February 29: Beloved by Toni Morrison

In the classic Beloved, an escaped slave named Sethe is living in post-Civil War Ohio with her daughter and mother-in-law, and is haunted persistently by the ghost of the dead baby girl whom she sacrificed.

Staring unflinchingly into the abyss of slavery, this spellbinding novel transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby.

Sethe, its protagonist, was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. And Sethe's new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved.

Filled with bitter poetry and suspense as taut as a rope, Beloved is a towering achievement.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 28: When Grandmama Sings by Margaree King Mitchell and James Ransome

In this middle school-level tale, an eight-year-old girl accompanies her grandmother on a singing tour of the segregated South, both of them knowing that Grandmama's songs have the power to bring people together.

"Belle, tonight was special. I could feel all of those folks with me. I want us to feel this way all the time. I want to sing in a place where black people and white people aren't kept apart," Grandmama said. "That's the kind of world I want for you."

When Grandmama Coles gets a big chance, Belle gets one, too. Belle's going to spend the summer touring the South with Grandmama and a swing jazz band! Belle's never been outside Pecan Flats, Mississippi, and she can't wait to go on the road with Grandmama, helping her read signs and menus and hearing her sing. There are so many new things to see on their travels through the Deep South. But some things aren't new. Everything is segregated, just like at home. But Grandmama stands up for what's right. And when she sings, Belle knows that Grandmama's song can bring everyone together.

From author Margaree King Mitchell and illustrator James E. Ransome, the award-winning author and artist of Uncle Jed's Barbershop, comes When Grandmama Sings, a new picture-book collaboration about the gift of love, the beauty of music, and its power to bring people together - even in the segregated South.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 27: Glory Be by Augusta Scattergood

A Mississippi town in 1964 gets riled when tempers flare at the segregated public pool.

As much as Gloriana June Hemphill, or Glory as everyone knows her, wants to turn twelve, there are times when Glory wishes she could turn back the clock a year.

Jesslyn, her sister and former confidante, no longer has the time of day for her now that she'll be entering high school. Then there's her best friend, Frankie. Things have always been so easy with Frankie, and now suddenly they aren't. Maybe it's the new girl from the North that's got everyone out of sorts. Or maybe it's the debate about whether or not the town should keep the segregated public pool open. Glory's town of Hanging Moss, Mississippi, is beset by racial tension when town leaders close her beloved public pool rather than desegregating it.

Author Augusta Scattergood has drawn on real-life events to create Glory Be, a memorable high school-level novel about family, friendship, and choices that aren't always easy.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 26: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

The compelling story of an anonymous black man who experiences a variety of adventures in the South and later in New York City during a fervent quest for personal identity and social visibility, Invisible Man is a milestone in American literature. It's a book that has continued to engage readers since its first appearance in 1952.

A first novel by a new writer, it remained on the bestseller list for sixteen weeks, won the National Book Award for fiction, and established Ralph Ellison as one of the key writers of the century.

The nameless narrator of the novel describes growing up in a black community in the South, attending a Negro college from which he is expelled, moving to New York and becoming the chief spokesman of the Harlem branch of "the Brotherhood," and retreating amid violence and confusion to the basement lair of the Invisible Man he imagines himself to be.

The book is a passionate and witty tour de force of style, strongly influenced by T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land, Joyce, and Dostoevsky.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 25: Jubilee by Margaret Walker

This stunningly different Civil War novel boasts a heroine to rival Scarlett O'Hara.

Daughter of the white plantation owner and his beloved black mistress, Vyry was conceived, born and reared to womanhood behind the House. Steeped in knowledge of and feeling for the times and the people, Jubilee is a magnificent tale told with devastating truth.

It's the classic - and true - story of Vyry, who bears witness to the South's prewar opulence and its brutality, to its wartime ruin and the subsequent promise of Reconstruction.

