Recommended by O Magazine * GMA * Elle * Marie Claire * Good Housekeeping * NBC News * Shondaland * Chicago Tribune * Woman's Day * Refinery 29 * Bustle * The Millions * New York Post * Parade * Hello! Magazine * PopSugar * and more!“The Kindest Lie is a deep dive into how we define family, what it means to be a mother, and what it means to grow up Black...beautifully crafted.” —JODI PICOULT"A fantastic story...well-written, timely, and oh-so-memorable."—Good Morning America“The Kindest Lie is a layered, complex exploration of race and class." —The Washington PostEvery family has its secrets...It’s 2008, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago, Ruth Tuttle, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to—and was forced to leave behind—when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back, but Ruth knows that to move forward, she must make peace with the past.Returning home, Ruth discovers the Indiana factory town of her youth is plagued by unemployment, racism, and despair. As she begins digging into the past, she unexpectedly befriends Midnight, a young white boy who is also adrift and looking for connection. Just as Ruth is about to uncover a burning secret her family desperately wants to keep hidden, a heart-stopping incident strains the town’s already searing racial tensions, sending Ruth and Midnight on a collision course that could upend both their lives.Powerful and unforgettable, The Kindest Lie is the story of an American family and reveals the secrets we keep and the promises we make to protect one another.

Named a Most Anticipated book by O Magazine * GMA * Elle * Marie Claire * Good Housekeeping * NBC News * Shondaland * Chicago Tribune * Woman''s Day * Refinery 29 * Bustle * The Millions * New York Post * Parade * Hello! Magazine * PopSugar * and more!

“The Kindest Lie is a deep dive into how we define family, what it means to be a mother, and what it means to grow up Black...beautifully crafted.” —JODI PICOULT

"A fantastic story...well-written, timely, and oh-so-memorable."—Good Morning America

“The Kindest Lie is a layered, complex exploration of race and class." —The Washington Post

A promise could betray you.

It’s 2008, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago, Ruth Tuttle, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to—and was forced to leave behind—when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back, but Ruth knows that to move forward, she must make peace with the past.

Returning home, Ruth discovers the Indiana factory town of her youth is plagued by unemployment, racism, and despair. As she begins digging into the past, she unexpectedly befriends Midnight, a young white boy who is also adrift and looking for connection. Just as Ruth is about to uncover a burning secret her family desperately wants to keep hidden, a traumatic incident strains the town’s already searing racial tensions, sending Ruth and Midnight on a collision course that could upend both their lives.

Powerful and revealing, The Kindest Lie captures the heartbreaking divide between Black and white communities and offers both an unflinching view of motherhood in contemporary America and the never-ending quest to achieve the American Dream.

 

One of People magazine's most anticipated books!“A powerful, thought-provoking saga.” —Woman’s World"An evocative story of love and sacrifice.”—PeopleFrom the acclaimed author of The Kindest Lie, a heartrending dual timeline novel about a mother and daughter each seeking justice and following their dreams in 1960s Nashville and 1990s Chicago.Two women. Two pivotal moments. One dream for justice and equality.In the fall of 1959, Freda Gilroy arrives on the campus of Fisk University full of hope, carrying a suitcase and the voice of her father telling her she’s part of a family legacy of Black excellence. Soon, the ugliness of the Jim Crow South intrudes, and Freda, reluctant to get involved, is torn between a soon-to-be doctor and an audacious young activist. Freda must decide how much she’s willing to risk in the name of justice.In 1992 Chicago, Freda’s daughter, Tulip, is an ambitious PR professional on track for an exciting career, if workplace politics and racial microaggressions don’t get in her way. But with the ruling in the Rodney King trial weighing heavily on her, Tulip feels called to action and must choose, just like her mother had three decades prior, what her role will be in the story of America’s quest for equality.Insightful, evocative, and richly imagined with historical details, People of Means is an emotional family saga and a tour de force about the lasting legacy of family bonds and the far-reaching ways the past shapes our present."People of Means left me breathless! A beautifully crafted story...profound and sharp."—Sadeqa Johnson New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve

