Showing results by narrator "Leon Nixon" in All Categories

In You Throw Like a Girl, former Syracuse University quarterback and NFL veteran Don McPherson examines how the narrow definition of masculinity adversely impacts women and creates many "blind spots" that hinder the healthy development of men. Dissecting the strict set of beliefs and behaviors that underpin our understanding of masculinity, he contends that we don't raise boys to be men, we raise them not to be women.

After 12 years of playing basketball at the highest professional level, Brian Grant could have been forgiven for thinking that the hardest part of his life was behind him, that he'd be able to kick back and enjoy the fruits of his considerable labors. But soon after his retirement from the NBA, Grant was diagnosed with Young-Onset Parkinson's Disease, ushering in a challenge greater than any he'd faced before. In Rebound, Grant shares his remarkable life before, during, and after those NBA years with no shortage of compassion and wit.

The US Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that law-enforcement agencies have access to more than 100 million names stored in criminal history databases. In some cities, 80 percent of the black male population is registered in these databases. Digitize and Punish explores the long history of digital computing and criminal justice, revealing how big tech, computer scientists, university researchers, and state actors have digitized carceral governance over the past 40 years - with devastating impact on poor communities of color.

In 1971, Eddie Conway, lieutenant of security for the Baltimore chapter of the Black Panther Party, was convicted of murdering a police officer and sentenced to life plus 30 years. Paul Coates was a community worker at the time and didn’t know Eddie well, and the little he knew, he didn’t much like. But Paul was dead certain that Eddie’s charges were bogus. He vowed never to leave Eddie - and in so doing, changed the course of both their lives. For over 43 years, as he raised a family and started a business, Paul visited Eddie in prison, often taking his kids with him.

Menace and Speedy are two local dope slingers with much in common, but two things in particular. They're both young and hungry. Business is booming, and while most people in their position would be satisfied, Menace and Speedy aren't "most people". They want to be among the drug game elite, and the only way to do that is get hooked up with a "connect". A major supplier who can provide enough product to help the duo graduate from "dealers" to "kingpins". One day, the pair finally acquire the long sought-after connect.

The deliberate devaluation of Blacks and their communities has had very real, far-reaching, and negative economic and social effects. An enduring white supremacist myth claims brutal conditions in Black communities are mainly the result of Black people's collective choices and moral failings. But there is nothing wrong with Black people that ending racism can't solve. Noted educator, journalist, and scholar Andre Perry takes listeners on a tour of six Black-majority cities whose assets and strengths are undervalued.  

Los Angeles, 1963. African American Korean War veteran Harry Ingram earns a living as a news photographer and occasional process server: chasing police radio calls and dodging baseball bats. With racial tensions running high on the eve of Martin Luther King’s Freedom Rally, Ingram risks becoming a victim at every crime scene he photographs.

When the office lotto pool lands the winning ticket for four friends, each will embark on journeys that change their lives forever. After years of stringing her along, Terrance has reluctantly married his longtime girlfriend, Sheray...just days before winning the lottery. When the money drives a wedge between them, Sheray leaves and Terrance learns the hard way to be careful what you wish for. Angelique has been overweight since she was young. When she uses some of her winnings to get weight loss surgery, her new body and new attitude could cost her the man she loves.

Since his election to the US Senate in 2006, Ohio’s Sherrod Brown has sat on the Senate floor at a mahogany desk with a proud history. In Desk 88, he tells the story of eight of the Senators who were there before him. Despite their flaws and frequent setbacks, each made a decisive contribution to the creation of a more just America. Together, these eight portraits in political courage tell a story about the triumphs and failures of the Progressive idea over the past century.

Josiah Henson's amazing life reveals the horrors of slavery and the determination of one individual to be free. This story of his perilous escape with a wife and four children on the Underground Railroad and subsequent fulfillment in Canada is chiefly drawn from his own writings.  

Zoe and Alf make each other promises before parting for separate colleges. Can they keep those promises? Zoe is forced into a world she doesn’t understand, and a college far from home and her beloved family. Alf meets Sarah at school, but is forced to honor his promise to Zoe and keeps Sarah at bay, even though he’s attracted to her. Lucas Wright, the perfect gentleman, paves the way for Zoe at college, and while she feels something for Lucas, she holds the space in her heart for Alf.

A. C. Arthur presents Book 3 in the Legion series. Contains mature themes. 

Born a dream reaper, Steele Ezo, a powerful half-dragon, half-human, is struggling to find his place in the Drakon hierarchy. He is ready to accept his fate until he realizes the next victim on the Reaper's hit list is the sexy thief that's caught his eye. She's supposed to die. He's forbidden stop it. But their inexplicable connection makes it impossible to step aside. Abandoned by her family and abused by local enforcers, Ravyn Walsh lives life on her own terms. She's created an underground sanctuary for the oppressed citizens of Burgess, and she needs funds to keep it running.

Even though he's best known for his successful PBS series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, Fred Rogers never dreamed of working in television. In fact, he hated the very first program that he ever watched! Join author Diane Bailey as she takes listeners through the journey that brought Mister Rogers into our living rooms. From his childhood interest in puppet-making and music, to his courageous visit to Russia during the Cold War, this audiobook details Mister Rogers' quest for kindness and his gentle appeal to be more neighborly.

In his more-than-four-decade tenure as the President of Hampton University—one of 107 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in America—Dr. William R. Harvey has been a champion of the cultural impact and value of HBCUs, demonstrated by the achievements of their numerous notable alumni. Their success is no coincidence. It is the result of a faultless formula that sets HBCUs apart and helps their students thrive.

Mortar rounds rained down on us continuously, starting at sunrise. We hadn’t slept the previous night because the business of life and death were upon us. Now those mortar rounds were erupting like little volcanoes. But instead of hot lava rocks, they were hot pieces of shrapnel that whizzed by us in every direction.  

When COVID-19 began spreading rapidly, the world was taken by surprise. As the ensuing pandemic raged, we faced one constant—a lack of consistent, scientifically sound, and trusted information about dangers, risks, and mitigation strategies that the average person could understand and put into practice to keep themselves and their families safe. Now, the former Surgeon General of the United States—freed from the many constraints he worked under in public office—reveals critical lessons learned from both mistakes and successes overlooked during the pandemic.

These are stories about the choices we face in love and in relationships; and braving the consequences that may follow. Which path will you choose when your heart comes to a crossroads? Five Houston couples are forced to make choices about their relationships that will either keep them on the same path or completely change the trajectory of their lives.

Lance Montgomery, renowned relationship expert, has perfected the art of being a playa. His acclaimed workshops and bestselling books prove it. His most popular title, The Playa’s Handbook, caused a major uproar among black women and men, and shot to the top of the bestseller list.

After a close friend commits suicide, Faith, Monique, and Shannon head to the beach cottage on Hilton Head Island. Determined to heed her advice and make the most of their lives, they make a pact to spend the summer embracing new adventures. They also embrace new men and a new best friend along the way.