Jordan Calhoun Live at The Strand Book Store (NYC), 'Piccolo Is Black: A Memoir of Race, Religion, and Pop Culture'

Jordan Calhoun Live at The Strand Book Store (NYC) with Guest Omar Holmon from Black Nerd Problems. Friday, April 29 at 7:00 PM

Join The Strand Book Store for an in-person event with the Editor in Chief at Lifehacker Jordan Calhoun for a discussion of his debut memoir Piccolo Is Black: A Memoir of Race, Religion, and Pop Culture. Joining Jordan in conversation is co-founder of Black Nerd Problems Omar Holmon. This event will be hosted in the Strand Book Store's 3rd floor Rare Book Room at 828 Broadway on 12th Street.

Event Details

Where: The Strand Book Store (NYC)
Date: Friday, April 29
Time: 7:00 PM-08:00 PM ET
Location: 828 Broadway, New York, NY 10003
Tickets: Event tickets are on sale! Can’t make the event? Purchase a signed copy of Piccolo Is Black here.

Book Details (On Sale Tuesday, April 26)

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | BAM! | BOOKSHOP | INDIEBOUND (LOCAL BOOKSTORES) | WALMART | POWELL’S

Like most Black kids who grew up without diverse representation, Jordan Calhoun learned the skill of assigning race to fictional characters. Piccolo, Panthro, Demona, Ursula...he could recognize a Black character when he saw one. He lived in an all-Black city, went to an all-Black school, and could identify characters whose struggles informed his understanding of the Black experience in America.

Piccolo Is Black: A Memoir of Race, Religion, and Pop Culture chronicles Calhoun’s journey from his childhood in Detroit, Michigan as a Seventh-day Adventist to being transferred to private, predominantly white, deeply religious, Seventh-day Adventist schools. He tells his story through the lens of the pop culture he loved and the common adaptations he made while navigating his religious, non-religious, and racial identities.

Calhoun reminds us that entertainment has value in forming our identities, and that we have something to gain by looking back at our childhood entertainment and pop culture experiences. Part homage to the characters he identified with and loved, part celebration of the pop culture—television, movies, music, video games—that influenced his childhood, Piccolo Is Black: A Memoir of Race, Religion, and Pop Culture is an honest, thought-provoking, and often hilarious coming-of-age memoir that celebrates Black identity in America.

Book Reviews

“A heartfelt, quick-witted, unfailingly honest meditation on pop culture, faith, and the forces that shape us.” —Nicole Chung, bestselling author, All You Can Ever Know: A Memoir

“A beautiful representation of authenticity.” —Omar Holmon, co-founder, Black Nerd Problems, author of Black Nerd Problems: Essays

“Beautiful essays about finding reflection in a dominant culture that barely thinks about you, growing, learning from messages not meant for you. Crucial, vital, modern pop writing.” —Gene Park, Washington Post

“At once heartbreaking and deeply funny, Piccolo is Black is a story of emotional survival told through the lens of a boy grasping for joy and a sense of belonging in a world that often doesn't feel made for him.”—Laura Bassett, Editor-in-chief, Jezebel

“A fascinating journey of belief, conviction, and interruption.”—William Evans, co-founder, Black Nerd Problems, author of Black Nerd Problems: Essays

“Piccolo is Black is a lesson in truth and a memoir I won’t soon forget… a story full of pointed humor and gutting honesty about navigating multiple worlds and identities.” —Preeti Chhibber, author of Spider-Man's Social Dilemma, co-host of Desi Geek Girls

Book Review Copies & EPK

Review copies are available through Edelweiss, the book industry's platform to market, sell, discover, and order new titles. Print review copies are available on request. Contact Lit Riot Press to request your copy. The Electronic Press Kit (EPK) is available for download.

Authors, Jordan Calhoun, Piccolo Is Black, Lit Riot Press NewsLit Riot PressApril 15, 2022Jordan Calhoun, Piccolo Is Black, Memoir, Race, Religion, Pop Culture, Book