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Kalisha Buckhanon

Speaking of Summer: A Novel Hardcover – July 30, 2019

by Kalisha Buckhanon (Author)

4.0 271 ratings

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A “powerful song about what it means to survive as a woman in America” (Jesmyn Ward), this “fiercely astute” novel follows a sister determined to uncover the truth about her twin’s disappearance (Tayari Jones).

On a cold December evening, Autumn Spencer’s twin sister, Summer, walks to the roof of their shared Harlem brownstone and is never seen again. The door to the roof is locked, and the snow holds only one set of footprints. Faced with authorities indifferent to another missing Black woman, Autumn must pursue the search for her sister all on her own.

With her friends and neighbors, Autumn pretends to hold up through the crisis. But the loss becomes too great, the mystery too inexplicable, and Autumn starts to unravel, all the while becoming obsessed with the various murders of local women and the men who kill them, thinking their stories and society’s complacency toward them might shed light on what really happened to her sister.

In Speaking of Summer, critically acclaimed author Kalisha Buckhanon has created a fast-paced story of urban peril and victim invisibility, and the fight to discover the complicated truths at the heart of every family.

Print length

304 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Counterpoint
Publication date

July 30, 2019
Dimensions

6.2 x 1.2 x 9.1 inches
ISBN-10

1640091912
ISBN-13

978-1640091917
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From the Publisher

Speaking of Summer

Editorial Reviews

Review

Nominated for the 2020 AAMBC Literary Awards Urban Book of the Year

“Kalisha Buckhanon’s characters are both fearless and haunted, brave and burdened by the past. Speaking of Summer gives us a powerful song about what it means to survive as a woman in America.”
—Jesmyn Ward, National Book Award winner and author of Sing, Unburied, Sing

“Powerful.”
—The Washington Post

“Buckhanon unravels a powerful story that examines violence, race and grief.”
—Time

“Thrilling.”
—Entertainment Weekly

”An absolutely riveting thriller about a woman who’s desperate to find her missing twin sister amid a criminal justice system that’s weighted against people of color. Come for Kalisha Buckhanon’s addictive writing and stay for a truly mind–blowing twist.”
—Cosmopolitan

“Novels of psychological suspense often employ unreliable narrators—think Gone Girl or Shutter Island—but Buckhanon, who’s also known for her work as an on–air true crime expert, employs the device not to keep readers off–balance, but rather to evoke Autumn’s fragility and raise universal questions about mental illness, racism, and love . . . Fiercely astute.”
—Tayari Jones, O, The Oprah Magazine

“This book packs a punch, so buckle in . . . [A] quick read that creatively and captivatingly approaches themes of mental health and identity.”
—Sarah Neilson, Shondaland

“A voice for the invisible.”
—Essence

“Will grab ahold of your mind and your heart.”
—Elite Daily

“Kalisha Buckhanon has created a narrative voice that’s authentic, emotionally charged and wise, but beneath the surface of the story lurks the unraveling of a life and how 'even the biological imperative to survive' can sometimes lose against the 'power of past experiences.' Buckhanon has crafted a deeply moving psychological mystery with twists that come in unhurried moments like the small notes the sisters buried in bottles in their garden shed. I’m going to be talking about Summer for a while.”
—Star–Tribune (Minneapolis)

“Mysterious urgency is what drives this complex and suspenseful novel, which follows 34–year–old Autumn as she sacrifices her professional and personal life—as well as her emotional and psychological wellbeing—in the pursuit of her missing sister, Summer. The story unravels in Autumn's mind, reading at times like a stream of consciousness with flashbacks woven throughout, and culminates in a powerful story of discovery—on the surface, a search for Autumn's sister, but ultimately an excavation of herself.”
—BuzzFeed

“A dynamic and important story that will provoke needed conversations about the devastating effects of trauma and mental illness.”
—Chicago Review of Books

“What do you do when your twin, your other half, disappears, and no one seems to notice? . . . Buckhanon (Solemn, 2016) captures Autumn’s frustration at the undervaluing of Black women, accompanied by the creeping gentrification of her Harlem neighborhood. Not only are individual Black women disappearing, so are the communities that keep them safe.”
—Booklist (starred review)

“The novel explores issues of race, gender, and violence with nuance . . . Buckhanon understands the complexities of trauma. Her portrait of Autumn's grief, fragmented memories, and inner turmoil all synthesize current scientific research on how people cope with traumatic experiences and might seek to heal.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“A spellbinding masterpiece, a riveting read from a young woman who has become a major American storyteller.”
—Sapphire, author of Push and The Kid

Book Description

Publicity

National targeted coverage in national media with strong focus on women's magazines as well (pushing for profiles in Vogue, Elle, Ebony, Essence, Marie Claire and more)
Original essay for publications such as Psychology Today or Science of Us on her research on dissociative identity disorder and how it manifests for most sufferers in much less sensational and noticeable ways than portrayed in media as "split personality disorder."
Original essays targeted in publications such as Mother Jones, Atlantic and more on the staggering number of missing Black women and children who receive little to no search efforts or case coverage from law enforcement, local organizations and the media (and how that topic/her research led to the writing of this novel)
Targeted outreach to African American publications, podcasts, radio programs, tv programs, etc
Push toward book club selection by publications such as Book of the Month and Hello Sunshine
Targeted outreach to placement on summer reading lists (print and online)
Targeted outreach to true crime reviewers/podcasts/publications that covered books such as Still Lives
Targeted local outreach throughout Chicago
Author promotion through website at https://www.kalisha.com/

