Reverse-Gentrification of the Literary World

Akashic Books

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News & Features

“From the Crossroads of Crack and Rap” by Jason Reynolds

To celebrate the release of our two new Black Sheep titles — Changers Book Two: Oryon by T Cooper and Allison Glock-Cooper and The Shark Curtain by Chris Scofield — we’re thrilled to present a guest post from Jason Reynolds, award-winning author of When I Was the Greatest and The Boy in the Black Suit, on the need for diversity in young people’s literature.

“Last Smoke” by Andrew Cotto

Chris rattled his cigarette pack and placed it on the bar next to his Droid. He considered the cost of another cold beer and the cost of a fresh pack of smokes. He remembered pulling loosies out of a candy jar for a quarter each. Now it was hard to find loosies anywhere, and a pack of smokes in Brooklyn cost thirteen bucks. Even happy hour drinks at this old-school joint were expensive . . .

“We lived on the edge of reality. Some nights we were happy.” by Anna Douglass

I lie on his couch. It’s my spot now. I’ve spent whole days lying here. The cushions remember the arch of my back and the angles of my arms and legs, so it’s easy to find my place again when I move. He sits at his desk—next to the couch, in front of a laptop—and waits for his phone to ring. He is a businessman. His business is crack. He is always on call . . .