One of NPR's Books We Love This Year!“A powerful, thought-provoking saga.” —Woman’s World"An evocative story of love and sacrifice.”—PeopleFrom the acclaimed author of The Kindest Lie, a heartrending novel about a mother and daughter each seeking justice and following their dreams in 1960s Nashville and 1990s Chicago.Two women. Two pivotal moments. One dream for justice and equality.In the fall of 1959, Freda Gilroy arrives on the campus of Fisk University full of hope, carrying a suitcase and the voice of her father telling her she’s part of a family legacy of Black excellence. Soon, the ugliness of the Jim Crow South intrudes, and Freda, reluctant to get involved, is torn between a soon-to-be doctor and an audacious young activist. Freda must decide how much she’s willing to risk in the name of justice.In 1992 Chicago, Freda’s daughter, Tulip, is an ambitious PR professional on track for an exciting career, if workplace politics and racial microaggressions don’t get in her way. But with the ruling in the Rodney King trial weighing heavily on her, Tulip feels called to action and must choose, just like her mother had three decades prior, what her role will be in the story of America’s quest for equality.Insightful, evocative, and richly imagined with historical details, People of Means is an emotional tour de force about the lasting legacy of family bonds and the far-reaching ways the past shapes our present."People of Means left me breathless! A beautifully crafted story...profound and sharp."—Sadeqa Johnson New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve

Moses is found as an infant next to his dying mother, an escaped slave, and is brought to Boston and raised with a baker's family. He grows to be a willful teenager, and after his uncle enlists in the 54th Massachusetts Regiment — the first and most famous black Civil War regiment — Moses is keen on following him to war, hoping to serve his country and find out about his father.

Founded in New York City in 1870, The Lotos Club is one of the oldest literary and arts clubs in the United States. Lotos became known for its tradition of honouring outstanding men and women from all walks of life with testimonial 'State Dinners', especially after it began to commemorate these occasions with unique souvenir menus designed by artists and illustrators of the day. Art at the Table is a lavishly illustrated retrospective of the Club's 150-year-old-tradition, featuring the art of the menus and the stories behind them. American culture and history are chronicled in these fetes, from Gilbert and Sullivan and Mark Twain to aviator Amelia Earhart and author Tom Wolfe.

Recommended by O Magazine * GMA * Elle * Marie Claire * Good Housekeeping * NBC News * Shondaland * Chicago Tribune * Woman's Day * Refinery 29 * Bustle * The Millions * New York Post * Parade * Hello! Magazine * PopSugar * and more!“The Kindest Lie is a deep dive into how we define family, what it means to be a mother, and what it means to grow up Black...beautifully crafted.” —JODI PICOULT"A fantastic story...well-written, timely, and oh-so-memorable."—Good Morning America“The Kindest Lie is a layered, complex exploration of race and class." —The Washington PostEvery family has its secrets...It’s 2008, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago, Ruth Tuttle, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to—and was forced to leave behind—when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back, but Ruth knows that to move forward, she must make peace with the past.Returning home, Ruth discovers the Indiana factory town of her youth is plagued by unemployment, racism, and despair. As she begins digging into the past, she unexpectedly befriends Midnight, a young white boy who is also adrift and looking for connection. Just as Ruth is about to uncover a burning secret her family desperately wants to keep hidden, a heart-stopping incident strains the town’s already searing racial tensions, sending Ruth and Midnight on a collision course that could upend both their lives.Powerful and unforgettable, The Kindest Lie is the story of an American family and reveals the secrets we keep and the promises we make to protect one another.

Named a Most Anticipated book by O Magazine * GMA * Elle * Marie Claire * Good Housekeeping * NBC News * Shondaland * Chicago Tribune * Woman''s Day * Refinery 29 * Bustle * The Millions * New York Post * Parade * Hello! Magazine * PopSugar * and more!

“The Kindest Lie is a deep dive into how we define family, what it means to be a mother, and what it means to grow up Black...beautifully crafted.” —JODI PICOULT

"A fantastic story...well-written, timely, and oh-so-memorable."—Good Morning America

“The Kindest Lie is a layered, complex exploration of race and class." —The Washington Post

A promise could betray you.

It’s 2008, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago, Ruth Tuttle, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to—and was forced to leave behind—when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back, but Ruth knows that to move forward, she must make peace with the past.

