Do African-American Readers Prefer Urban Lit?

In a discussion that I contributed to near the end of December on readers.ning.com, a gentleman made a comment that disturbed me to no end. He said, "Urban [lit] novels have replaced all types of reading. They have become the alternative to any higher-level reading selections in the African-American community." Is he saying that "Stories From The Hood" have become "THE ALTERNATIVE" to any other works of literature?!? I couldn't disagree with him more.

He added, "New age forms of writing have caused us to forget the traditional art forms and artists, such as Paul Lawrence Dunbar, Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez or Langston Hughes." Now, he's got a point. I don't know many people who are checking for Paul Lawrence Dunbar these days, but as far as Giovanni, Sanchez and Hughes are concerned, they still rank fairly high on my reading list.

What is most unsettling is that he is not alone in his thinking. I have come across several other readers/writers who feel the same way that he does. And, let me not forget to mention that sells for Urban Lit are off the chain, which explains why it seems to be dominating the market. I started wondering, are folks really not interested in literary fiction anymore?

It wasn't until I read a blog post on MySpace by Tananarive Due, author of Blood Colony and more recently, In the Night of The Heat, written with Steven Barnes and Blair Underwood, that I realized there are others who share my point of view, which is that within the last few years there has been an influx of books that lack originality and creativity, many of which are published under the guise of Urban Literature. In Due's posting, she shared part of a discussion that she had with James Fugate, co-owner of Eso Won Books in L.A. He told her that business is slow and Black books in general are not doing well.

"There are a lot of factors, perhaps: A bad economy. Internet book sales. Competition with chains. Fewer book tours to draw in the crowds," Due wrote. "But Fugate also says that he believes that in recent years, more of the books are lacking in originality and story. He wonders if some Black readers may feel squeezed out by shifts in the marketplace."

The shifts in the marketplace that Fugate is speaking of has to do with the overwhelming amount of Urban Lit being published, promoted, and passed off as definitive works that speak to the African-American experience. It's the literary equivalent to BET. Yep ... scary, I know.

Well the good news is a dialogue is in effect between supporters of Urban Lit and others voicing their disdain for it. Actually, the latter is speaking loudly and they're calling for an end to it all. In fact, there is a heated discussion going on right now at www.theurbanbooksource.com. It was prompted by an article entitled, Urban Lit is Dead! by Joey Pickney. Check it out!

**Congratulations to Tananarive Due on receiving two NAACP Image Award nominations for In the Night of The Heat. The NAACP Image Awards will be broadcast on Feb. 12th on Fox at 8 p.m. To cast a vote, click on NAACP to join.