Uptown

January 4, 2010
DeBerry and Grant (Exposures
) continue both their ongoing love affair with Harlem and the story of the Dixon real estate empire in this smart and compelling tale of how selfishness and avarice can destroy a family’s work and reputation. Dwight Dixon takes the reins from his elderly father, “King” Dixon, moving the family real estate holdings to the big-time New York stage with the development of Dixon Plaza on Central Park North, a controversial development aimed at transforming Harlem. But problems abound: defective Chinese drywall, cheap fixtures and myriad changes to the project. Then Dwight’s cousin, Avery Lyons, returns to tend to the affairs of her dead mother and an uneasy and disturbing past is revealed that causes the empire to crumble. DeBerry and Grant capture timely and increasingly universal themes with this dramatic, epic and often tragic story of triumph and failure. New York and Harlem come alive and the occasional stereotypical characters and a few contrived situations are minor quibbles with a novel that is both relevant and entertaining

March 1, 2010
A family tragedy brings Avery Lyons back to Harlem after 20 years in the Foreign Service. When she needed her familys help, they let her down, especially her cousin Dwight, whom she revered. But still, she comes home to take care of her injured mother. Then, when her mother dies, Avery is set adrift in a landscape she hardly recognizes, as the Harlem of her youth is obliterated by gentrification. Her cousin wants to bring an upscale development to one area. After years of negotiations, the only impediment is a piece of property that Avery has inherited from her mother, which her mother intended to sell, as does Avery until she meets the tenants who will be displaced. Her feelings toward Dwight after he betrayed her come back to haunt her as she struggles to adapt and find her happiness. The team of DeBerry and Grant sure knows how to give readers a vibrant family story, a real gem that encompasses betrayals, secret lives, and forgiveness.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)