Johnson, S: Flowers for the Living

A riveting story of how a suicidal African-American teenager's forcing a young white cop to kill him devastates the teenager's mother as well the rookie cop. It also sparks a massive race riot and puts the mother and rookie in the crosshairs of a deranged gunman. The only place Emma Jennings, the mother, and Russell "Rusty" Carter, Jr., the cop, find refuge from the chaos engulfing them is the teenager's serenely beautiful grave. Through initially awkward meetings there, Emma and Rusty establish a bond that they must ultimately rely on to rebuild their lives and help heal their city.

"Standing on Holy Ground is an inspiring work of good overcoming evil. It is a ruthlessly

honest account of the new progressive South still struggling with a very old legacy of hate."--USA Today