They Tell Me of a Home

by Daniel Black

Book Overview

Twenty-eight-year-old protagonist Tommy Lee Tyson steps off the Greyhound bus in his hometown of Swamp Creek, Arkansas--a place he left when he was eighteen, vowing never to return. Yet fate and a Ph.D. in black studies force him back to his rural origins as he seeks to understand himself and the black community that produced him. A cold, nonchalant father and an emotionally indifferent mother make his return, after a ten-year hiatus, practically...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312341873
• ISBN13: 9780312341879
• Release Date: October 2005
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 335 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Gather 'round...

The Meetin' Tree in Swamp Creek, AR. Listen to the tales that fill this well-written, page-turning novel! From the moment "TL" steps off the Greyhound bus in the summer heat, I found myself wiping my brow. Not only was the sweltering heat real, the characters tumbled from the pages and into my lap. In his journey home, "TL" faces harsh realities and joyous memories that keep him in Swamp Creek longer than planned. The story also kept me bolted to the pages... hanging on every word. "They Tell Me of a Home" sprinkles gold dust from the Harlem Renaissance in hopes that you will plow through the layers of dust from family secrets. As you keep digging for the truth, you will find it... I highly recommend this excellent debut from a dynamic storyteller!

SNAP! CRACKLE! POP!

SNAP! CRACKLE! POP! ALL OF GOD'S CHILDREN BETTER ADD THIS NOVEL TO THEIR COLLECTION, 'CAUSE ZORA NEAL HURSTON, JAMES BALDWIN, LANGSTON HUGHES, TONI MORRISON'S BELOVED, ETC. HAVE COME BACK FROM THE GRAVE IN ONE BODY. 'THEY TELL ME OF A HOME' BY DANIEL OMOTOSHO BLACK IS NOT JUST AN AWESOME AFROREAL PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON WHO RETURNS TO SWAMP CREEK TO FACE THE PAIN THAT CLOSURE BRINGS ANYONE SEEKING TO DO SO, BUT ALSO THE COLLECTIVE WORK IS A LIBATION -- AN OUTPOUR OF THE COLLECTIVE SELF -- A CUP SPILLING OVER WITH WINE-- OF TRUTHS THAT ARE NOT SO FARFETCHED ABOUT WHO WE ARE AS HUMAN BEINGS. THIS NOVEL IS SO DAMN GOOD THAT I GOT CAUGHT UP FOR 12... YES, 12 HOURS... READING FROM BEGINNING TILL END. MY BOTTOM STARTED HURTIN', SO I WALKED AROUND THE HOUSE READING THE BOOK IN HAND. EVERYTIME I TRIED TO STOP, THE SPIRIT OF THE WRITING TOOK MY MIND AND BODY OVER LIKE THE HOLY GHOST FALLS ON ME AT CHURCH (AT HOME REALLY 'CAUSE I'M TOO TIRED BY THE TIME I GET TO CHURCH). I CRIED FROM LAUGHING OUTLOUD. I LAUGHED SOME MORE. I CRIED REAL TEARS. I FELT LOVED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME. HALLELUJAH!!! FOR THE HEALING POWER THAT THIS NOVEL HAS BROUGHT INTO MY LIFE. THE LIFETIME CHANNEL, OPRAH WINFREY, HBO OR SOMEBODY WHO IS SOMEBODY NEEDS TO GET A HOLD OF THIS NOVEL, SO THAT THE REVOLUTION -- CHANGE, THAT IS -- CAN BE TELEVISED.

Healing, Home, History...

Daniel O. Black's _They Tell Me of a Home_ is such an important book for African Americans. In it, he reminds us of the strength and vitality of community. The book's most moving moments sing the beauty, humor, boundless imagination, and resilience that are the hallmarks of southern black culture. He also explores and seeks to address the damage we do to ourselves and each other out of our own fearful, broken places. As his first book, Black writes a loving letter that challenges African American readers to embrace themselves and each other holistically, and without fear, prejudice, or restraint. He breaks longstanding taboos of gender and patriarchy in a spirit of true love for black people. He imagines an organic transformation that is rooted in the power, love, and sacredness of community.

Just Wonderful

A beautifully written novel, They Tell Me of a Home is a story of all of our lives. Black weaves the story of TL with unequaled precision and takes us all to a place and time not far from our own, as he orchestrates our history back two us. READ THIS BOOK, SUPPORT THIS AUTHOR, soon Black will be included when the literary world lays mention of Baldwin, Sanchez, Everett, Dyson and Morrison.

Sins of the Father Visit the Children

Daniel Black's debut novel, They Tell Me of a Home, is the story of twenty-eight year old Tommy Lee (T.L.) Tyson who returns to his rural hometown of Swamp Creek, Arkansas after a ten-year hiatus. Tyson left behind an abusive father, emotionally detached mother, sullen older brother and a loving younger sister, Cynthia. T.L. adored Cynthia and she was his reason for living and wanting something better than his humble, backwoods beginning. It is because of his sister that he is now returning home after completing ten years of higher education and receiving a Ph.D. in Black Studies-which leaves his father wondering why he wasted good money on learning about Black Folks-when he could have told him everything he needed to know! His sister,who was not even 10 when he left home,was his pride and joy, childhood friend, spiritual confidante and was his only reason for wanting to stay connected to folks who obviously had no commitment to him. However, ten years is a long time to be gone and to have very little contact with family, so much to his surprise and chagrin, he learns upon returning home that his sister is gone-she died. No one notified him of her untimely death and no one wants to talk about it nor tell him how she died. In his tantrum and angry quest to find out what happened to Cynthia, T.L. will rip open the dysfunctional fabric that holds his family together. He will discover that the glue that seals them together includes generational secrets, incest, adultery, emotional annihilation and self-hatred. Going home will also bring him face to face with his favorite teacher who is dying and who has a few secrets of her own. She also has a demanding request of T. L. that he is not sure that he can honor. Since returning home, the baggage of the past is suffocating him and stifling his reason for being-and now that his sister is gone he is in more of a hurry to return to his beloved NYC. But can one ever really emotionally or physically leave the place they call home? They Tell Me of a Home is a powerful, universal story of a young man returning home and coming to the realization that " my coming home was because I had missed the most critical lesson any student can learn-that transforming the world begins with love of one's own people." Black delivers a poignant message as we journey with T.L. and he discovers that just maybe being from Swamp Creek isn't so bad and drives home an even greater message that many folks of color still need to hear today-" that until we teach ourselves, we will always hate ourselves' -and continue to run away from the situation rather than to deal with what ails us. Filled with wit, wisdom, social messages, folklore and rural southern black folk and their ways, Tyson's debut novel is creatively crafted and a page-turner. Beautifully and lyrically written, colorful characters including secondary characters that felt like family and inclusion of my two favorite topics-African American History a