From a Black Perspective: The Blood
FOREWORD
Words dance. On the page, and off.
They tap and tumble.
They slide and glide.
They twist and twirl.
They bob and break.
They pop and lock.
They bend and bounce.
They shimmy and shake.
They jerk and twerk.
They rock and roll.
They even boogie and oogie.
That’s the kind of visual joy I experienced reading From A Black Perspective: The Blood. Eddie S. Pierce has assembled an eclectic, inventive posse of wordsmiths for a collection that may be slender in volume but bountiful in pleasure.
In just a few pages, Pierce’s juicy “Scot Free” turns the cougar trope—older woman falls for and is duped by a younger man—inside out.
Senyah Haynes’ “Transitions” is a kaleidoscopic-like portrait, some characters and narratives crisscrossing, where sibling rivalry and racist generational police violence receive vivid shine.
“Unfeigned Adoration” by Katrina Harvey is a telling reminder that the greatest love of all is indeed learning to love yourself—and that one never actually reaches that destination, for there are always new things and new ways to love.
"Synthesis" by Donell Bonaparte is an intensely moving meditation on masculinity, loss, and longing. The emotional interiority that Bonaparte constructs between father and son is palpable and penetrating. No doubt, the novel this excerpt is from, Walking to Jupiter, will be a critical and commercial giant.
For crime drama and fantasy fans, there’s "Graffiti Park," Ken Compton’s wild and whimsically spooky journey involving a detective nicknamed “Sherlumbo” who relies on the mystical powers and guidance of a 300-year-old bag lady to solve crimes.
Finally, for the romantics (and unromantics), Crystal Renée documents the intimate entanglements of three female childhood friends—one (somewhat happily) single, one (not-so-happily) engaged, one (unhappily) married—with humor and heart in "In the Company of Women."
My only complaint: this ride ended way too soon. So I anxiously anticipate “Volume Two: The People.” In the meantime, I'm going to dive right back in and revisit these assured voices that illuminate the tragedy and beauty of humanity with passion and confidence. But this time, I'll pour a glass of white wine and select a soundtrack to accompany each dance…
- James Earl Hardy, New York Times and Amazon Best Selling Author of the B-Boy Blues Series
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Publisher’s Note:
From a Black Perspective is the beginning manifestation of several collective dreams. Volume One, “The Blood,” features five up-and-coming authors. As a whole, the project is a gathering of entertaining, inspirational, and educated voices modeled after the collective creative literary power of the long-celebrated Harlem Renaissance.
From a Black Perspective is a celebration of the diversity within the black literary community. It serves as an antithesis to the notion that the black community is monolithic in our interests, values, political views, and the genres in which we write but rather a people as varied as the hues of our skin. This three-part anthology affords Rainbow Room Publishing, LLC to fulfill one of its primary objectives: providing a vehicle and platform to facilitate the publication of as many diverse and otherwise underrepresented voices as possible.
Your support of this project further enables the publication of each contributing author's individual creative and publishing efforts while supporting numerous black voices. We invite you to embark with us on this three-part literary journey and encourage you to reserve space on your bookshelves for Volume Two, “The People,” highlighting more talented writers as well as more individual works from each of these published authors in 2021 and Volume Three, “The Homeland” in 2022.
Eddie S. Pierce
Founder & Publisher
Rainbow Room Publishing, LLC