Just read: "A Taste of Honey" by Jabari Asim

At one time, I’m sure there was only one genre of books because no one was the wiser when it came to whether or not a story was fiction. Then came the fantastic and, lo, we had two genres. It’s only gotten worse since then with all kinds of divisions. One of the biggest is “literary”—which I call “fiction.” And I don’t read very much of it, but when I do, it’s on recommendation.

This book came highly recommended and…it broke my heart. It made me laugh. It made me cry. I felt nostalgic and melancholy and it made me thoughtful and it rearranged some molecules in my brain when I finished. I one-hundred percent believe that this is what people who read fiction are looking for. They want a story that’s a roller-coaster of emotion that feels real, that provides insight into the human condition. The book is a collection of interrelated short fiction featuring a cast of characters interacting in one neighborhood. It’s period, 1968, and features a primarily African-American characters who provide particular insight into the layers of a culture that perhaps should never have existed and preservers in many ways to this day.

Read it and see for yourself.