Audiobooks narrated by Prentice Onayemi

Dwyane Wade, the eight-time All-Star for the Miami Heat, has miraculously defied the odds throughout his career and his life. In 2006, in just his third season in the NBA, Dwyane was named the Finals' MVP, after leading the Miami Heat to the Championship title, basketball's ultimate prize. Two years later, after possible career-ending injuries, he again rose from the ashes of doubt to help win a gold medal for the United States at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. As co-captain, he helped lead the Heat to triumph in the 2012 NBA Championship. Little wonder that legendary coach Pat Riley has called Dwyane "B.I.W."-Best In the World. As incredible as those achievements have been, it's off the court where Dwyane has sought his most cherished goal: being a good dad to his sons, Zaire and Zion, by playing a meaningful role in their lives. Recounting his fatherhood journey, Dwyane begins his story in March 2011 with the news that after a long, bitter custody battle, he has been awarded sole custody of his sons in a virtually unprecedented court decision. A Father First chronicles the lessons Dwyane has learned as a single dad from the moment of the judge's ruling that instantly changed his life and the lives of his boys, and then back to the events in the past that shaped his dreams, prayers, and promises. As the son of divorced parents determined to get along so that he and his sister Tragil could have loving relationships with both of them, Dwyane's early years were spent on Chicago's South Side. With poverty, violence, and drugs consuming the streets and their mom descending into addiction, Tragil made the heroic decision to take her younger brother to live with their father. After moving his household to suburban Robbins, Illinois, Dwyane Wade Sr. became Dwyane's first basketball coach. While this period laid the groundwork for Dwyane's later mission for fathers to take greater responsibility for their kids, he was also inspired by his mother's miraculous victory over addiction and her gift for healing others. Both his mother and his father showed him that the unconditional love between parents and children is a powerful guiding force. In A Father First, we meet the coaches, mentors, and teammates who played pivotal roles in Dwyane's stunning basketball career-from his early days shooting hoops on the neighborhood courts in Chicago, to his rising stardom at Marquette University in Milwaukee, to his emergence as an unheralded draft pick by the Miami Heat. This book is a revealing, personal story of one of America's top athletes, but it is also a call to action-from a man who had to fight to be in his children's lives-that will show mothers and fathers how to step up and be parents themselves.

Dwyane Wade (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Adamalui: A Survivor's Journey from Civil Wars in Africa to Life in America

As a survivor of the devastating civil wars in Sierra Leone and Liberia, Joseph Kaifala recounts the harrowing details af an early life punctuated by unimaginable violence and his journey to survival that eventually led him to the United States. Told with humility and grace, Adamalui is the true story of one man's unshakable faith, thirst for knowledge, and indomitable will.Kaifala's experiences as a child prisoner and refugee are told through a series of flashbacks as he endeavors to attain a visa to attend college in America. His memories of the death and destruction that he and his family witnessed while attempting to avoid the violence rampant in impoverished West Africa are written with amazing clarity by a man on a mission to chart a way forward for himself and the others who would follow in his steps.Kaifala's hopes for a brighter future for his home country?a country to which he still returns to assist through charitable causes?are crystalized throughout this prescient, timely, and beautifully-written memoir.

Joseph Kaifala (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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African Town

Chronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning novel-in-verse. In 1860, long after the United States outlawed the importation of enslaved laborers, 110 men, women and children from Benin and Nigeria were captured and brought to Mobile, Alabama aboard a ship called Clotilda. Their journey includes the savage Middle Passage and being hidden in the swamplands along the Alabama River before being secretly parceled out to various plantations, where they made desperate attempts to maintain both their culture and also fit into the place of captivity to which they'd been delivered. At the end of the Civil War, the survivors created a community for themselves they called African Town, which still exists to this day. Told in 14 distinct voices, including that of the ship that brought them to the American shores and the founder of African Town, this powerfully affecting historical novel-in-verse recreates a pivotal moment in US and world history, the impacts of which we still feel today. * This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF with a glossary and additional resources.

