Ernest J. Gaines, author portrait
© Steven Forster

Ernest J. Gaines

Ernest Gaines was born on a plantation in Pointe Coupee Parish near New Roads, Louisiana, which is the Bayonne of all his fictional works. He is a writer-in-residence emeritus at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Gaines received a MacArthur Fellowship in 1993 for his lifetime achievements; was named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, one of France’s highest decorations, in 1996; and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2004. He and his wife, Dianne, live in Oscar, Louisiana.
The Tragedy of Brady Sims
My Grandpa and the Haint
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
Mozart and Leadbelly
Bloodline
A Lesson Before Dying
Of Love and Dust
Catherine Carmier
In My Father's House
A Gathering of Old Men

Books

The Tragedy of Brady Sims
My Grandpa and the Haint
The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman
Mozart and Leadbelly
Bloodline
A Lesson Before Dying
Of Love and Dust
Catherine Carmier
In My Father's House
A Gathering of Old Men

Black History

Herewith a highly curated list of Black History titles – classics and contemporary biographies, memoirs, essays, history, even poetry, from a broad spectrum of voices. Speaking to slavery, civil rights, the arts and current events, these books are a great starting point for Black History Month promotions as well as being essential to every bookstore and library inventory year-round.

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