African American Short Stories

In Dale's Tales, Dale Guy Madison takes young listeners on a journey through a series of African-American stories and folktales. From the humor of How God Created Butterflies to the magical realism of Flying Away to Freedom, Dale's retellings of classic folktales will delight and inspire. The collection also includes Dale's brand-new story Three Heads of Hair.

Bound together by shared experience but pulled apart by their changing fortunes, four young friends coming of age in the postindustrial enclave of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, struggle to liberate themselves from the legacies left to them as black men in America. With potent immediacy and bracing candor, this provocative debut follows a decade in the lives of Dub, Rolls, Rye, and Gio as they each grapple with the complexity of their family histories, the newfound power of sex and drugs, and the ferocity of their desires.

Reesa's a savvy financial planner with one goal - to have a baby before 35. But to do that, she's got to do one of two things: dump her current man, Simon, and find another man more suitable to be husband and father, or settle with Simon and work overtime trying to train him for the starring role. At 33, getting rid of Simon to find Mr. Right is a chance Reesa's not willing to take. But when she's had enough of Simon's antics and kicks him to the curb, will her goal change?

Originally published in 1964, this collection of 16 stories includes three linked sets of stories about the Carey, Bedlow, and Dunford families. They represent the earliest work of William Melvin Kelley and provided a rich source of stories and characters who were to fill out his later novels. Spanning generations from the Deep South during Reconstruction to New York City in the 1960s, these insightful stories depict African American families - their struggles, their heartbreak, and their love.

Savannah is a sophisticated single mother who has had her share of growing pains then becoming a widow. From rags to riches, back to rags, Savannah is determined to change her circumstance through her faith and perseverance. As she struggles to keep her head above water, her new vindictive neighbors, try her patience and her faith. She desperately desires for God to rescue her from her new life of struggle and turn her test into a testimony when she finally meets the man of her dreams, Calvin Snow. This is a revised version on "Don't Rescue Me, God's Molding Me."

Mahogany is now coming face to face with the reality of her secrets and lies; she will have life-altering decisions to make soon. Finding new love, having a beautiful family, great friends, her dream career, and financial stability means nothing as she deals with her internal demons. Will her friends and family stick beside her? Will finally turning to God help her, or is she too deep in that it's just too late?

Jacob is an old man who has secluded himself in an apartment convinced that something is after him. As he retells strange coincidences throughout his life, maybe he's right.

While vacationing in Jamaica, trying to get over a broken heart, Chyna Daniels runs into island native Nelson Portis. On a physical level, Nelson satisfies all of Chyna's wants and needs to help her forget the breakup, but Nelson wants much more. Will Chyna give Nelson the one thing he wants the most? Her Heart.

The Story of Jamie is a fictitious short story loosely connected to actual events about a young girl named Jamie. She was born in the 1940s, and struggled most of her life to find her true identity. During her many devastating conflicts in life, she cycles through love, pain, and perseverance as she finds happiness while maturing and flourishing into a mother and a wife.

Lyla’s in love with Walter and believes she will do anything to keep him—at least she thinks she will. Rhonda loves to go partying and clubbing—especially on ladies' night. When one of the male dancers comes to her table, it doesn’t end well when he returns to the stage.

Jilted! What should have been the happiest day Calvin Walker experienced ended up being the absolute worst. The love of his life left him waiting at the altar without so much as a ‘Dear John’ letter. With the prodding of his best friend, Calvin decides to not let his honeymoon go to waste. He needs a fresh start, and what better place to get it than in Spain. Will a little bit of Spanish flavor be enough to mend Calvin's broken heart?

An enthralling collection of short stories based on Dwight's own family history. He takes us through the lives of African Americans and Native Americans in the early parts of the United States. A must listen.

I am Indian. He is African. I know nothing of him, yet he’s my husband. I don’t know what his interests are. I don’t know the sound of his voice. I don’t even know what he looks like. I am worried about this marriage. Will he love me? Will I love him? Most importantly I wonder if the rumors are true about African men. If he is big…and can I handle that much man? My Arranged Marriage is a short erotic interracial romance. It is for mature readers only.

This small collection of short stories of riveting and dark plots dabbles in politics, religion, martial arts, social identity, and various other facets of life like baby farms, revealing what man proves to be when he tries! Titles include "A Cold One", "Lagos Hustle", "Cornbread, Fried Chicken, and Sauerkraut", "Rest in Peace", "Alpine Nightmare", "My Style Is Better Than Yours", "Furqaan", "Turf", and "The Part: The Re-assassination of Abe Lincoln".

Previously titled "I Want Love", Daddy's Girl tells the tale of a young woman raised without a father, beginning from childhood.

DeShawn Watts has always followed the rules and obeyed law enforcement for as long as he could remember. But why does a life in the suburbs with a loving wife, a beautiful daughter, and a nice job feel so hollow whenever DeShawn talks to his jailbird brother, Darnell? Respectability is a short story detailing the lives of Black men and asking what it really means to be free today in America.

I saw the ripples in his blue jeans before I saw the twinkle in his dark brown eyes. His deep brown skin looked smooth as silk, and his jeans hugged his hips so snugly they looked as if they had been constructed on him as he stood in place in an obliging tailor shop. Thus begins Brian’s adventure in the story Overnight to Boston. He’s just quit his office job. He’s heading to Boston by train for no apparent reason when he meets Nic, a teacher who likes music and men like Brian. In Prom Night, the second story, an 18-year-old high school senior learns that having sex with a beautiful ...

Growing up as a kid, I always thought I would meet my true love. I would have this magical romance where everything was perfect. However, life doesn’t work like that. Instead of meeting my true love and living happily ever after, I have a kid with a deadbeat and get evicted from my apartment. My life couldn’t get any worse. Out of options, my best friend offers me a place to stay. Little did I know that my love life would turn upside down. This is the short story of how I found my true love. Always There is a short, 3,700 word BWWM interracial romance where two friends become lovers, ...

Some temptations are just too tantalizing to ignore. Can't Help the Way That I Feel, edited by Emmy award-winning and Essence best-selling author Lori Bryant-Woolridge, is a collection of titillating stories, each exploring a delicious enticement. In "The Sangria Seduction," lemon sangria becomes the elixir of lust for a player trying to seduce the naughty out of one very nice girl.

Danielle Evans is widely acclaimed for her blisteringly smart voice and X-ray insights into complex human relationships. With The Office of Historical Corrections, Evans zooms in on particular moments and relationships in her characters’ lives in a way that allows them to speak to larger issues of race, culture and history. We meet Black and multi-racial characters who are experiencing the universal confusions of lust and love, and getting walloped by grief - all while exploring how history haunts us, personally and collectively.