Our next book club pick is Tyriek White’s We Are a Haunting, a stunning, lyrical debut novel, and the winner of The Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize. We will be talking with Tyriek on Tuesday February 27 at 7 p.m. CST.

Check out the Friendly City Books Podcast with Tyriek White

On its face, a novel that takes place in New York City may seem out of place in a book club that features books about the South and/or by southerners, and yet this book about three generations of a family living in public housing in East New York is deeply entwined in the traditions and traumas and historical legacies of the South. (“This novel is so New York—so, so New York—yet so deeply southern on lower frequencies. It’s astonishing,” writes the one and only Kiese Laymon.) On top of that, Tyriek earned his MFA at the University of Mississippi and still lives in Oxford.

New York has an elevated place in America’s collective imagination, yet Tyriek White is most interested in the stories, people, and city blocks on the literal and metaphorical fringes of the city. His book is steeped in history, art, and culture, with spiritual and supernatural elements adding to the richness of the characters and setting. There’s so much to talk about with this book, and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts and questions for Tyriek.