Event Schedule
Events throughout Chicago and New York, including appearances at the American Writers Museum, NYPL, Harlem Arts Salon, and Institute for African-American Affairs
Festival appearances at Printer's Row, WordUp, Southern Festival of Books, and more

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Counterpoint (July 30, 2019)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1640091912
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1640091917
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.25 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.2 x 1.2 x 9.1 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,229,278 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #16,055 in Amateur Sleuths
- #22,144 in Murder Thrillers
- #56,630 in Literary Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.0 271 ratings

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Kalisha Buckhanon

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Kalisha Buckhanon is the author of SPEAKING OF SUMMER, SOLEMN, CONCEPTION and UPSTATE as well as numerous stories, essays, articles and blogs on her site negression.com. She was a true crime TV commentator on BET, ID Channel and TV One. She and her work featured also in such media as Essence, O Magazine, People, Time, Entertainment Weekly, Cosmo, Marie Claire, Elle, The Guardian/London Observer and more. UPSTATE is an American Library Association ALEX Award winner, Audie Award in Literary Fiction winner, Terry McMillan Young Author Award winner, Hurston-Wright Foundation Debut Fiction Finalist and National Book Foundation "Literature for Justice" title. Kalisha has an M.A. and B.A. in English from University of Chicago, where she was elected into Phi Beta Kappa. Her Creative Writing M.F.A. is from The New School in New York City. She is at work on new projects in her home state of Illinois, where she was born in the small town of Kankakee.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5

271 global ratings

5 star		45%
4 star		27%
3 star		18%
2 star		7%
1 star		3%

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Julie Griffin

Engrossing and heartbreaking glimpse of womanhood in America

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 3, 2022

Verified Purchase

Loved this book. It startled me into attention right from the opening sentence and kept me on edge through the end. What has happened to Autumn's twin sister, Summer, and why does she feel like she is the only one who cares? Navigating a threatening maze of Harlem streets and fraught relationships, Autumn keeps pushing back and we get a picture of the frames of unwanted male attention and the constant threat of violence surrounding women, especially women of color, around the portrait of a determined but mystified woman in her early thirties. By the end of the book we are rooting for her to find the answers to Summer, and herself. One of the better books I've read this year so far, and looking forward to reading more by this author.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

The style is a little too artsy and affected for my personal tastes

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on February 14, 2022

Verified Purchase

DNF @ 11%

I bought this when it went on sale despite the low GR ratings because the premise sounded amazing. I love female-fronted thrillers/mysteries about troubled main characters trying to work through some sort of intense family trauma. In this case, the trauma is that the heroine, Autumn's, twin sister, Summer, has disappeared, and nobody cares because she is Black, and as far as the media is concerned, Black people go missing all the time. Like, that's the status quo.

Obviously this is wildly problematic and the heroine decides to take matters into her own hands. At the same time, she's working through some emotional baggage of her own, and you can feel the weight of her depression through the prose itself, which is maybe why the narrative feels so bogged-down and slow. Stylistically, this didn't really appeal to me. I think it will appeal to people who like books by authors like Francesca Lia Block and Nova Ren Suma. I call it the "depressed artsy girl" genre of fiction. That was me in high school but it isn't me so much now. I couldn't get through the writing.

2 to 2.5 out of 5 stars

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Teresa

Storyline written about once too many times-

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 29, 2022

Verified Purchase

Bottom line, I aliens Buckhanon is a talented writer, however; I just didn't care for the storyline of this book. I felt the storyline was tedious, over used and that it took too long a time to get to her point. It was a book that I could easily put down and not be excited to pick up where I left off.

Again, her writing was creative and kept my attention, but the storyline of Speaking of Summer did not.

Helpful

Charlie Lomax, Turning Pages Book Club

A Mystery Indeed

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 17, 2020

Verified Purchase

The members of Turning Pages Book Club agree that although this story line starts out slow, the mystery constantly builds, with the many characters, all who prove to be essential to the story.
This mystery touches on so many topics that are relevant today,such as how social media has both positive and negative affects on people, specifically women.The subject of how women are seen in our society, specifically black women: Are Black Women invisible, are they seen as the "Strong Black Woman", who does not need anyone because, she can do it all by herself?
Many topics are covered in this book that are relatable. However, as a mystery you will enjoy weaving through the maze of what can happen when you feel lonely, unloved, mistreated and abused!
We all agreed, although this is a slow starting book it was well worth the time to finish this exceptionally written mystery.
Kalisha Buchanan. we all concur ",this sister can write"!

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Angela Brinson Anderson-cuthbert

Love the realistic approach to a victim of sexual assault

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 15, 2022

Verified Purchase

I felt that the portrayal
the black family was very realistic. The perspective of a female suffering from a mental health disorder was portrayed carefully and with true heartfelt emotion and clarity.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 2, 2022

Verified Purchase

I did not see the ending coming. Very emotional at the end. Well written with real characters. A good read.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 18, 2022

Verified Purchase

Didn’t love it didn’t hate it certainly took a while for me to get into it. I would blaze through chapters then struggle to read the next.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

JNSlade

Thought Provoking and Engaging

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 20, 2019

Verified Purchase

Based on the description of the book, I was expecting a thriller: something fast-paced to keep me guessing until the end. Even the opening lines of the book have the main character running from something – a killer? Serial rapist? Someone seeking to settle a long-forgotten score?

In the end you get all the answers to these questions, though not in the way you may expect, so maybe it is a thriller after all since it does deliver an unexpected twist. The book does beg the reader to confront notions of how America treats Black women – our mental health, our girlhood, and our safety. These are things everyone is better for considering. A good read.

15 people found this helpful

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