Steven W. Thrasher, "The Overseer Class: A Manifesto" (Amistad, 2026)

In Praise: A Conversation with Texas Poet Laureate & Founder of Torch Literary Arts, Amanda Johnston

In 2006 poet Amanda Johnston went in search of community and, when she didn’t find what she was looking for, Amanda built her own. Today, Torch Literary Arts is a resource and a destination for Black women writers and readers across the diaspora. Fueled by wisdom and writings from poets, novelists, and screenwriters, the organization’s exceptional programming and award-winning magazine amplify Black women’s voices, and has featured work from poets like Patricia Smith, Yona Harvey, and Toi Derricotte, screenwriters and playwrights like Jonterri Gadson, Charla Lauriston, and Lisa B. Thompson, and novelists like Tayari Jones, Crystal Wilkinson, and Sapphire. And at a time when Amanda is preparing for Torch’s 20th Anniversary celebration, “A Gathering of Flames,” she is also celebrating the publication of a new book in her capacity as the 61st Texas Poet Laureate, Praisesong for the People: Poems from the Heart and Soul of Texas  [https://hostpublications.com/products/praisesong-for-the-people-poems-from-the-heart-and-soul-of-texas](Host Publications, 2025), showcasing original praise poems commissioned from poets across the state, and seeking to uplift diverse and intersecting populations across age, gender, and BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, differently-abled, and immigrant communities. You can find Amanda at her website [https://www.amandajohnston.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/poetamandajohnston/?hl=en], and on Threads [https://www.threads.com/@poetamandajohnston?xmt=AQG0fPBCmE_FBSDL3o7DoNektNYW3vGlZfJ3qX1xK60tTdg]. And check out Torch Literary Arts [https://www.torchliteraryarts.org/], Torch Magazine [https://www.torchliteraryarts.org/torchmagazine], and follow the organization on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/torchliteraryarts/?hl=en], Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/torchliteraryarts/], and Threads [https://www.threads.com/@torchliteraryarts?xmt=AQG0fPBCmE_FBSDL3o7DoNektNYW3vGlZfJ3qX1xK60tTdg]. Want to hear more from Amanda about the journey to Torch’s 20th Anniversary? Check out our continued conversation on Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips]. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer [https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/up-partners/additions-to-the-archive-with-sullivan-summer] on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/additionstothearchive/], Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips], and wherever you get your podcasts.

Where Harlem Rests at the Woodlawn Cemetery

A cemetery as open-air museum? Historian and award-winning author of Boss of the Grips: The Life of James H. Williams and the Red Caps of Grand Central Terminal, Eric K. Washington thinks so. In this compelling discussion, Washington talks about his newly-completed project revealing the hidden stories of Harlem Renaissance figures buried at the historic Woodlawn Cemetery [https://www.woodlawn.org/] in the Bronx, New York. Funded by a $50,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the initiative was led by Washington, alongside A’Lelia Bundles, journalist, historian, and great-granddaughter of entrepreneur and icon Madam C.J. Walker. While the Harlem Renaissance is often told through a handful of well-known names, Where Harlem Rests (available here [https://www.woodlawn.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Where-Harlem-Rests-PDF-Version-of-Booklet.pdf]) allows for a look beyond the spotlight, uncovering the many voices that helped shape the movement, and the community itself, expanding the historical narrative, and honoring a broader, more inclusive legacy of creativity, resilience, and cultural impact that has long deserved recognition. The Woodlawn Conservancy is the 501c3 not-for-profit support organization for the Woodlawn Cemetery. Woodlawn Cemetery was established in 1863 and spans 400 acres in the Bronx, New York. It is one of the nation’s most distinguished historic cemeteries and a certified Level II Arboretum. In 2011, Woodlawn was designated a National Historic Landmark for its singular importance in the history of the nation and New York City. It is also an active cemetery with ongoing burials and funeral services, and more than 310,000 individuals are memorialized on its grounds. Woodlawn is one of the nation's finest examples of a 19th-century garden cemetery. Its monuments represent some of the best memorial art and architecture in the nation, including nearly 1,300 private mausoleums designed by some of the most prominent architects of the 20th century. The Woodlawn Cemetery is open to the public free of charge 365 days a year from 8:30am - 4:30 pm. You can find Erik at his website [https://www.ekwashington.com/], and on at personal Instagram page [https://www.instagram.com/erickwashington/], as well as @taggingthepast [https://www.instagram.com/taggingthepast/]. His recommended reading list is available on the Additions to the Archive Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips]. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer [https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/up-partners/additions-to-the-archive-with-sullivan-summer] on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/additionstothearchive/], Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips], and wherever you get your podcasts.

