{"product_id":"last-summer-on-state-street-a-novel-isbn-9780063209749","title":"Last Summer on State Street: A Novel","description":"\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePEN Open Book Award finalist\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eChicago Writers Association Book of the Year Award winner\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eStephen Curry \u003cem\u003eUnderrated \u003c\/em\u003eLiterati Book Club Pick\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNamed a Best Book of Summer by \u003cem\u003eGood Housekeeping\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eChicago Magazine\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe St. Louis Post Dispatch\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eChicago Tribune, Veranda\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Milwaukee Journal Sentinel\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/em\u003e, and more!\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e“[A] powerful novel.... Tragic, hopeful, brimming with love, Wolfe’s debut is a remarkable achievement.”—\u003cem\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor fans of Jacqueline Woodson and Brit Bennett, a striking coming-of-age debut about friendship, community, and resilience, set in the housing projects of Chicago during one life-changing summer.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eEven when we lose it all, we find the strength to rebuild.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFelicia “Fe Fe” Stevens is living with her vigilantly loving mother and older teenaged brother, whom she adores, in building 4950 of Chicago’s Robert Taylor Homes. It’s the summer of 1999, and her high-rise is next in line to be torn down by the Chicago Housing Authority. She, with the devout Precious Brown and Stacia Buchanan, daughter of a Gangster Disciple Queen-Pin, form a tentative trio and, for a brief moment, carve out for themselves a simple life of Double Dutch and innocence. But when Fe Fe welcomes a mysterious new friend, Tonya, into their fold, the dynamics shift, upending the lives of all four girls.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs their beloved neighborhood falls down around them, so too do their friendships and the structures of the four girls’ families. Fe Fe must make the painful decision of whom she can trust and whom she must let go. Decades later, as she remembers that fateful summer—just before her home was demolished, her life uprooted, and community forever changed—Fe Fe tries to make sense of the grief and fraught bonds that still haunt her and attempts to reclaim the love that never left.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eProfound, reverent, and uplifting, \u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e explores the risk of connection against the backdrop of racist institutions, the restorative power of knowing and claiming one’s own past, and those defining relationships which form the heartbeat of our lives. Interweaving moments of reckoning and sustaining grace, debut author Toya Wolfe has crafted an era-defining story of finding a home—both in one’s history and in one’s self. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Toya Wolfe is a storyteller of the highest order. \u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e is a stunning debut.\"—Rebecca Makkai, \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e bestselling author of \u003cem\u003eThe Great Believers\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“[A] thoughtful snapshot of the end of public housing high-rises in Chicago.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e is a triumph, a beautiful ode to the humanity, complexity, and compassion of people in a community too often defined by pathologies. You will root for the brave and surefooted Felicia, Precious, Stacia, and Tonya, as well as their families—all striving amid the rubble. What a lovely debut told with warmth, grace, and a piercing affection.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDawn Turner, author of Three Girls from Bronzeville\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“I can’t stop thinking of Toya Wolfe’s novel \u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street.\u003c\/em\u003e Filled with both tenderness and tragedy, this moving tale of friendship and family pulls us into a corner of America too long neglected and scorned. Wolfe writes with such grace and such restraint, I felt like I was sitting on the front porch listening to a story told by a friend. What a spectacular debut.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAlex Kotlowitz, author of An American Summer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"This coming-of-age story is laced with self-discovery and shows how tragedy in childhood can follow us forever.\" - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eGood Housekeeping\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Wolfe has written a bittersweet coming-of-age novel set in building 4950 [of the Robert Taylor Homes] in the summer of 1999... A complex and compassionate look at the friends and families, relationships and resistance that existed in that long-gone but not forgotten time and place.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“First-time novelist Wolfe writes with lacerating precision and authenticity…. In a fictional counterpart to Dawn Turner’s memoir, \u003cem\u003eThree Girls from Bronzeville\u003c\/em\u003e, Wolfe’s deeply compelling characters, sharply wrought settings, and tightly choreographed plot create a concentrated, significant, and unforgettable tale of family, home, racism, trauma, compassion, and transcendence.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A poignant look at growing up in Chicago public housing by a debut novelist who lived in one of the city's most notorious developments…. Wolfe has a wonderful ear for dialogue, deploying pitch-perfect vernacular and slang.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMinneapolis Star Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[R]eaders who enjoyed Sandra Cisneros’ \u003cem\u003eHouse on Mango Street\u003c\/em\u003e will fall in love with this book…. Racism, the power of our own histories, and the regrets that shape our futures are all on gorgeous display in Toya Wolfe’s \u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eManhattan Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“This incredible book is about pulling yourself up regardless of your circumstances. I felt this one deeply, and I hope you enjoy it as well.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eStephen Curry\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e is an ode to Black girls who are often forgotten. Toya Wolfe tells a compelling, warm, and funny story about a group of girls growing up in a Chicago public housing development. Wolfe delves into their lives with tenderness and care. Despite how outsiders may see their community, Wolfe lets us in to see the girls’ innocence—and their struggles.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNatalie Y. Moore, author of The Billboard\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"\u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e is a love letter to girlhood, the tenuous bonds of friendship, and the places we call home. As a daughter of Chicago's South Side, this novel took me inside a community I just passed by, but didn't truly see. Wolfe dazzles in this intimate portrait of race, grief, and the times in our lives that shape who we become.\"   - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNancy Johnson, author of The Kindest Lie\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street \u003c\/em\u003eis a beautifully observed portrait of family and female friendship. Toya Wolfe is a marvelous writer; her deft storytelling and keen understanding makes her debut novel a great pleasure to read.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAudrey Niffenegger, New York Times bestselling author of The Time Traveler’s Wife\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Toya Wolfe is a storyteller of the highest order—a wise and compassionate chronicler of girlhood, of Chicago, and of the things that make us human. \u003cem\u003eLast Summer on State Street\u003c\/em\u003e is a stunning debut.\"  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRebecca Makkai, New York Times bestselling author of The Great Believers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Wolfe’s arresting and atmospheric narrative comes fully realized. This is a gut punch.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"[A] powerful novel.... Tragic, hopeful, brimming with love, Wolfe’s debut is a remarkable achievement.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44889713311973,"sku":"NP9780063209749","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063209749.jpg?v=1730231802","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/last-summer-on-state-street-a-novel-isbn-9780063209749","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}