Black Author Re-Releases Fictional Novel About a Mentally Ill Black Man’s Encounter With Racism and Police Brutality

Nationwide — James E. Cherry’s latest novel, Edge of the Wind, from Stephen F Austin University Press, centers around protagonist Alexander van der Pool, a 25-year-old Black man who is off his medication and hearing voices. The primary voice he hears is that of his alter ego, Tobi. Alex has been writing poetry and wants to find out if it is any good. He visits a literature class at a local college to have them evaluated and when they try to put him out, he pulls a gun and takes the class hostage.

This is what fiction writer Valerie Martin has to say about Edge of the Wind: “In this touching and wonderful novel, Cherry follows Flannery O’Conner’s surprising dictum and literally holds a gun to his characters’ heads. Their earnest and honest engagement in the moral confrontation that follows will tell you everything you need to know about race in America.”

Cherry is the author of three volumes of poetry, a collection of short fiction, and two novels. He has an MFA in creative writing from the University of Texas at El Paso. His work has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award, a Lillian Smith Book Award, and a Next Generation Indie Book Award.

When Edge of the Wind was first published in 2016, it was a finalist for Foreword Reviews Book of the Year for Fiction. Copies of the reissue are available now wherever books are sold. Cherry, who resides in Tennessee, is available for readings and signings. Visit him at JamesECherry.com

For press inquiries, contact cherry@jamesEcherry.com or 731-422-2524.