Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes, BLACK BROTHER, BLACK BROTHER

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes is the award-winning and best-selling author of many books including Ninth Ward, which was the winner of the Coretta Scott King honor; Sugar, winner of the Jane Adams’ Children’s Book Award; and New York Times bestsellers Ghost Boys, an IndieBound best seller, a number-one Kids’ Indie Next pick, and ALA 2019 Children's Notable List pick, and winner of the Walter Award, EB White Read Aloud Award, and Children's Choice Book Award.  Dr. Rhodes’ most recent book Black Brother, Black Brother centers on a family of two biracial boys, and their different experiences of race, prejudice and bias and how you one coach and the sport of fencing changed everything. This woman is amazing and I so enjoyed chatting with @jewellparkerrhodes about her passion and purpose. We spoke about how she writes about diversity for a middle school audience, the childhood trauma that led to writing, and her brilliant idea to start a family book club! Dr. Rhodes is also the author of The American Book Award-winning Douglass' Women, two writing guides and the memoir Porch Stories: A Grandmother's Guide to Happiness. Her adult literary awards include the American Book Award, the National Endowment of the Arts Award in Fiction, the Black Caucus of the American Library Award for Literary Excellence, and the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Award for Outstanding Writing. When she's not writing, Dr. Rhodes teaches writing at Arizona State University where she is the founding artistic director and chair of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing. Dr. Rhodes received a BA in drama criticism, an MA in English, and a doctorate in arts in English, creative writing, from Carnegie Mellon University. I mean, seriously!