Michelle Stimpson

On her second birthday in 1967, Bernice McFadden died in a car crash near Detroit, only to be resuscitated after her mother pulled her from the flaming wreckage. Firstborn Girls traces her remarkable life from that moment up to the publication of her first novel, Sugar. Growing up in 1980s Brooklyn, Bernice finds solace in books, summer trips to Barbados, and boarding school to escape her alcoholic father. Discovering the works of Alice Walker and Toni Morrison, she finally sees herself and her loved ones reflected in their stories of “messy, beautiful, joyful Black people.”

When tragedy strikes Leona Harper, the devastated pastor's wife summons her estranged children home. But parenting young adults in the glass house of the parsonage proves more difficult than reinventing herself. Determined to give her broken family a shot at a second chance, Leona begins the painful journey of putting one foot in front of the other. Reconciliation and healing won't come easy in this zany, trouble-filled, hilarious adventure. Brimming with wit, authenticity, and Southern charm, this series explores the inspirational and emotional healing of a family.