Best-selling novelist Joshilyn Jackson is very connected to southern literature. In addition to the South functioning as the setting in her novels, she frequents local bookstores and works alongside area writers. For those looking to give the gift of reading this holiday season, Jackson has her top picks for books written by southerners.
At the very top of her list is “Darktown” by Thomas Mullen. Jackson says the book will “hit so many readers exactly right,” from fans of historical fiction to mystery, police procedurals to literary fiction. Set in 1948 Atlanta, Mullen examines pre-civil rights race relations, the integration of Atlanta’s police department, and the suspicious murder of a black woman. Jackson says that while the book is gritty and has “some dark moments … it’s not a book that’s without hope.”
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