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Uptown (2010)

by Virginia DeBerry(Favorite Author)

3.64 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1439137765 (ISBN13: 9781439137765)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Touchstone

review 1: This is a rich story, written by two authors whose work I've followed since I was a child. My mother actually bought me their first book when I was about thirteen. The story is rich in detail and moves at a slow pace, so early on I felt bored by it. It's not exactly a summer read. As I got more involved with it, I appreciated the pace, the weaving of history into the present and the characters. I especially love how they brought New York-particularly Harlem to life on the page. I have never been, but could honestly see it through this story. I also admire how they didn't give New York the lazy treatment. Many times when I read about New York, it is described as a dirty, dangerous, busy place with fasionably dressed people. This story introduced you to the heartbeat of New ... moreYork-the people, the businesses, the politics, survival. Great story and definitely worth the read.
review 2: Sometimes when you've been reading an author for awhile, you start to know their formula, and although they don't do anything groundbreaking, you stay with them just because. This is not true for these two ladies. That isn't true in this case. DeBerry and Grant aren't cookie cutter writers and their story telling gets better and better with each book (if that is even possible). Uptown is a story of family, and power, and community. Dwight Dixon, a well known politician and developer in Harlem wants to take advantage of the trend toward gentrification and plans a luxury complex to be marketed as Central Park North. This will be the shining moment of his father's dream and will rival anything that the Trump's have done. But he can't move forward without the help of his estranged cousin, Avery Lyons, who has almost nothing to do with the family. This is a perfectly crafted novel with twists and turns that had me staying up way too late reading! And the scenes early in the book describing a painful situation (another family tragedy!) were so well written, that it reminded me of when I was in a similar position and I had to put it down to cry. Go get this book now! less

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