Charles Waters, Irene Latham (Author), Andrew Eiden, Cary Hite, Cassandra Campbell, Mark Sanderlin, Michael Obiora, Mirron Willis, Nene Nwoko, Patrick Zeller, Prentice Onayemi, Ronald Peet, Sandra Okuboyejo, Sean Patrick Hopkins, Soneela Nankani (Narrator)

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All the Pieces Matter: The Inside Story of The Wire

The definitive oral history of the iconic and beloved TV show The Wire, as told by the actors, writers, directors, and others involved in its creation Since its final episode aired in 2008, HBO's acclaimed crime drama The Wire has only become more popular and influential. The issues it tackled, from the failures of the drug war and criminal justice system to systemic bias in law enforcement and other social institutions, have become more urgent and central to the national conversation. The show's actors, such as Idris Elba, Dominic West, and Michael B. Jordan, have gone on to become major stars. Its creators and writers, including David Simon and Richard Price, have developed dedicated cult followings of their own. Universities use the show to teach everything from film theory to criminal justice to sociology. Politicians and activists reference it when discussing policy. When critics compile lists of the Greatest TV Shows of All Time, The Wire routinely takes the top spot. It is arguably one of the great works of art America has produced in the 20th century. But while there has been a great deal of critical analysis of the show and its themes, until now there has never been a definitive, behind-the-scenes take on how it came to be made. With unparalleled access to all the key actors and writers involved in its creation, Jonathan Abrams tells the astonishing, compelling, and complete account of The Wire, from its inception and creation through its end and powerful legacy.

Jonathan Abrams (Author), Arthur Bishop, January LaVoy, Jonathan Abrams, Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Amiable with Big Teeth: A Novel of the Love Affair between the Communists and the Poor Black Sheep o

"The unexpected discovery in 2009 of a completed manuscript of Claude McKay’s final novel was celebrated as one of the most significant literary events in recent years. Building on the already extraordinary legacy of McKay’s life and work, this colorful, dramatic novel centers on the efforts by Harlem intelligentsia to organize support for the liberation of fascist-controlled Ethiopia, a crucial but largely forgotten event in American history. At once a penetrating satire of political machinations in Depression-era Harlem and a far-reaching story of global intrigue and romance, Amiable with Big Teeth plunges into the concerns, anxieties, hopes, and dreams of African Americans at a moment of crisis for the soul of Harlem—and America."

Claude McKay (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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And Sometimes I Wonder About You: A Leonid McGill Mystery

The welcome return of Leonid McGill, Walter Mosley's NYC-based private eye, his East Coast foil to his immortal L.A.-based detective Easy Rawlins. As the Boston Globe raved, 'A poignantly real character, [McGill is] not only the newest of the great fictional detectives, but also an incisive and insightful commentator on the American scene.' In the fifth Leonid McGill novel, Leonid finds himself in an unusual pickle of trying to balance his cases with his chaotic personal life. Leonid's father is still out there somewhere, and his wife is in an uptown sanitarium trying to recover from the deep depression that led to her attempted suicide in the previous novel. His wife's condition has put a damper on his affair with Aura Ullman, his girlfriend. And his son, Twill, has been spending a lot of time out of the office with his own case, helping a young thief named Fortune and his girlfriend, Liza. Meanwhile, Leonid is approached by an unemployed office manager named Hiram Stent to track down the whereabouts of his cousin, Celia, who is about to inherit millions of dollars from her father's side of the family. Leonid declines the case, but after his office is broken into and Hiram is found dead, he gets reeled into the underbelly of Celia's wealthy old-money family. It's up to Leonid to save who he can and incriminate the guilty; all while helping his son finish his own investigation; locating his own father; reconciling (whatever that means) with his wife and girlfriend; and attending the wedding of Gordo, his oldest friend. From the Hardcover edition.

