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    Stories from The Tenants Downstairs
    Stories from The Tenants Downstairs
    Stories from The Tenants Downstairs
    Audiobook6 hours

    Stories from The Tenants Downstairs

    Written by Sidik Fofana

    Narrated by Sidik Fofana, Joniece Abbott-Pratt, Nile Bullock and

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    About this audiobook

    SELECTED FOR THE RUSA 2023 LISTEN LIST FOR OUTSTANDING AUDIOBOOK NARRATION!

    WINNER of the Gotham Book Prize * Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award, and the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence * Longlisted for the Story Prize

    Named a BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR by NPR, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Chicago Review of Books, LitHub, and Electric Lit

    “A standout achievement…American speech is an underused commodity in contemporary fiction and it’s a joy to find such a vital example of it here.” —The Wall Street Journal

    From a superb new literary talent, a rich, lyrical collection of stories about a tight-knit cast of characters grappling with their own personal challenges while the forces of gentrification threaten to upend life as they know it.

    At Banneker Terrace, everybody knows everybody, or at least knows of them. Longtime tenants’ lives are entangled together in the ups and downs of the day-to-day, for better or for worse. The neighbors in the unit next door are friends or family, childhood rivals or enterprising business partners. In other words, Harlem is home. But the rent is due, and the clock of gentrification—never far from anyone’s mind—is ticking louder now than ever.

    In eight interconnected stories, Sidik Fofana conjures a residential community under pressure. There is Swan, in apartment 6B, whose excitement about his friend’s release from prison jeopardizes the life he’s been trying to lead. Mimi, in apartment 14D, hustles to raise the child she had with Swan, waitressing at Roscoe’s and doing hair on the side. And Quanneisha B. Miles, in apartment 21J, is a former gymnast with a good education who wishes she could leave Banneker for good, but can’t seem to escape the building’s gravitational pull. We root for the tight-knit cast of characters as they weave in and out of one another’s narratives, working to escape their pasts and blaze new paths forward for themselves and the people they love. All the while we brace, as they do, for the challenges of a rapidly shifting future.

    Stories from the Tenants Downstairs brilliantly captures the joy and pain of the human experience in this “singular accomplishment from a writer to watch” (Library Journal, starred review).

    Editor's Note

    Resilient…

    Eight stories, eight protagonists, and one shared experience: Welcome to Banneker Terrace in Harlem, where gentrification looms and tenants are crass, vulnerable, and wholly human. Meet a struggling young mother, a gay sex worker with big dreams, and a paraprofessional at odds with her privileged coworker — to name a few. Fofana’s honest story collection offers intimate and gritty glimpses of life in a marginalized but resilient neighborhood.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateAug 16, 2022
    ISBN9781797145020
    Author

    Sidik Fofana

    Sidik Fofana earned an MFA from New York University. Three of his stories appeared in the Sewanee Review. He lives with his wife and son in New York City where he is a public school teacher.

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    Reviews for Stories from The Tenants Downstairs

    4/5

    92 ratings11 reviews

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    • 4/5
      This was really good. I am glad I listened to it because I liked hearing the different narrators read the stories. I wanted more of all of these characters, especially the kids. Definitely worth the listen.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      Wasn't the ending I was expecting. I really enjoyed how everyone's lives was tied by this one building an we got to see just how difficult it was for each character. I like to believe that had happier endings but in reality ik they all have battles to fight floor by floor.
    • 5/5
      For better and worse, these stories took me back to my own upbringing in Cleveland. The author did a masterful job creating rich, complex characters telling their individual stories in their own words. But this also reminded me of how often broken people make life choices that only serve to degrade their lives further. Worse, how ready and willing so many are to drag down anyone trying to rise above their circumstances for something better. Crabs in a bucket indeed…
    • 5/5
      Good book for first time arthur. I would recommend it.
    • 4/5
      Excellent audio readers. I enjoyed majority of the stories. I look forward to more books from this author.
    • 3/5
      I liked the interconnected tales. I loved all the narrators, fantastic job and brought the characters to life. I just don’t like snooty stories. No HEA or epilogue for the tenants. ☹️
    • 5/5
      Narrative on the different lives of each tenant, but also similar in some, very compelling
    • 5/5
      Stunning interconnected short stories that breathe life into every one of its characters and create a setting that feels just as a real. A tight, intense exploration of gentrification and the impact on communities mental health, desires and needs that go all unnoticed and uncared for in times of need. It felt so reminiscent of experiences I’ve had so maybe that’s where the connection comes from, but even divorced from that it was brilliant.
    • 5/5
      These are power interconnected narratives of Black Americans living in a building that's being gentrified. There was very human portrayals of people living through poverty, lack of opportunities, and intergenerational trauma. It pulls at your heart.

      The audiobook was multi cast and really well done.
    • 5/5
      This was an incredible book! Each characters story was told beautifully. The author and narrators brought each character to life 5/5!
    • 4/5
      Insightful, unapologetic, raw, and natural - the voices feel authentic. I thought it was pretty good.