Don't Cry for Me: A Novel

Daniel Black

Feb 2022 · Harlequin Audio · Narrated by Daniel Black

About this audiobook

NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK IN ESSENCE MAGAZINE, THE MILLIONS AND BOOKISH


"Don't Cry for Me is a perfect song."—Jesmyn Ward

A Black father makes amends with his gay son through letters written on his deathbed in this wise and penetrating novel of empathy and forgiveness, for fans of Ta-Nehisi Coates, Robert Jones Jr. and Alice Walker

As Jacob lies dying, he begins to write a letter to his only son, Isaac. They have not met or spoken in many years, and there are things that Isaac must know. Stories about his ancestral legacy in rural Arkansas that extend back to slavery. Secrets from Jacob's tumultuous relationship with Isaac's mother and the shame he carries from the dissolution of their family. Tragedies that informed Jacob's role as a father and his reaction to Isaac's being gay.

But most of all, Jacob must share with Isaac the unspoken truths that reside in his heart. He must give voice to the trauma that Isaac has inherited. And he must create a space for the two to find peace.

With piercing insight and profound empathy, acclaimed author Daniel Black illuminates the lived experiences of Black fathers and queer sons, offering an authentic and ultimately hopeful portrait of reckoning and reconciliation. Spare as it is sweeping, poetic as it is compulsively readable, Don't Cry for Me is a monumental novel about one family grappling with love's hard edges and the unexpected places where hope and healing take flight.

Ratings and reviews

Audiobook Review: Overall – 5 Performance – 5 Story – 5 Poignant and heart-wrenching. I really don’t know what to say about this book other than I’m glad that I listened to it. It definitely isn’t the type of book that I would normally read or listen to but the description caught my attention; when I was offered a review copy, I decided to give it a try. It’s fictional but felt so real while I was listening to the author narrate his own words. It definitely was eye-opening and sad and a bunch of other emotional words. A complimentary copy of this audiobook was provided to me at my request but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.

If you have clicked on this book and aren't sure or hesitant. Please do yourself a favor and just go ahead and read it. I absolutely loved this book. though I wouldn't and waited until a few days before bookclub to do so. but I'm glad I did 💗

this was a great book, especially if you're from the south. you and your family members will enjoy this tremendously ✌🏿

About the author

Daniel Black is an author and professor of African American studies at Clark Atlanta University. His books include The Coming, Perfect Peace and They Tell Me of a Home. He is the winner of the Distinguished Writer Award from the Middle-Atlantic Writer's Association and has been nominated for the Townsend Prize for Fiction, the Ernest J. Gaines Award,and the Georgia Author of the Year Award. He was raised in Blackwell, Arkansas, and lives in Atlanta, Georgia.