Walter Mosley (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Asylum: A Memoir & Manifesto

A poignant, moving memoir and urgent call to action for immigration justice by a Nigerian asylee and global gay rights and immigration activist Edafe Okporo. On the eve of Edafe Okporo's twenty-sixth birthday, he was awoken to a violent mob outside his window in Abuja, Nigeria. The mob threatened his life after discovering the secret Edafe had been hiding for years—that he is a gay man. Left with no other choice, he purchased a one-way plane ticket to New York City and fled for his life. Though America had always been painted to him as a land of freedom and opportunity, it was anything but when he arrived just days before the tumultuous 2016 Presidential Election. Edafe would go on to spend the next six months at an immigration detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey. After navigating the confusing, often draconian, US immigration and legal system, he was finally granted asylum. But he would soon realize that America is exceptionally good at keeping people locked up but is seriously lacking in integrating freed refugees into society. Asylum is Edafe's eye-opening, thought-provoking memoir and manifesto, which documents his experiences growing up gay in Nigeria, fleeing to America, navigating the immigration system, and making a life for himself as a Black, gay immigrant. Alongside his personal story is a blaring call to action—not only for immigration reform but for a just immigration system for refugees everywhere. This book imagines a future where immigrants and asylees are treated with fairness, transparency, and compassion. It aims to help us understand that home is not just where you feel safe and welcome but also how you can make it feel safe and welcome for others.

Edafe Okporo (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Beasts Made of Night

iBooks Most Anticipated YA Books of the Fall io9's All the Science Fiction and Fantasy Books to Keep On Your Radar This Fall BuzzFeed's 22 YA Novels You'll Want To Read From Cover To Cover This Fall A 2017 BookExpo Buzz Book A Junior Library Guild Selection "...Unforgettable in its darkness, inequality, and magic." -VOYA, Starred Review "...A paean to an emerging black legend."-Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review Debut author Tochi Onyebuchi delivers an unforgettable fantasy adventure that powerfully explores the true meaning of justice and guilt. Packed with dark magic and thrilling action, Beasts Made of Night is a gritty Nigerian-influenced fantasy perfect for fans of Paolo Bacigalupi and Nnedi Okorafor. In the walled city of Kos, corrupt mages can magically call forth sin from a sinner in the form of sin-beasts-lethal creatures spawned from feelings of guilt. Taj is the most talented of the aki, young sin-eaters indentured by the mages to slay the sin-beasts. But Taj's livelihood comes at a terrible cost. When he kills a sin-beast, a tattoo of the beast appears on his skin while the guilt of committing the sin appears on his mind. Most aki are driven mad by the process, but 17-year-old Taj is cocky and desperate to provide for his family. When Taj is called to eat a sin of a member of the royal family, he's suddenly thrust into the center of a dark conspiracy to destroy Kos. Now Taj must fight to save the princess that he loves-and his own life.

Tochi Onyebuchi (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Behold the Dreamers: A Novel

