You Made Me Love You

April 1, 2021
Spanning three decades and showcasing 35 stories from venerated Wideman's accomplished career, this stunning collection is a testament to ingenious storytelling. Through vividly portrayed voices, evocative settings, and expansive themes, these tales put Wideman's talent for exploring the indelible connections that unite generations on full display. Beginning with selections from Damballah (1981), the first book in the author's now classic Homewood trilogy, the collection opens a door into the compelling inner lives of unforgettable characters. From the start, the reader understands what Walton Muyumba writes in his elegant introduction about the author's desires for "both close connections between his life and his works, and the ambiguities that literary writing can create." Whether presenting, in "Fever," a collage of voices from persons both real and fictional during the 1793 yellow fever outbreak in Philadelphia; relating a brief, tragic story in the precisely titled "Newborn Thrown in Trash and Dies;" or imagining a conversation between Frederick Douglass and John Brown in "JB & FD," the stories throughout are exemplary examples of how Wideman's works are able to endure, to transcend time and place, and to resonate. This is an essential collection for both readers familiar with Wideman's oeuvre and those just discovering this modern master.

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