Magnolia Flower, Zora Neale Hurston
Magnolia Flower, Zora Neale Hurston
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Magnolia Flower

Author: Zora Neale Hurston, Ibram X. Kendi

Narrator: Sheryl Lee Ralph

Unabridged: 14 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/06/2022


Synopsis

From beloved African American folklorist Zora Neale Hurston comes a moving adaptation by National Book Award winner and #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Be an Antiracist and Antiracist Baby, Ibram X. Kendi. Magnolia Flower follows a young Afro Indigenous girl who longs for freedom.Born to parents who fled slavery and the Trail of Tears, Magnolia Flower is a girl with a vibrant spirit. Not to be deterred by rigid ways of the world, she longs to connect with others, who too long for freedom. She finds this in a young man of letters who her father disapproves of. In her quest to be free, Magnolia must make a choice and set off on a journey that will prove just how brave one can be when leading with one’s heart.The acclaimed writer of several American classics, Zora Neale Hurston wrote this stirring folktale brimming with poetic prose, culture, and history. It was first published as a short story in The Spokesman in 1925 and later in her collection Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick (2020).Tenderly retold by #1 New York Times bestselling and National Book Award-winning author Ibram X. Kendi, Magnolia Flower is a story of a transformative and radical devotion between generations of Indigenous and Black people in America. This book reminds us that there is no force strong enough to stop love.

About Zora Neale Hurston

Zora Neale Hurston wrote four novels (Jonah’s Gourd Vine; Their Eyes Were Watching God; Moses, Man of the Mountains; and Seraph on the Suwanee) and was still working on her fifth novel, The Life of Herod the Great, when she died; three books of folklore (Mules and Men and the posthumously published Go Gator and Muddy the Water and Every Tongue Got to Confess); a work of anthropological research (Tell My Horse); an autobiography (Dust Tracks on a Road); an international bestselling ethnographic work (Barracoon); and over fifty short stories, essays, and plays. She was born in Notasulga, Alabama, grew up in Eatonville, Florida, and lived her last years in Fort Pierce, Florida.

About Ibram X. Kendi

Ibram X. Kendi is a National Book Award–winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author. His books include Antiracist Baby; Goodnight Racism; How to Be an Antiracist; and How to Raise an Antiracist. Kendi was the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities at Boston University and the Director of the BU Center for Antiracist Research for five years, before leaving to become Director of the Howard University Institute for Advanced Study in 2025. In 2020, Time magazine named Kendi one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He was also awarded a 2021 MacArthur Fellowship.

About Sheryl Lee Ralph

Sheryl Lee Ralph is an acclaimed stage and screen actress whose career spans more than four decades. At age twenty, she made her feature film debut opposite Sidney Poitier in Warner Bros.’ A Piece of the Action, which Poitier also directed. She is widely celebrated for originating the role of Deena Jones in the landmark Broadway musical Dreamgirls, earning Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations for Best Actress. Her extensive body of work includes notable film and television roles in Mistress, To Sleep with Anger, The Distinguished Gentlemen, Sister Act 2, Moesha, and Ray Donovan. She currently stars in the Peabody Award–winning comedy series Abbott Elementary, and her portrayal of Barbara Howard earned her the 2022 Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. She recently received a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for her distinguished career. Ralph is also a nationally recognized AIDS activist, and in 1990 she founded The DIVA Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to improving health outcomes through arts-based programming. She is the proud mother of two, Etienne and Ivy, and is married to Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes. She divides her time between Los Angeles and Philadelphia.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Karen

Picture book about a girl who defies her parents for love - Maroons/Seminoles living deep in Florida - adapted from a story by Zora Neale Hurston.......more

Goodreads review by Kathy

Zora Neale Hurston - anything by her is a treasure to hold dearly! The illustrations by Loveis Wise match Hurston's tale and are so beautiful that I took many pictures of them to paint into my personal journal! Thank you Zora!......more