It is a story that author Margaret Walker heard as a child from her grandmother, the real Vyry's daughter. Margaret spent thirty years researching the novel so that the world might know the intelligent, strong, and brave black woman called Vyry. The phenomenal acclaim this best-selling book has achieved from readers black and white, young and old, attests to her success.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 24: The Mighty Miss Malone by Christopher Paul Curtis

"We are a family on a journey to a place called wonderful" is the motto of Deza Malone's family. Deza is the smartest girl in her class in Gary, Indiana, singled out by teachers for a special path in life.

But the Great Depression hit Gary hard, and there are no jobs for black men. When her beloved father leaves to find work, Deza, Mother, and her older brother Jimmie go in search of him, and end up in a Hooverville outside Flint, Michigan.

Jimmie's beautiful voice inspires him to leave the camp to be a performer, while Deza and Mother find a new home, and cling to the hope that they will find Father. The twists and turns of their story reveal the devastation of the Depression and prove that Deza truly is The Mighty Miss Malone .

Author Christopher Paul Curtis, winner of the 2000 Newbery Medal and the Coretta Scott King Author Award, was born and raised in Flint, Michigan. The Mighty Miss Malone is intended for high school level readers.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 23: We March by Shane W. Evans

On August 28, 1963, a remarkable event took place - more than 250,000 people gathered in our nation's capital to participate in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

The march began at the Washington Monument and ended with a rally at the Lincoln Memorial, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech, advocating racial harmony.

Many words have been written about that day, but few so delicate and powerful as those presented in We March by award-winning author and illustrator Shane W. Evans. When combined with his simple yet compelling illustrations, the thrill of the day is brought to life for even the youngest reader to experience.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 22: Eliza's Freedom Road by Jerdine Nolen

From the award-winning author of Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm comes a poignant novel for middle-school readers about 12-year-old Eliza, a slave who tells of her journey to freedom.

In Eliza's Freedom Road: An Underground Railroad Diary, it is 1852 in Alexandria, Virginia. Eliza's mother has been sent away and it is Abbey, the cook, who looks after Eliza, when Eliza isn't taking care of the Mistress.

Eliza has the quilt her mother left her and the memory of the stories she told to keep her close. When her Mistress's health begins to fail and Eliza overhears the Master talk of Eliza being traded, Eliza takes to the night.

She follows the path and the words of the farmhand Old Joe, "Travel the night, sleep the day. Go East. Your back to the set of the sun until you come to the safe house where the candlelight lights the window."

All the while, Eliza recites the stories her mother taught her along her Freedom Road from Maryland to St. Catherine's, Canada.

Jerdine Nolen is the author of this and many award-winning books for children, including Raising Dragons, illustrated by Elise Primavera, which received the Christopher Award, and Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm, illustrated by Mark Buehner, winner of the Kentucky Bluegrass Award. Jerdine Nolen lives with her family in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Illustrator Shadra Strickland won the Ezra Jack Keats Award and the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent in 2009 for her work in her first picturebook, Bird, written by Zetta Elliott. Strickland co-illustrated Our Children Can Soar, winner of a 2010 NAACP Image Award. She teaches illustration at Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 21: The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Winning a Pulitzer Prize in 1983, this feminist novel about an abused and uneducated black woman's struggle for empowerment was praised for the depth of its female characters and for its eloquent use of black English vernacular.

In The Color Purple, Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to "Mister," a brutal man who terrorizes her.

Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister's letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self.

Best-selling novelist Alice Walker is the author of five other novels, five collections of short stories, six collections of essays, seven volumes of poetry (including the most recent Hard Times Require Furious Dancing, and several children's books.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 20: Henry's Freedom Box by Ellen Levine

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad is a stirring, dramatic story of a slave who mails himself to freedom by a Jane Addams Peace Award-winning author, Ellen Levine, and a Coretta Scott King Award-winning artist, Kadir Nelson.

In a powerful story written and illustrated for a third to fifth grade reading level, Levine weaves together the extraordinary events in the life of Henry "Box" Brown, who as a young boy hid in a wooden crate in one of the most amazing escapes using the Underground Railroad.

Henry Brown doesn't know how old he is. Nobody keeps records of slaves' birthdays. All the time he dreams about freedom, but that dream seems farther away than ever when he is torn from his family and put to work in a warehouse.

Henry grows up and marries, but he is again devastated when his family is sold at the slave market.

