{"product_id":"black-boy-smile-a-memoir-in-moments-paperback","title":"Black Boy Smile: A Memoir in Moments - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eD. Watkins\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling and award-winning author presents a complex story about his coming-of-age journey as a Black boy, from the societal roots of trauma to finding joy.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"If I had two wishes, it would be that D. Watkins spend an entire book writing through the terrifying wonder of Black boyness in America, and for every human to read and share this book. I am shaken. \u003ci\u003eBlack Boy Smile \u003c\/i\u003echanged my relationship to writing and me.\"―\u003cb\u003eKiese Laymon, author of Heavy and winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e At nine years old, D. Watkins has three concerns in life: picking his dad's Lotto numbers, keeping his Nikes free of creases, and being a man. Directly in his periphery is east Baltimore, a poverty-stricken city battling the height of the crack epidemic just hours from the nation's capital. Watkins, like many boys around him, is thrust out of childhood and into a world where manhood means surviving by slinging crack on street corners and finding oneself on the right side of pistols. For thirty years, Watkins is forced to safeguard every moment of joy he experiences or risk losing himself entirely. Now, for the first time, Watkins harnesses these moments to tell the story of how he matured into the D. Watkins we know today--beloved author, college professor, editor-at-large of \u003ci\u003eSalon.com\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e, \u003c\/i\u003e and devoted husband and father. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eBlack Boy Smile\u003c\/i\u003e lays bare Watkins's relationship with his father and his brotherhood with the boys around him. He shares candid recollections of early assaults on his body and mind and reveals how he coped using stoic silence disguised as manhood. His harrowing pursuit of redemption, written in his signature street style, pinpoints how generational hardship, left raw and unnurtured, breeds toxic masculinity. Watkins discovers a love for books, is admitted to two graduate programs, meets with his future wife, an attorney--and finds true freedom in fatherhood. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Equally moving and liberating, \u003ci\u003eBlack Boy Smile\u003c\/i\u003e is D. Watkins's love letter to Black boys in concrete cities, a daring testimony that brings to life the contradictions, fears, and hopes of boys hurdling headfirst into adulthood. \u003ci\u003eBlack Boy Smile \u003c\/i\u003eis a story proving that when we acknowledge the fallacies of our past, we can uncover the path toward self-discovery. \u003ci\u003eBlack Boy Smile\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of a Black boy who healed.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eD. Watkins is the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of \u003ci\u003eThe Beast Side, \u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Cook Up, Where Tomorrows Aren't Promised \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eWe Speak for Ourselves, \u003c\/i\u003ewhich was a One Book, one Baltimore selection. He is Editor at Large for \u003ci\u003eSalon\u003c\/i\u003e. He is featured in the HBO documentary \u003ci\u003eThe Slow Hustle \u003c\/i\u003eand is a writer on \u003ci\u003eWe Own the City\u003c\/i\u003e, an HBO miniseries from David Simon. His work has been published in \u003ci\u003ethe New York Times, New York Times Magazine, The Guardian, Rolling Stone\u003c\/i\u003e, and other publications. He is a college lecturer at the University of Baltimore and holds a Master's in Education from Johns Hopkins University and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Baltimore. Watkins' awards include the BMe Genius Grant for dynamic Black leaders, the City Lit Dambach Award for Service to the Literary Arts, the Maryland Library Association's William Wilson Maryland Author Award, and the Ford's Men of Courage award for Black male storytellers. He was also a finalist for a 2016 Hurston Wright Legacy Award and \u003ci\u003eThe Cook Up \u003c\/i\u003ewas a 2017 Books for a Better Life finalist. He is lives in Baltimore, MD with his wife and daughter.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 256\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.8 x 8.2 x 5.6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e May 16, 2023\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51772337783072,"sku":"9780306923982","price":17.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/6280e19d9eece3afa20fd626f9af29f5.webp?v=1780403469","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/black-boy-smile-a-memoir-in-moments-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}