Reading Black Authors – My Government Means to Kill Me By Rasheed Newson

Black Women Connect Book Club Recommendation
My Government Means to Kill Me” is a coming-of-age story from acclaimed television writer/producer Rasheed Newson, known for his work on hit shows, including Bel-Air and The Chi. The book centers around Earl “Trey” Singleton III, who leaves his wealthy Black Indianapolis family behind for life in New York City. And as he settles into life as a young, Black, gay man in 80s New York City, he meets people who change his life forever.

Book Details

MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2022 by The New York Times, Bustle, Goodreads, The Boston Globe, LitHub, and more!

The debut novel from television WRITER/PRODUCER OF THE CHINARCOS, and BEL-AIR tells a fierce and riveting queer coming-of-age story following the personal and political awakening of a young, gay, Black man in 1980s New York City.

“Consistently engrossing.” New York Times Book Review

“Full of joy and righteous anger, sex and straight talk, brilliant storytelling and humor… A spectacularly researched Dickensian tale with vibrant characters and dozens of famous cameos, it is precisely the book we’ve needed for a long time.” —Andrew Sean Greer, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Less

Earl “Trey” Singleton III arrives in New York City with only a few dollars in his pocket. Born into a wealthy Black Indianapolis family, at 17, he is ready to leave his overbearing parents and their expectations behind.

In the city, Trey meets up with a cast of characters that changes his life forever. He volunteers at a renegade home hospice for AIDS patients, and after being put to the test by gay rights activists, becomes a member of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP). Along the way Trey attempts to navigate past traumas and searches for ways to maintain familial relationships—all while seeking the meaning of life amid so much death.

Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.