Then one day, as he lifts a crate at the warehouse, he knows exactly what he must do: he will mail himself to the North. After an arduous journey in the crate, Henry finally has a birthday - his first day of freedom.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 19: Just as Good by Chris Crowe

An African American family in Cleveland, Ohio, listens on their new radio to the first game of the 1948 World Series, in which Larry Doby, the first black player in the American League, won the game for the Cleveland Indians.

Batter up for the first-ever children's book about Larry Doby, the first African-American player to hit a home run in the World Series.

The year is 1948, and Homer and his daddy are baseball crazy. Ever since last season, when their man Larry Doby followed Jackie Robinson across baseball's color line and signed on with their team, the Cleveland Indians, it's been like a dream come true. And today Larry Doby and the Indians are playing Game Four of the World Series against the Boston Braves!

With a play-by-play narration capturing all the excitement of that particular game - and the special thrill of listening to it on the radio with family at home - Chris Crowe and Mike Benny craft a compelling tribute to an unsung legend with Just as Good: How Larry Doby Changed America's Game.

Kid-friendly and vividly illustrated, this long-overdue biography, featuring an extensive bibliography and historical note, illuminates the effect Larry Doby had on his fans as both a baseball hero and a champion for civil rights.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 18: Native Son by Richard Wright

Widely acclaimed as one of the finest books ever written on race and class divisions in America, this powerful novel reflects the forces of poverty, injustice, and hopelessness that continue to shape society.

Right from the start, Bigger Thomas had been headed for jail. It could have been for assault or petty larceny; by chance, it was for murder and rape.

Native Son tells the story of this young black man caught in a downward spiral after he kills a young white woman in a brief moment of panic.

Set in Chicago in the 1930s, Wright's powerful novel is an unsparing reflection on the poverty and feelings of hopelessness experienced by people in inner cities across the country and of what it means to be black in America.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 17: Sula by Toni Morrison

The intense friendship shared by Nel Wright and Sula Peace, two African-American women raised in an Ohio town, changes forever when one of them leaves home to roam the countryside and returns ten years later.

In this brilliantly imagined novel, Toni Morrison tells the story of Nel Wright and Sula Peace, who meet as children in the small town of Medallion, Ohio.

Two girls who grow up to become women. Two friends who become something worse than enemies. Their devotion is fierce enough to withstand bullies and the burden of a dreadful secret. It endures even after Nel has grown up to be a pillar of the black community and Sula has become a pariah. But their friendship ends in an unforgivable betrayal - or does it end?

Terrifying, comic, ribald and tragic, Sula is a novel that overflows with life.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 16: Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers

In this new juvenile-fiction novel, Walter Dean Myers looks at contemporary war with the same power and searing insight he brought to the Vietnam War in his classic, Fallen Angels.

Robin "Birdy" Perry, a new army recruit from Harlem, isn't quite sure why he joined the army, but he's sure where he's headed: Iraq.

Birdy and the others in the Civilian Affairs Battalion are supposed to help secure and stabilize the country and successfully interact with the Iraqi people. Officially, the code name for their maneuvers is Operation Iraqi Freedom. But the young men and women in the CA unit have a simpler name for it: WAR.

In Sunrise Over Fallujah, Walter Dean Myers creates memorable characters, like the book's narrator, Birdy, a young recruit from Harlem who's questioning why he even enlisted; Marla, a tough-talking, wisecracking gunner; Jonesy, a guitar-playing bluesman who just wants to make it back to Georgia and open a club; and a whole unit of other young men and women, and drops them in Iraq, where they are supposed to help secure and stabilize Iraq and successfully interact with the Iraqi people.

The young civil affairs soldiers soon find their definition of "winning" ever more elusive and their good intentions being replaced by terms like "survival" and "despair." Caught in the crossfire, Myers' richly rendered characters are just beginning to understand the meaning of war in this powerful, realistic novel of our times.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 15: Malcolm X by Manning Marable

Of the great figures in 20th-century American history, perhaps none is more complex and controversial than Malcolm X. Author Manning Marable's biography of Malcolm is a stunning achievement. Years in the making, this is the definitive biography of the legendary black activist.

