Inman Park Church – NEW BOOK ALERT

Hello World,

Just in time for Father’s Day, New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander has penned a new memoir Why Fathers Cry At Night: A Memoir in Love Poems, Recipes, Letters, and Remembrances. Below is a description of the book and information about Kwame Alexander.

This powerful memoir from a #1 New York Times bestselling author and Newbery Medalist features poetry, letters, recipes, and other personal artifacts that provide an intimate look into his life and the loved ones he shares it with.

In an intimate and non-traditional (or “new-fashioned”) memoir, Kwame Alexander shares snapshots of a man learning how to love. He takes us through stories of his parents: from being awkward newlyweds in the sticky Chicago summer of 1967, to the sometimes-confusing ways they showed their love to each other, and for him. He explores his own relationships—his difficulties as a newly wedded, 22-year-old father, and the precariousness of his early marriage working in a jazz club with his second wife. Alexander attempts to deal with the unravelling of his marriage and the grief of his mother’s recent passing while sharing the solace he found in learning how to perfect her famous fried chicken dish. With an open heart, Alexander weaves together memories of his past to try and understand his greatest love: his daughters.

Full of heartfelt reminisces, family recipes, love poems, and personal letters, Why Fathers Cry at Night inspires bravery and vulnerability in every reader who has experienced the reckless passion, heartbreak, failure, and joy that define the whirlwind woes and wonders of love.

Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, publisher, and #1 New York Times Bestselling author of 38 books, including THE DOOR OF NO RETURN, LIGHT FOR THE WORLD TO SEE: A THOUSAND WORDS ON RACE AND HOPE, AN AMERICAN STORY, BECOMING MUHAMMAD ALI, co-authored with James Patterson, REBOUND, which was shortlisted for prestigious UK Carnegie Medal, The Caldecott Medal and Newbery Honor-winning picture book, THE UNDEFEATED, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, and his NEWBERY medal-winning middle grade novel, THE CROSSOVER. A regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, Kwame is the recipient of numerous awards, including The Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award, The Coretta Scott King Author Honor, Three NAACP Image Award Nominations, and the 2017 Inaugural Pat Conroy Legacy Award. In 2018, he founded the publishing imprint, Versify, and opened the Barbara E. Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic in Ghana, as a part of LEAP for Ghana, an international literacy program he co-founded. He is the writer and executive producer of The Crossover TV series on Disney Plus. You can listen to his new podcast, Why Fathers Cry, and find him online at KwameAlexander.com.

If the book description piques your interest and you live in the metro Atlanta area, you can meet him along with fellow New York Times bestselling author Victoria Christopher Murray, who is an author of more than 30 novels, including Stand Your Ground,Library Journal Best Book of the Year and NAACP Image Award Winner. Her novel, The Personal Librarian, which she cowrote with Marie Benedict was a Good Morning America Book Club pick. See the flyer above!

Any thoughts?