From Essence bestselling author Karen E. Quinones Miller comes this story following the hectic, intersecting lives of three friends and neighbours. 25 years ago the Ida Barrett Wells Tower offered Harlem residents safe, affordable housing. Then a crack scourge hit. But the residents of the tower block remain resilient and fiercely loyal. Uptown Dreams is an unforgettable, unflinchingly honest rendition of the Harlem experience and an inspiring glimpse at the universal struggle to survive and overcome from one of today's most assured writers.

At the prestigious Harlem Academy of Creative and Performing Arts, students are destined to realize their uptown dreams--as long as friends, haters, and crushes don't trip them up. . . La-La Nolan's killer voice could make her a superstar, but she's more focused on scoring the attention of Ziggy Phillip--the cute Jamaican boy in her class. But a singing competition against her arch rival could cost her both Ziggy and her spot at the Academy. . . The daughter of the school's director and voice coach, Reese Allen has to work harder than everyone else to prove herself. But all Reese wants is to be a hip hop producer--a path her mother will never approve of. . . Even though it's clear that Ziggy loves the ladies, he has to keep his passion for dance a secret from his father. But then his brother discovers Ziggy's ballet shoes and threatens to tell all--unless Ziggy gets him into the Academy too. . . No one's a better actress than Jamaica Kincaid Ellison. She's even acted her way out of the boarding school her parents think she's still attending and into the Academy. She'll do anything to achieve her dream--unless her lies destroy everything. . . If that weren't enough drama, rumor has it that the Academy may close at the end of the year. Can these gifted students put their talents to the test to save it? "An amazing tale that is sure to delight, teach, and intrigue teens everywhere!"--Ni-Ni Simone on Boyfriend Season

First boyfriends, first love, first mistakes-and an invitation to the hottest teen society party of the year send three friends into a tailspin. Can they handle the pressure of getting everything they think they want? Santana Jackson is one of the flyest chicks in her Atlanta 'hood. At least until her golddigger mother snags a pro baller, and they move to the other side of the tracks. Worse, Santana's boyfriend has made a move, too-on her rival. Now Santana's obsessed with winning him back in time to shine-until she unexpectedly finds herself falling for a brainy nerd. . . Dynasty Young has learned about life the hard way, thanks to her drug-addicted mother and MIA father. Then she meets City, a boy with as much money-making potential as swagger-and who could be her ticket to a better life. But when he stands her up, Dynasty realizes that sometimes true love is right next door. . . Patience Blackman is going to hell. Just ask her father, the famous Bishop Blackman. Torn between what's good for her and what feels good, Patience just wants to have fun-and a hot date for the party-until she stumbles upon a gorgeous churchboy who has her rethinking her bad girl ways. . . "An amazing tale that is sure to delight, teach, and intrigue teens everywhere!" -Ni-Ni Simone, author of Upgrade U

11 April 1982: a smell is coming down John Golding Road right alongside the boy-child, something attached to him, like a spirit but not quite. Ma Taffy is growing worried. She knows that something is going to happen. Something terrible is going to pour out into the world. But if she can hold it off for just a little bit longer, she will. So she asks a question that surprises herself even as she asks it, "Kaia, I ever tell you bout the flying preacherman?" Set in the backlands of Jamaica, Augustown is a magical and haunting novel of one woman’s struggle to rise above the brutal vicissitudes of history, race, class, collective memory, violence, and myth.

In Limbo, award-winning journalist Alfred Lubrano identifies and describes an overlooked cultural phenomenon: the internal conflict within individuals raised in blue-collar homes, now living white-collar lives. These people often find that the values of the working class are not sufficient guidance to navigate the white-collar world, where unspoken rules reflect primarily upper-class values. Torn between the world they were raised in and the life they aspire too, they hover between worlds, not quite accepted in either. Himself the son of a Brooklyn bricklayer, Lubrano informs his account with personal experience and interviews with other professionals living in limbo. For millions of Americans, these stories will serve as familiar reminders of the struggles of achieving the American Dream.

Love, real estate and adulting in three contemporary romance novellas from critically acclaimed author Ruby Lang. Available together for the first time. A fake relationship becomes a little too real… A heated rivalry blurs into love… A temporary reunion might not be so temporary… Set against the vibrant backdrop of Harlem, these charming, irresistible stories look at the many different ways couples find each other and what it means to fall in love. Included in this 3-in-1 are: Playing House Open House House Rules One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!

Winner of a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Medal and the Boston Horn Book Award A simple, powerful book for children, about an absent father and the love he leaves behind Every morning, I play a game with my father.He goes knock knock on my doorand I pretend to be asleeptill he gets right next to the bed.And my papa, he tells me, "I love you." But what happens when, one day, that "knock knock" doesn't come? This powerful and inspiring book shows the love that an absent parent can leave behind, and the strength that children find in themselves as they grow up and follow their dreams.