The late Manning Marable's acclaimed biography of Malcolm X finally does justice to one of the most influential and controversial figures of twentieth-century American history.

Filled with startling new information and shocking revelations, Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention unfolds a sweeping story of race and class in America.

Reaching into Malcolm's troubled youth, this book traces a path from his parents' activism as followers of Marcus Garvey through his own work with the Nation of Islam and rise in the world of black nationalism, and culminates in the never-before-told true story of his assassination.

Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention is a remarkable achievement, the definitive work on one of America's greatest advocates for social change.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 14: Roots by Alex Haley

One of the most important books and television series ever to appear, Roots, galvanized the nation, and created an extraordinary political, racial, social and cultural dialogue that hadn't been seen since the publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin. The book sold over one million copies in the first year, and the miniseries was watched by an astonishing 130 million people. It also won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.

Roots opened up the minds of Americans of all colors and faiths to one of the darkest and most painful parts of America's past.

Over the years, both Roots and Alex Haley have attracted controversy, which comes with the territory for trailblazing, iconic books, particularly on the topic of race. Some of the criticism results from whether Roots is fact or fiction and whether Alex Haley confused these two issues, a subject he addresses directly in the book.

There is also the fact that Haley was sued for plagiarism when it was discovered that several dozen paragraphs in Roots were taken directly from a novel, The African by Harold Courlander, who ultimately received a substantial financial settlement at the end of the case.

But none of the controversy affects the basic issue. Roots fostered a remarkable dialogue about not just the past, but the then present day 1970s and how America had fared since the days portrayed in Roots.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 13: Baltimore by Philip Merrill and Uluaipou-O-Malo Aiono

Throughout the years, the city of Baltimore has played host to many well-known figures, including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and boxer Joe Louis; the city has been called home by Billie Holiday, Frederick Douglass, and Thurgood Marshall. But it is the local African-American community's members, working diligently to advance and empower themselves, who made history while they lived it.

In Baltimore, authors Philip J. Merrill and Uluaipou-O-Malo Aiono have not only documented the well-known visitors and residents of Maryland's largest city but the everyday life of its African-American citizens before and after desegregation.

A part of the Black America Series, this compilation of well-researched photographs and other memorabilia takes readers on an enjoyable journey through the unique African-American story that belongs to Baltimore.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 12: Shaq Uncut by Shaquille O'Neal

You know him by any number of nicknames, and chances are you know all about his legendary basketball career: Shaquille "Shaq" O'Neal is a four-time NBA champion and a three-time NBA Finals MVP. After being an All-American at Louisiana State University, he was the overall number one draft pick in the NBA in 1992.

In his 19-year career, Shaq racked up 28,596 career points (including 5,935 free throws!), 13,099 rebounds, 3,026 assists, 2,732 blocks, and 15 All-Star appearances.

These are statistics that are almost as massive as the man himself. His presence - both physically and psychologically - made him a dominant force in the game for two decades.

But if you follow the game, you also know that there's a lot more to Shaquille O'Neal than just basketball.

Shaq is famous for his playful and, at times, provocative personality. Whether rapping on any of his five albums, challenging celebrities on his hit television show "Shaq Vs.," studying for his PhD or serving as a reserve police officer, there's no question that Shaq has led a unique and multi-dimensional life.

In this rollicking new autobiography, Shaq discusses his remarkable journey, including his candid thoughts on teammates and coaches like Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Phil Jackson and Pat Riley.

From growing up in difficult circumstances and getting cut from his high school basketball team to his larger-than-life basketball career, Shaq lays it all out in Shaq Uncut: My Story.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 11: Words Set Me Free by Lesa Cline-Ransome

The inspirational, true story of how Frederick Douglass found his way to freedom one word at a time.

Words Set Me Free: The Story of Young Frederick Douglass, a children's picture book biography, chronicles the youth of Frederick Douglass, one of the most prominent African American figures in American history.

Douglass spent his life advocating for the equality of all, and it was through reading that he was able to stand up for himself and others.