Returning home, Ruth discovers the Indiana factory town of her youth is plagued by unemployment, racism, and despair. As she begins digging into the past, she unexpectedly befriends Midnight, a young white boy who is also adrift and looking for connection. Just as Ruth is about to uncover a burning secret her family desperately wants to keep hidden, a traumatic incident strains the town’s already searing racial tensions, sending Ruth and Midnight on a collision course that could upend both their lives.

Powerful and revealing, The Kindest Lie captures the heartbreaking divide between Black and white communities and offers both an unflinching view of motherhood in contemporary America and the never-ending quest to achieve the American Dream.

 

One of People magazine's most anticipated books!“A powerful, thought-provoking saga.” —Woman’s World"An evocative story of love and sacrifice.”—PeopleFrom the acclaimed author of The Kindest Lie, a heartrending dual timeline novel about a mother and daughter each seeking justice and following their dreams in 1960s Nashville and 1990s Chicago.Two women. Two pivotal moments. One dream for justice and equality.In the fall of 1959, Freda Gilroy arrives on the campus of Fisk University full of hope, carrying a suitcase and the voice of her father telling her she’s part of a family legacy of Black excellence. Soon, the ugliness of the Jim Crow South intrudes, and Freda, reluctant to get involved, is torn between a soon-to-be doctor and an audacious young activist. Freda must decide how much she’s willing to risk in the name of justice.In 1992 Chicago, Freda’s daughter, Tulip, is an ambitious PR professional on track for an exciting career, if workplace politics and racial microaggressions don’t get in her way. But with the ruling in the Rodney King trial weighing heavily on her, Tulip feels called to action and must choose, just like her mother had three decades prior, what her role will be in the story of America’s quest for equality.Insightful, evocative, and richly imagined with historical details, People of Means is an emotional family saga and a tour de force about the lasting legacy of family bonds and the far-reaching ways the past shapes our present."People of Means left me breathless! A beautifully crafted story...profound and sharp."—Sadeqa Johnson New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve

One of NPR's Books We Love This Year!“A powerful, thought-provoking saga.” —Woman’s World"An evocative story of love and sacrifice.”—PeopleFrom the acclaimed author of The Kindest Lie, a heartrending novel about a mother and daughter each seeking justice and following their dreams in 1960s Nashville and 1990s Chicago.Two women. Two pivotal moments. One dream for justice and equality.In the fall of 1959, Freda Gilroy arrives on the campus of Fisk University full of hope, carrying a suitcase and the voice of her father telling her she’s part of a family legacy of Black excellence. Soon, the ugliness of the Jim Crow South intrudes, and Freda, reluctant to get involved, is torn between a soon-to-be doctor and an audacious young activist. Freda must decide how much she’s willing to risk in the name of justice.In 1992 Chicago, Freda’s daughter, Tulip, is an ambitious PR professional on track for an exciting career, if workplace politics and racial microaggressions don’t get in her way. But with the ruling in the Rodney King trial weighing heavily on her, Tulip feels called to action and must choose, just like her mother had three decades prior, what her role will be in the story of America’s quest for equality.Insightful, evocative, and richly imagined with historical details, People of Means is an emotional tour de force about the lasting legacy of family bonds and the far-reaching ways the past shapes our present."People of Means left me breathless! A beautifully crafted story...profound and sharp."—Sadeqa Johnson New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve

Moses is found as an infant next to his dying mother, an escaped slave, and is brought to Boston and raised with a baker's family. He grows to be a willful teenager, and after his uncle enlists in the 54th Massachusetts Regiment — the first and most famous black Civil War regiment — Moses is keen on following him to war, hoping to serve his country and find out about his father.

Founded in New York City in 1870, The Lotos Club is one of the oldest literary and arts clubs in the United States. Lotos became known for its tradition of honouring outstanding men and women from all walks of life with testimonial 'State Dinners', especially after it began to commemorate these occasions with unique souvenir menus designed by artists and illustrators of the day. Art at the Table is a lavishly illustrated retrospective of the Club's 150-year-old-tradition, featuring the art of the menus and the stories behind them. American culture and history are chronicled in these fetes, from Gilbert and Sullivan and Mark Twain to aviator Amelia Earhart and author Tom Wolfe.