A compulsively readable debut novel about marriage, immigration, class, race, and the trapdoors in the American Dream the unforgettable story of a young Cameroonian couple making a new life in New York just as the Great Recession upends the economyWinner of the PEN/Faulkner Award A New York Times Notable Book Longlisted for the PEN/Open Book Award An ALA Notable Book NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR The New York Times Book Review San Francisco Chronicle The Guardian St. Louis Post-Dispatch Chicago Public Library BookPage Refinery29 Kirkus Reviews Jende Jonga, a Cameroonian immigrant living in Harlem, has come to the United States to provide a better life for himself, his wife, Neni, and their six-year-old son. In the fall of 2007, Jende can hardly believe his luck when he lands a job as a chauffeur for Clark Edwards, a senior executive at Lehman Brothers. Clark demands punctuality, discretion, and loyalty and Jende is eager to please. Clark's wife, Cindy, even offers Neni temporary work at the Edwardses' summer home in the Hamptons. With these opportunities, Jende and Neni can at last gain a foothold in America and imagine a brighter future. However, the world of great power and privilege conceals troubling secrets, and soon Jende and Neni notice cracks in their employers' facades. When the financial world is rocked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the Jongas are desperate to keep Jende's job even as their marriage threatens to fall apart. As all four lives are dramatically upended, Jende and Neni are forced to make an impossible choice. Praise for Behold the Dreamers 'A debut novel by a young woman from Cameroon that illuminates the immigrant experience in America with the tenderhearted wisdom so lacking in our political discourse . . . Mbue is a bright and captivating storyteller.' The Washington Post 'A capacious, big-hearted novel.' The New York Times Book Review 'Behold the Dreamers' heart . . . belongs to the struggles and small triumphs of the Jongas, which Mbue traces in clean, quick-moving paragraphs. Entertainment Weekly 'Mbue's writing is warm and captivating.' People (book of the week) [Mbue's] book isn't the first work of fiction to grapple with the global financial crisis of 20072008, but it's surely one of the best. . . . It's a novel that depicts a country both blessed and doomed, on top of the world, but always at risk of losing its balance. It is, in other words, quintessentially American.' NPR 'This story is one that needs to be told.' Bust ' Behold the Dreamers challenges us all to consider what it takes to make us genuinely content, and how long is too long to live with our dreams deferred.' O: The Oprah Magazine '[A] beautiful, empathetic novel.' The Boston Globe 'A witty, compassionate, swiftly paced novel that takes on race, immigration, family and the dangers of capitalist excess.' St. Louis Post-Dispatch 'Mbue [is] a deft, often lyrical observer. . . . [Her] meticulous storytelling announces a writer in command of her gifts.'Minneapolis Star Tribune

Imbolo Mbue (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Behold the Dreamers: An Oprah's Book Club pick

A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR AN OBSERVER BOOK OF THE YEAR OPRAH BOOK CLUB PICK A powerful and timely story of marriage, class, race and the pursuit of the American Dream. Behold the Dreamers is a dazzling debut novel about life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness - and of what we're prepared to sacrifice to hold on to each of them. 'We all do what we gotta do to become American, abi?' New York, 2007: a city of dreamers and strivers, where the newly-arrived and the long-established jostle alike for a place on the ladder of success. And Jende Jonga, who has come from Cameroon, has just set his foot on the first rung. Clark Edwards is a senior partner at Lehman Brothers bank. In need of a discrete and reliable chauffeur, he is too preoccupied to closely check the paperwork of his latest employee. Jende's new job draws him, his wife Neni and their young son into the privileged orbit of the city's financial elite. And when Clark's wife Cindy offers Neni work and takes her into her confidence, the couple begin to believe that the land of opportunity might finally be opening up for them. But there are troubling cracks in their employers' facades, and when the deep fault lines running beneath the financial world are exposed, the Edwards' secrets threaten to spill out into the Jonga's lives. Faced with the loss of all they have worked for, each couple must decide how far they will go in pursuit of their dreams - and what they are prepared to sacrifice along the way. 'There are no heroes in this marvellous debut, only nuanced human beings. A classic tale with a surprise ending, as deeply insightful as it is delightfully entertaining' Taiye Selasi 'Imbolo Mbue would be a formidable storyteller anywhere, in any language. It's our good luck that she and her stories are American' Jonathan Franzen 'Eerily timely ... bittersweet and buoyant' Jessie Burton, Observer Books of the Year

Imbolo Mbue (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Beyond the Messy Truth: How We Came Apart, How We Come Together

