Crook Manifesto (Ray Carney, #2) by Colson Whitehead

Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This 2nd in the Ray Carney series is a historical panorama of the 70s in Harlem with Ray who has been on the straight and narrow but soon circumstances turn Ray back to his crooked ways. I loved this look through Carney's eyes (with narrator Deon Graham doing such an awesome job) as lawlessness, murder, mayhem, and seediness happen in Harlem.

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The Vanderbeekers Lost and Found (The Vanderbeekers, #4) by Karina Yan Glaser

The Vanderbeekers Lost and Found by Karina Yan Glaser
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I LOVED this 4th book in The Vanderbeekers series---what a great family in a wonderful community, with laughs and drama--I could not stop turning the pages! There is the continued pet zoo that is just so cute, drama with the Homecoming dance and Benjamin; and Orlando with his aunt and uncle, getting ready for the New York Marathon and meetings at the Cat house- all just so important, funny and getting the reader into the loving arms of this big, diverse family in a Harlem neighborhood. A must read!

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The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street (The Vanderbeekers, #1) by Karina Yan Glaser

The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karina Yan Glaser
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book so much! The kids are adorable; their parents are very likable because they are involved. The many neighbors and friends of the Vanderbeekers are thoroughly enjoyable and even enemies become friends. I am definitely going to be reading this series of an interracial family living in Harlem with all their pets; and I am getting copies of the book for my granddaughter she will LOVE it!

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Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whtehead

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Awesomely narrated by Dion Graham; I loved Graham's many voices, his sighs, his pitch was totally perfect as he tells Ray Carney's life in Harlem in the 1960's. Ray grew up with a bad news father but he studied hard and graduated college, won the girl (much to her parent's dismay) and now owns a furniture shop. And while Ray would like to stay growing the furniture shop, things, like his cousin Freddy and white cops murdering a black boy causing riots that have Ray doing some side work that is questionable (but it will make money). I loved the colorful characters, Ray's somber humor, the mishaps and missteps thrown in Ray's way. But most of all, I loved the way Ray thought, he was able to wriggle out of the "bad stuff" with well thought out connections and scenarios. I loved the time period, the culture, and the tight community as well as the vibrant Harlem life. A must read!

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All the Right Stuff by Walter Dean Myers

All the Right Stuff by Walter Dean Myers
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Paul DuPree is a teen who has lost his hardly present dad to a shooting that is commonplace in Harlem. Working in a soup kitchen just to get by, he is forced to listen to the soup man, Elijah talk about “the social contract” and how to feel good in a world that isn’t fair for everyone. A gripping, extraordinary Myers book will save lives with Paul’s learned lessons.

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