A masterful story collection--thirteen years in the making--from
National Book Award winner Charles Johnson, showcasing the incredible
range and resonant voice of this American treasure.
This new collection of stories from National Book Award winner Charles
Johnson offers an eclectic, engaging range of narratives, tied together
by Buddhist themes and displaying all the grace, heart, and insight for
which he has long been known.
In "The Weave," Ieesha and her boyfriend carry out a heist at the salon
from which she has just been fired--coming away with thousands of
dollars of merchandise in the form of hair extensions. "Night Hawks,"
the titular story, draws on Johnson's friendship with the late
playwright August Wilson to construct a narrative about two writers who
meet at night to talk. In "Kamadhatu," a lonely Japanese abbot has his
quiet world upended by a visit from a black American Buddhist whose
presence pushes him toward the awakening he has long found elusive.
"Occupying Arthur Whitfield," about a cab driver who decides to rob the
home of a wealthy passenger, reminds readers to be grateful for what
they have. And "The Night Belongs to Phoenix Jones" combines the
real-life story of a "superhero" in the city of Seattle with an invented
narrative about an aging English professor who decides to join him.
Spanning genres from science fiction to realism, these stories convey
messages of tolerance, hope, and gratitude. With precise, elegant, and
moving language, Johnson creates memorable characters and real, human
struggles that have the power to enlighten and change us as we read.