A passionate manifesto that exposes hypocrisy on both sides of the political divide and points a way out of the tribalism that is tearing America apart-by the CNN political contributor and host hailed as "a star of the 2016 campaign" (The New York Times) who coined the term "whitelash" Van Jones burst into the American consciousness during the 2016 presidential campaign with an unscripted, truth-telling style and an already established history of bridge-building across party lines. His election night commentary became a viral sensation. A longtime progressive activist with deep roots in the conservative South, Jones has made it his mission to challenge voters and viewers to stand in one another's shoes and disagree constructively. Now, in Beyond the Messy Truth, Jones offers a blueprint for transforming our collective anxiety into meaningful change. Tough on Donald Trump but showing respect and empathy for his supporters, Jones takes aim at the failures of both parties before and after Trump's victory. He urges both sides to abandon the politics of accusation and focus on real solutions. Calling us to a deeper patriotism, he shows us how to get down to the vital business of solving, together, some of our toughest problems. "The entire national conversation today can be reduced to a simple statement-'I'm right, and you're wrong,'" Jones has said. But the truth is messier|both sides have flaws. Both parties have strayed from their highest principles and let down their core constituencies. Rejecting today's political tribalism, Jones issues a stirring call for a new "bipartisanship from below." Recognizing that tough challenges require the best wisdom from both liberals and conservatives, he points us toward practical answers to problems that affect us all regardless of region or ideology: rural and inner-city poverty, unemployment, addiction, unfair incarceration, and the devastating effects of the pollution-based economy on both coal country and our urban centers. In explaining how he arrived at his views, Jones shares behind-the-scenes memories from his decades spent marching and protesting on behalf of working people, inspiring stories of ordinary citizens who became champions of their communities, and little-known examples of cooperation that have risen from the fog of partisan conflict. In his quest for positive solutions, Van Jones encourages us to set fire to our old ways of thinking about politics and come together where the pain is greatest. Advance praise for Beyond the Messy Truth "Van Jones is a light in the darkness when we need it most. Beyond the Messy Truth breaks with the tribalism of today's politics and offers us a way forward. In the tradition of the great bridge builders of our past, Van's love for this country and all its people shines through."-Cory Booker, U.S. senator, New Jersey "In an age when hardworking families across America are feeling left behind, Van's commitment to letting other voices be heard is much needed in today's discourse."-Rick Santorum, former senator of Pennsylvania and Republican presidential candidate "Whether you agree or disagree with him, Van Jones's voice has become an integral part of our national political debate. He is one of the most provocative and interesting political figures in the country."-Bernie Sanders, U.S. senator, Vermont

Van Jones (Author), Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

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Black Bottom Saints: A Novel

An enthralling literary tour-de-force that pays tribute to Detroit's legendary neighborhood, a mecca for jazz, sports, and politics, Black Bottom Saints is a powerful blend of fact and imagination reminiscent of E.L. Doctorow's classic novel Ragtime and Marlon James' Man Booker Award-winning masterpiece, A Brief History of Seven Killings. From the Great Depression through the post-World War II years, Joseph “Ziggy” Johnson, has been the pulse of Detroit’s famous Black Bottom. A celebrated gossip columnist for the city’s African-American newspaper, the Michigan Chronicle, he is also the emcee of one of the hottest night clubs, where he’s rubbed elbows with the legendary black artists of the era, including Ethel Waters, Billy Eckstein, and Count Basie. Ziggy is also the founder and dean of the Ziggy Johnson School of Theater. But now the doyen of Black Bottom is ready to hang up his many dapper hats. As he lays dying in the black-owned-and-operated Kirkwood Hospital, Ziggy reflects on his life, the community that was the center of his world, and the remarkable people who helped shape it. Inspired by the Catholic Saints Day Books, Ziggy curates his own list of Black Bottom’s venerable '52 Saints.' Among them are a vulnerable Dinah Washington, a defiant Joe Louis, and a raucous Bricktop. Randall balances the stories of these larger-than-life 'Saints' with local heroes who became household names, enthralling men and women whose unstoppable ambition, love of style, and faith in community made this black Midwestern neighborhood the rival of New York City’s Harlem. Accompanying these “tributes” are thoughtfully paired cocktails—special drinks that capture the essence of each of Ziggy’s saints—libations as strong and satisfying as Alice Randall’s wholly original view of a place and time unlike any other. Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

Alice Randall (Author), Imani Parks, Prentice Onayemi (Narrator)

Audiobook

Audiobooks Narrated by Prentice Onayemi