The award-winning husband-wife team of author Lesa Cline-Ransome and illustrator James E. Ransome presents a moving and captivating look at the young life of the inspirational man who said, "I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong."

Lesa Cline-Ransome is the author of Satchel Paige and Major Taylor, Champion Cyclist, both illustrated by James E. Ransome.

James E. Ransome's highly acclaimed illustrations for Let My People Go won the NAACP Image Award. His other award-winning titles include Coretta Scott King Honor Book Uncle Jed's Barbershop by Margaree King Mitchell, Deborah Hopkinson's Under the Quilt of the Night and Satchel Paige. James Ransome teaches illustration at Syracuse University and lives in with his family in upstate New York.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 10: No Higher Honor by Condoleezza Rice

From one of the world's most admired women, this is former National Security Advisor and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's compelling story of eight years serving at the highest levels of government. In her position as America's chief diplomat, Rice traveled almost continuously around the globe, seeking common ground among sometimes bitter enemies, forging agreement on divisive issues and compiling a remarkable record of achievement.

A native of Birmingham, Alabama who overcame the racism of the Civil Rights era to become a brilliant academic and expert on foreign affairs, Rice distinguished herself as an advisor to George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign. Once Bush was elected, she served as his chief adviser on national-security issues - a job whose duties included harmonizing the relationship between the Secretaries of State and Defense. It was a role that deepened her bond with the president and ultimately made her one of his closest confidantes.

With the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Rice found herself at the center of the administration's intense efforts to keep America safe. In No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington, Rice describes the events of that harrowing day - and the tumultuous days after. No day was ever the same. Additionally, Rice also reveals new details of the debates that led to the war in Afghanistan and then Iraq.

The eyes of the nation were once again focused on Rice in 2004 when she appeared before the 9/11 Commission to answer tough questions regarding the country's preparedness for - and immediate response to - the 9/11 attacks. Her responses, it was generally conceded, would shape the nation's perception of the administration's competence during the crisis. Rice conveys just how pressure-filled that appearance was and her surprised gratitude when, in succeeding days, she was broadly saluted for her grace and forthrightness.

From that point forward, Rice was aggressively sought after by the media and regarded by some as the administration's most effective champion.

In 2005 Rice was entrusted with even more responsibility when she was charged with helping to shape and carry forward the president's foreign policy as Secretary of State.

As such, she proved herself a deft crafter of tactics and negotiation aimed to contain or reduce the threat posed by America's enemies. Here, she reveals the behind-the-scenes maneuvers that kept the world's relationships with Iran, North Korea and Libya from collapsing into chaos.

She also talks about her role as a crisis manager, showing that at any hour - and at a moment's notice - she was willing to bring all parties to the bargaining table anywhere in the world.

No Higher Honor takes the reader into secret negotiating rooms where the fates of Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Lebanon often hung in the balance, and it draws back the curtain on how frighteningly close all-out war loomed in clashes involving Pakistan-India and Russia-Georgia and in East Africa.

Surprisingly candid in her appraisals of various administration colleagues and the hundreds of foreign leaders with whom she dealt, Rice also offers here keen insight into how history actually proceeds.

In No Higher Honor, she delivers a master class in statecraft - but always in a way that reveals her essential warmth and humility, and her deep reverence for the ideals on which America was founded.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 9: My Song by Harry Belafonte

Harry Belafonte is not just one of the greatest entertainers of our time; he has led one of the great American lives of the last century. Now, with co-author Michael Shnayerson, this extraordinary icon tells us the story of that life, giving us its full breadth, letting us share in the struggles, the tragedies and, most of all, the inspiring triumphs with My Song: A Memoir.

Belafonte grew up, poverty-ridden, in Harlem and Jamaica. His mother was a complex woman - caring but withdrawn, eternally angry and rarely satisfied. His father was distant and physically abusive. It was not an easy life, but it instilled in young Harry the hard-nosed toughness of the city and the resilient spirit of the Caribbean lifestyle.