Cheryl Thompson, "Staging Blackface in Canada: Public Amusements, Variety Shows, and Racial Acts in an Age of Imitation, 1898-1919" (Wilfrid Laurier Press, 2026)

In the early twentieth century, as variety shows flooded Canadian stages, new forms of blackface, inspired by modern forms of amusements, changed the theatre. In this era marked by progressive social reforms, the stage embodied the modern ethos of imitation, mimicry, and change. Staging Blackface in Canada: Public Amusements, Variety Shows, and Racial Acts in an Age of Imitation, 1898-1919 (Wilfrid Laurier Press, 2026) covers a moment when Canadians did not produce professional theatre, but they built amusement parks, wrote songs, and produced records. As the stage (drama), and its variants (burlesque, light opera) adapted elements from the new stages (amusement parks, social dance, and film), the modern culture popularized forms of blackface that impacted white, Anglo-Protestant, and English-speaking audiences, and drew theatrical criticism. This book explores a twenty-year period in Canada’s history when there was no media regulation, and no mandate to promote Canadian culture. Through an examination of theatrical reviews, images, and textual records, Staging Blackface in Canada locates how the Canadian stage became a playground for ethnic jokes, racial caricature, and women’s emancipation. It also locates some of the first Black musicals and operas to appear on Canadian stages. This episode also mentions a previous Additions to the Archive episode [https://newbooksnetwork.com/es-pranza-humphrey-act-black-posters-from-black-american-stage-screen-poster-house-museum-2026] with assistant curator of New York City’s Poster House museum, Es-pranza Humphrey, and her exhibition “Act Black: Posters From Black American Stage & Screen.” You can find Cheryl at her website [https://www.drcherylthompson.com/], on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/theblackcreativelab/], and on LinkedIn [https://ca.linkedin.com/in/cheryl-thompson-phd] And check out her previous appearances on the Additions to the Archive podcast [https://newbooksnetwork.com/canada-and-the-blackface-atlantic] and Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/p/performance-culture-from-blackface]. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer [https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/up-partners/additions-to-the-archive-with-sullivan-summer] on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/additionstothearchive/], Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips], and wherever you get your podcasts.

Kyra Davis Lurie, "The Great Mann" (Crown, 2025)

In 1945, Charlie Trammell steps off a cross-country train into the vibrant tapestry of Los Angeles. Lured by his cousin Marguerite’s invitation to the esteemed West Adams Heights, Charlie is immediately captivated by the Black opulence of L.A.’s newly rechristened “Sugar Hill.” Settling in at a local actress’s energetic boarding house, Charlie discovers a different way of life—one brimming with opportunity—from a promising career at a Black-owned insurance firm, the absence of Jim Crow, to the potential of an unforgettable romance. But nothing dazzles quite like James “Reaper” Mann. Reaper’s extravagant parties, attended by luminaries like Lena Horne and Hattie McDaniel, draw Charlie in, bringing the milieu of wealth and excess within his reach. But as Charlie’s unusual bond with Reaper deepens, so does the tension in the neighborhood as white neighbors, frustrated by their own dwindling fortunes, ignite a landmark court case that threatens the community’s well-being with promises of retribution. Told from the unique perspective of a young man who has just returned from a grueling, segregated war, The Great Mann [https://bookshop.org/a/12343/9780593800867] (Crown, 2025) is a poignant reimagining of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby set amongst L.A.’s Black elite weaves a compelling narrative of wealth and class, illuminating the complexities of Black identity and education in post-war America. You can find Kyra on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/kyradavislurie/], Threads [https://www.threads.com/@kyradavislurie], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@kyra.davis.lurie]. Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer [https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/up-partners/additions-to-the-archive-with-sullivan-summer] on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/additionstothearchive/], Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips], and wherever you get your podcasts.

Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor, "Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word and Me" (37 Ink, 2026)

The N-word is one of the most perplexing, controversial and misunderstood words in the American lexicon. It’s a word that Elizabeth Pryor has not only contemplated, it’s one that she has taught and observed up close. When a white student quoted her father and blurted out the N-word in the middle of a class she was teaching, Professor Pryor’s worlds collided. In that moment, she was forced to confront the history of the notorious slur in the United States, and her complicated relationship with her father Richard Pryor, who made the word a trademark of his comedy in the 1970s. As she dives into her research, her own memories of the N-word come flooding back in unprocessed memories that she hadn’t thought about for decades. In reckoning with those memories, Elizabeth goes on a more public journey of discovery of the messy and sometimes surprising legacies of racism in the United States. A braided narrative that seamlessly integrates the history of the N-word with Elizabeth’s own story of growing up the Black Jewish daughter of Richard Pryor, Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word and Me [https://bookshop.org/a/12343/9781982154509] (37 Ink, 2026) follows Elizabeth as she becomes a leading scholar and teacher of the very word her father put on the pop culture map. You can find Elizabeth on her website [https://www.pryorhistories.com/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/pryorhistories/], and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@pryorhistories]. Her viral Ted talk, “Why it’s so hard to talk about the N-word,” is here [https://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_stordeur_pryor_why_it_s_so_hard_to_talk_about_the_n_word]. And Richard Pryor: Live in Concern (1979) can be streamed on YouTube [https://dai.ly/xa7rol0].  Subscribe, like, follow, and rate Additions to the Archive with Sullivan Summer [https://newbooksnetwork.com/category/up-partners/additions-to-the-archive-with-sullivan-summer] on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/additionstothearchive/], Substack [https://sullivansummer.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips], and wherever you get your podcasts.