We are obsessed with the “new”– mostly due to intense promotional efforts on behalf of deodorants, clothing styles, restaurants, and books. Books from earlier years of a publisher or author are called the backlist. Look there for bestsellers…

Covid finally caught up with me – in Sheboygan, WI on a ladies’ trip. Five of us tested positive after returning home. No, we didn’t mask; a mistake in hindsight. But for three weeks, I did nothing but read and binge television…

Whether we pick up a book or go to see a play, we don’t always know what the plot is all about. And sometimes that makes it even more interesting. But is that always the case? Here I offer my thoughts on three works:

Black people have always been writing and singing, but few companies were producing Black Art. To garner the substantial funds to produce for storefront theater, much less Chicago Lyric Opera or Broadway, requires a guarantee of success…