His journey led to the U.S. Navy during World War II, where he encountered an onslaught of racism but also fell in love with the woman he eventually married. After the war he moved back to Harlem, where he drifted between odd jobs until he saw his first stage play and found the life he wanted to lead. Theater opened up a whole new world, one that was artistic and political and made him realize that not only did he have a need to express himself, he had a lot to express.

He began as an actor - and has always thought of himself as such - but was quickly spotted in a musical, began a tentative nightclub career, and soon was on a meteoric rise to become one of the world's most popular singers.

Belafonte was never content to simply be an entertainer, however. Even at enormous personal cost, he could not shy away from activism. At first it was a question of personal dignity: breaking down racial barriers that had never been broken before, achieving an enduring popularity with both white and black audiences.

Then, his activism broadened to a lifelong, passionate involvement at the heart of the civil rights movement and countless other political and social causes.

The sections on the rise of the civil rights movement are perhaps the most moving in the book: his close friendship with Martin Luther King, Jr.; his role as a conduit between Dr. King and the Kennedys; his up-close involvement with the demonstrations and awareness of the hatred and potential violence around him; his devastation at Dr. King's death and his continuing fight for what he believes is right.

But My Song is far more than the history of a movement. It is a very personal look at the people in that movement and the world in which Belafonte has long moved. He has befriended many beloved and important figures in both entertainment and politics - Paul Robeson, Eleanor Roosevelt, Sidney Poitier, John F. Kennedy, Marlon Brando, Robert Kennedy, Nelson Mandela, Fidel Castro, Tony Bennett, Bill Clinton - and writes about them with the same exceptional candor with which he reveals himself on every page.

This is a book that pulls no punches, and turns both a loving and critical eye on our country's cultural past.

As both an artist and an activist, Belafonte has touched countless lives. With My Song, he has found yet another way to entertain and inspire us. It is an electrifying memoir from a remarkable man.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 8: What Color Is My World? by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Raymond Obstfeld

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, basketball legend and the NBA's all-time leading scorer, champions a lineup of little-known African-American inventors in this lively, kid-friendly book.

Did you know that James West invented the microphone in your cell phone? That Fred Jones invented the refrigerated truck that makes supermarkets possible? Or that Dr. Percy Julian synthesized cortisone from soy, easing untold people's pain? These are just some of the black inventors and innovators scoring big points in this dynamic look at several unsung heroes who shared a desire to improve people's lives.

Offering profiles with fast facts on flaps and framed by a funny contemporary story featuring two feisty twins, What Color Is My World?: The Lost History of African-American Inventors is a nod to the minds behind the gamma electric cell and the ice-cream scoop, improvements to traffic lights, open-heart surgery and more - inventors whose ingenuity and perseverance against great odds made our world safer, better and brighter.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 7: I Beat The Odds by Michael Oher

Available in paperback for the first time this morning and with a new introduction by the author, Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Michael Oher, the football star made famous in the hit film "The Blind Side," reflects on how far he has come from the circumstances of his youth.

Meet AFC North Champion and Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Michael Oher for a book signing at Greetings & Readings on Saturday, February 11. Books must be purchased at Greetings & Readings, and the publisher will not allow Michael Oher to sign any other memorabilia. Line tickets will be handed out beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday, February 11.

Michael Oher is the young man at the center of the true story depicted in "The Blind Side" movie (and book) that swept up awards and accolades. Though the odds were heavily stacked against him, Michael had a burning desire deep within his soul to break out of the Memphis inner-city ghetto and into a world of opportunity. While many people are now familiar with Oher's amazing journey, this is the first time he shares his account of his story in his own words, revealing his thoughts and feelings with details that only he knows, and offering his point of view on how anyone can achieve a better life.

Looking back on how he went from being a homeless child in Memphis to playing in the NFL, Michael talks about the goals he had for himself in order to break out of the cycle of poverty, addiction, and hopelessness that trapped his family for so long. He recounts poignant stories growing up in the projects and running from child services and foster care over and over again in search of some familiarity. Eventually he grasped onto football as his ticket out of the madness and worked hard to make his dream into a reality. But Oher also knew he would not be successful alone. With his adoptive family, the Touhys, and other influential people in mind, he describes the absolute necessity of seeking out positive role models and good friends who share the same values to achieve one's dreams.

