After decades out of print, Passion—one of June Jordan’s most important collections—has returned to readers. Originally entitled, passion: new poems, 1977-1980, this volume holds key works including “Poem About My Rights,” “Poem About Police Violence,” “Free Flight,” and an essay by the poet, “For the Sake of the People’s Poetry: Walt Whitman and the Rest of Us.” June Jordan was a fierce advocate for the safety and humanity of women and Black people, and for the freedom of all people—and Barack Obama made a line from this book famous: “We are the ones we have been waiting for.” With love and humor, via lyrics and rants, she calls for nothing less than radical compassion. This new edition includes a foreword by Nicole Sealey.
In this high-octane psychological thriller, a young woman grows up battling rape, eating and sexual disorders, husbands, miscarriage, corporate and police corruption, and the Mafia. Ultimately she finds herself and the true meaning of passion.
Smart, beautiful, and very rich, Kezia Saint Martin leads two lives: one as a glamorous socialite jetting between the poshest places in Europe and America; the other, under a false name, as a dedicated journalist committed to justice and her profession. But the two worlds are pulling her apart, leaving her conflicted about her identity and the lies she tells to every man she meets. Then she meets Lucas Johns, a bold, dynamic crusader for social change -- and an ex-con. Their attraction is immediate, but their love may be just one step from tragedy at any time.
DEFENDING THE INNOCENT Someone was trying to kill Andrea Kirkland. And with good reason. For she was the only witness to a murder. A murder her mind refused to recall. A murder assistant D.A. John Cohen needed her to remember so that she could testify and put an end to the threats, the danger. Until then, John felt duty bound to protect her. Just until the murderer was found, he told himself. After all, she was his key witness. But once the passion exploded between them, the rugged D.A. came to realize that his key witness had come to mean so much more….
Randango Hardcastle, known as Randy, is very flexible with the young ladies on campus, but Josie Garden is his latest attempt. He discovers the cute girl from the state of Georgia has not only raised the passion in his heart but also his expectations that he could score big. Randy, being a passionate warrior, tries every avenue of romance. He believes in trying to transform and seduce Josie, but nothing seems to work. Josie, being a young lady with an respectable mind, believes that a young lady should receive a ring before giving any sexual attention. She knows that major support should come from the man who plans to wed her, but she desires to reach her educational goal first. Both believe they want the same thing - marriage, only to find out later on, their desires were opposed instead of united.
A crime would bring them together, grief would bind them and love would make them famous. Parish “Pain” Wells is a man freshly reintroduced to society, after serving time in state prison. Prior to his fall, Pain had been a heist man who showed the promise of someone who could go on to be a legend. His trajectory changed on the night he had made the mistake of accepting a ride from a friend, and found himself behind bars for the one crime he hadn’t committed. Several years later, Pain returns home to a world that wouldn’t piss on him if he was on fire. The only one who still remains in his corner is his ailing grandmother. It’s for her sake that Pain tries to stay on the straight and narrow. He’s tired of breaking her heart and vows to be a good grandson, but when her medical bills start mounting he finds himself backed into a corner. He needs money, fast, and there’s only one way he knows how to get it. Since her parents died and Passion Adams found herself a ward of her estranged uncle, a gangster who everyone calls Uncle Joe, her life has been on a constant downward spiral. She moves like a ghost from one day to the next, numbing her pain with drugs and alcohol, while seeking thrills in unsavory places. One morning Passion finds herself the victim of a robbery and the thieves snatch from her the only thing of value that she has left in the world, a locket containing the ashes of her deceased parents. Passion is devastated, fearing she would never see the locket again until it shows up later in the hands of a handsome stranger, who brings something into Passion’s life that has eluded her since the death of her parents... hope. The two broken souls find themselves inescapably drawn into each other’s orbits, and begin their journey of finding lives outside the ones of poverty and sorrow that their worlds had condemned them to. But when shadows from both their pasts threaten their happiness, Passion and Pain set out on an adventure that would make them hunted by law enforcement and celebrated by the underworld. What initially starts out as a mission of vindication quickly turns into a fight for survival. "K'wan delivered another classic." -Mark Anthony, Essence bestselling author of Paper Chasers "Make way for the Donald Goines/Iceberg Slim of our era." -Tracy Brown, author of Black, Dime Piece and Criminal Minded “Wait until you read this! K'wan is raising the stakes." - Kashamba Williams, author of Blinded and Grimey At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
He's as dangerous—and irresistible—as ever… Detective Sophia Hail risks her life every day. But for over a decade the decorated Philly cop has kept her heart under wraps. Now Santigo Rodriguez is threatening everything she has worked so hard to protect. With the city reeling from a scandal that touches her own family, Sophia is vulnerable…and tempted to give in to the passion her ex-lover is offering. When Santigo falls in love, it's for keeps, and the promise of a second chance with Sophia is more than he can resist. Once before she walked out, choosing her dangerous career over a future with him. Now Santigo has to find a way to keep Sophia safe in his arms…before a widening trail of sex and corruption blows the town—and their rekindled love affair—wide open.
Praise for Passion, Pride, and Politickin': "With the Gold Pen awarded to her by the Black Writer's Alliance for this outstanding poetry collection, Ms. Sharif packs the original vision of the hip-hop generation, the urgent calling of previous and current revolutions, our youth's unfortunate despondency, and a concerned openness for evolution " ~Chezon Jackson, Rolling Out Urbanstyle Magazine"With poetic styles which vary from haiku to street-wise dramatic monologue, using the conventions of "standard" English as well as the defiance of "Ebonics"-and what comes through, no matter what the voice, no matter what the subject; is Ms. Sharif's clear moral stance: Her verse and prose sing always of the deep, innocent, compelling, human need to do the right thing and have it be done unto her." ~Joyce A. Barnes, playwright, author of "Amistad" and "Promise Me the Moon""Take time to travel with this intelligent and gracious sister. Passion, Pride and Politickin': Homegrown Poetry and Essays is a must read for poetry lovers and truth seekers alike." ~Cheryl Faye, author of "Be Careful What You Wish For""The book is packed with powerful expressions of life from a personal, as well as from a world perspective if you want a mindful of energy and inspiring thoughtful prose, Passion, Pride, and Politickin' is for you." ~Zamounde Allie, author of "As The World Burns""Ms. Sharif has established herself as heir apparent to the royal line of African-American female writers love, trust, racism, and urban culture are some of the topics she addresses, with beguiling prose and in-your-face realism ." ~Memphis Vaughan Jr., author, editor of Timbooktu.com 2001 National Gold Pen Award Winner for Best Poetry Collection