Sharing untold stories of heartache, determination, courage, and love, I Beat The Odds: From Homelessness, to the Blind Side and Beyond is an incredibly rousing tale of one young man's quest to achieve the American dream.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 6: African-American Entertainment in Baltimore by Tonya Taliaferro and Rosa Pryor-Trusty

African-American Entertainment in Baltimore captures the brilliance of the city's musical heritage from 1930 to 1980.

This educational and entertaining volume invites readers to take a visual trip down memory lane to the days when Pennsylvania Avenue, the heart of the city's African-American community, vibrated with life.

Authors Rosa Pryor-Trusty and Tonya Taliaferro underscore their commitment to preserving the city's past while paying homage to some of Black America's premier performers with this treasured photo history.

Celebrated within the pages of African-American Entertainment in Baltimore are entertainers such as The Ink Spots, Sonny Til & the Orioles, Illinois Jacquet, Cab Calloway, Lionel Hampton, Sammy Davis Jr., Slappy White, Pearl Bailey, Billie Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald; The Avenue's hottest nightspots and theaters including the legendary Royal Theater, The Regent Theater, the Sphinx, and Club Casino; and the DJs and promoters who helped cultivate the city's musical talents.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 5: The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

In this epic, beautifully written masterwork, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life. From 1915 to 1970, this exodus of almost six million people changed the face of America.

In this epic, beautifully written masterwork, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson chronicles one of the great untold stories of American history: the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, in search of a better life.

From 1915 to 1970, this exodus of almost six million people changed the face of America. Wilkerson compares this epic migration to the migrations of other peoples in history. She interviewed more than a thousand people, and gained access to new data and official records, to write this definitive and vividly dramatic account of how these American journeys unfolded, altering our cities, our country, and ourselves.

With stunning historical detail, The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration tells this story through the lives of three unique individuals: Ida Mae Gladney, who in 1937 left sharecropping and prejudice in Mississippi for Chicago, where she achieved quiet blue-collar success and, in old age, voted for Barack Obama when he ran for an Illinois Senate seat; sharp and quick-tempered George Starling, who in 1945 fled Florida for Harlem, where he endangered his job fighting for civil rights, saw his family fall, and finally found peace in God; and Robert Foster, who left Louisiana in 1953 to pursue a medical career, the personal physician to Ray Charles as part of a glitteringly successful medical career, which allowed him to purchase a grand home where he often threw exuberant parties.

Wilkerson brilliantly captures their first treacherous and exhausting cross-country trips by car and train and their new lives in colonies that grew into ghettos, as well as how they changed these cities with southern food, faith, and culture and improved them with discipline, drive, and hard work.

Both a riveting microcosm and a major assessment, The Warmth of Other Suns is a bold, remarkable, and riveting work, a superb account of an "unrecognized immigration" within our own land. Through the breadth of its narrative, the beauty of the writing, the depth of its research, and the fullness of the people and lives portrayed herein, this book is destined to become a classic.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 4: Life Upon These Shores by Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

With Life Upon These Shores, author Henry Louis Gates, Jr., gives us a sumptuously illustrated landmark book tracing African American history from the arrival of the conquistadors to the election of Barack Obama.

Informed by the latest, sometimes provocative scholarship and including more than seven hundred images - ancient maps, fine art, documents, photographs, cartoons, posters - Life Upon These Shores: Looking at African American History, 1513-2008 focuses on defining events, debates, and controversies, as well as the signal achievements of people famous and obscure.

Gates takes us from the sixteenth century through the ordeal of slavery, from the Civil War and Reconstruction through the Jim Crow era and the Great Migration; from the civil rights and black nationalist movements through the age of hip-hop to the Joshua generation. By documenting and illuminating the sheer diversity of African American involvement in American history, society, politics, and culture, Gates bracingly disabuses us of the presumption of a single "black experience."

Life Upon These Shores is a book of major importance, a breathtaking tour de force of the historical imagination.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 3: Heart and Soul by Kadir Nelson

The story of America and African Americans is a story of hope and inspiration and unwavering courage. But it is also the story of injustice; of a country divided by law, education, and wealth; of a people whose struggles and achievements helped define their country.

Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans is a book for young readers and presents the story of the men, women, and children who toiled in the hot sun picking cotton for their masters; it's about the America ripped in two by Jim Crow laws; it's about the brothers and sisters of all colors who rallied against those who would dare bar a child from an education. It's a story of discrimination and broken promises, determination and triumphs.

Kadir Nelson, one of this generation's most accomplished, award-winning artists, has created an epic yet intimate introduction to the history of America and African Americans, from colonial days through the civil rights movement.

Written in the voice of an "everywoman," an unnamed narrator whose forebears came to this country on slave ships and who lived to cast her vote for the first African American president, heart and soul touches on some of the great transformative events and small victories of that history.

Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans demonstrates that in gaining their freedom and equal rights, African Americans helped our country achieve its promise of liberty and justice - the true heart and soul of our nation.

Kadir Nelson won the 2012 Coretta Scott King author award for this book. The Coretta Scott King award recognizes outstanding African American authors and illustrators for their inspirational and educational contributions in children's literature.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 2: Freedom Flyers by J. Todd Moye

In this inspiring account of the Tuskegee Airmen - the country's first African American military pilots - historian J. Todd Moye captures the challenges and triumphs of these brave aviators in their own words, drawing on more than 800 interviews recorded for the National Park Service's Tuskegee Airmen Oral History Project.

Denied the right to fully participate in the U.S. war effort alongside whites at the beginning of World War II, African Americans - spurred on by black newspapers and civil rights organizations such as the NAACP - compelled the prestigious Army Air Corps to open its training programs to black pilots, despite the objections of its top generals. Thousands of young men came from every part of the country to Tuskegee, Alabama, in the heart of the segregated South, to enter the program, which expanded in 1943 to train multi-engine bomber pilots in addition to fighter pilots. By the end of the war, Tuskegee Airfield had become a small city populated by black mechanics, parachute packers, doctors, and nurses. Together, they helped prove that racial segregation of the fighting forces was so inefficient as to be counterproductive to the nation's defense.

In Freedom Flyers: The Tuskegee Airmen of World War II, J. Todd Moye brings to life the legacy of a determined, visionary cadre of African American airmen who proved their capabilities and patriotism beyond question, transformed the armed forces - formerly the nation's most racially polarized institution - and jump-started the modern struggle for racial equality.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.

February 1: Fraternity by Diane Brady

The inspiring true story of a group of young men whose lives were changed by a visionary mentor, Fraternity: In 1968, a Visionary Priest Recruited 20 Black Men to the College of the Holy Cross and Changed Their Lives and the Course of History by Diane Brady is a book that Kirkus Reviews calls "a tribute to the cadre of black students who arrived at the College of the Holy Cross in the fall of 1968, and to the professor who recruited them."

On April 4, 1968, the death of Martin Luther King, Jr., shocked the nation. Later that month, the Reverend John Brooks, a professor of theology at the College of the Holy Cross who shared Dr. King's dream of an integrated society, drove up and down the East Coast searching for African American high school students to recruit to the school, young men he felt had the potential to succeed if given an opportunity. Among the twenty students he had a hand in recruiting that year were Clarence Thomas, the future Supreme Court justice; Edward P. Jones, who would go on to win a Pulitzer Prize for literature; and Theodore Wells, who would become one of the nation's most successful defense attorneys. Many of the others went on to become stars in their fields as well.

In Fraternity, Diane Brady follows five of the men through their college years. Not only did the future president of Holy Cross convince the young men to attend the school, he also obtained full scholarships to support them, and then mentored, defended, coached, and befriended them through an often challenging four years of college, pushing them to reach for goals that would sustain them as adults.

Would these young men have become the leaders they are today without Father Brooks's involvement? Fraternity is a triumphant testament to the power of education and mentorship, and a compelling argument for the difference one person can make in the lives of others.

Located in Hunt Valley, Maryland and part of Baltimore County, Greetings & Readings of Hunt Valley is the premier independent bookstore in Maryland.