{"title":"Virginia Deberry","description":"Best friends for 40 years, Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant first met while working as models, and what should have been a rivalry ended up as a decades-long friendship. Their 20 year writing partnership has resulted in seven novels: Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made, Far from the Tree, Better Than I Know Myself, Gotta Keep on Tryin', What Doesn't Kill You, Uptown, and Exposures (as Marie Joyce). Tryin'to Sleep in the Bed You Made won the Merit Award for fiction from the black caucus of the American Library Association, the Book of the Year award from Blackboard, and the New Author of the Year Award from the Go On Girl Book Club. Virginia lives in New Jersey. Donna resides in Brooklyn, New York.","products":[{"product_id":"far-from-the-tree-paperback","title":"Far from the Tree - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the bestselling author duo Donna Grant and Virginia DeBerry comes \u003ci\u003eFar from the Tree\u003c\/i\u003e, a poignant story of two very different sisters who grapple with sisterhood, family secrets, and the ties that bind them.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCeleste English and Ronnie Frazier are sisters, but they couldn't be more different. Celeste is a doctor's wife, living a perfect and elegant life. But secretly, she is terrified: her marriage is falling apart and her need to control the people around her threatens to alienate her entire family. And Celeste allows no one to see how vulnerable she really is. Ronnie is an actress, living in New York. Her life, however, is a lie: she has no money, has no home, and her life is held together by \"chewing gum, paper clips, and spit,\" though she wants everyone to think that her life is one of high glamour and budding fame. When their father dies, the sisters inherit a house in Prosper, North Carolina. Their mother, Della, is adamant that they forget about going there and dredging up the past. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBecause Della has secrets she'd rather not see come to light--secrets and heartbreak she's kept from everyone for years. Neither Ronnie, Celeste, nor Della realize just what their trip to Prosper will uncover and they must discover for themselves who they really are, who they really love, and what the future holds for them. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eFar From The Tree\u003c\/i\u003e is a novel that asks the questions: can the past ever truly remain hidden? Can mothers and daughters put aside their usual roles long enough to get to really know each other? Long enough to see they each have felt the love, loss, heartache, and joy that they share as women? And can two strangers realize that they are, and always will be, sisters?","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50104801820895,"sku":"9781250846631","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/b6zeoVV9jq9781250846631.webp?v=1781111349"},{"product_id":"tryin-to-sleep-in-the-bed-you-made-paperback","title":"Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBest friends face down a tragedy in this beloved novel from #1 \u003ci\u003eEssence\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling authors Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant, \u003ci\u003eTryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eGayle Saunders and Patricia Reid were total opposites who chose each other as best friends when they were children. Through the years they were raised together, as close as sisters. Gayle, the beauty pampered by her working-class parents, believes a man will make her world complete. Pat, the brainy one, is the hand-me-down child whose mystery parentage haunts her. She's determined to finally make a home for herself: in the executive suite at the top of her career. And then there is Marcus Carter, linked to both women from the moment a childhood tragedy bonds them in secrecy. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eTryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made\u003c\/i\u003e is more than a novel--It's the reading experience that swept the country. You will be drawn into the lives of these honest and believable characters from the first page--and they won't let you go until the last.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50104833179871,"sku":"9781250846655","price":14.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/gHAWkK8Xos9781250846655.webp?v=1781111412"},{"product_id":"better-than-i-know-myself-paperback","title":"Better Than I Know Myself - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eVirginia DeBerry and Donna Grant, the #1 \u003ci\u003eEssence\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling authors of \u003ci\u003eTryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made\u003c\/i\u003e now deliver \u003ci\u003eBetter Than I Know Myself\u003c\/i\u003e, a novel in which you'll meet their most unforgettable characters yet.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eCarmen, Jewel, and Regina could not be more different. When they meet as freshmen at Columbia University, they're pretty confident that a friendship among them isn't in the cards. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJewel is Hollywood royalty: as the teenage star of the TV show \"Daddy's Girl,\" her face is instantly recognizable all across America. Now, though, she wants two things--to get a serious education, and to leave her controlling stage mother behind. Regina is the definitive upper-middle-class African-American girl. Her picture-perfect parents are what she calls \"black Ward and June Cleavers\" and their goals for her are like a stranglehold. No one can see, though, how far Regina's rebellious side will take her (or how treacherous it will become). Carmen is just trying to get by. A child of the projects whose father is dead and whose mother has vanished, Carmen has been raised by her abusive brother. Columbia is the way for her to get a better life--if she can hold down two jobs and keep her GPA up. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWhen the three of them meet, their lives are at a crossroad. And as the years progress, from the 1980s to the present day, they are challenged by drug addiction, fame, secrets from the past, sickness, betrayal, and the darkest things women can face. One of them won't survive. But what will be the lasting legacy of their friendship? \u003ci\u003eBetter Than I Know Myself\u003c\/i\u003e is a novel of heartache, triumph, tears, and the unshakeable bonds among women.\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e#1 \u003ci\u003eEssence\u003c\/i\u003e Bestselling Authors Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant's novels are: \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Powerful.\" --\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Refreshingly honest.\" --\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Engaging.\" --\u003ci\u003eEssence\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Vividly realistic.\" --\u003ci\u003eMidwest Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Hard to put down.\" --\u003ci\u003eAmerican Woman\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMore Praise for Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"I laughed, I cried, I identified!!!\"\u003cbr\u003e- Sybil Wilkes, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, on \u003ci\u003eBetter Than I Know Myself\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"They're back! Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant, authors of one of my favorite books, \u003ci\u003eTryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made\u003c\/i\u003e, have returned with \u003ci\u003eBetter Than I know Myself\u003c\/i\u003e. It has a prologue that grabs you, a story that holds you, and characters that you will care about.\"\u003cbr\u003e- Clara Villarosa, Bookseller, The Hue-man Bookstore \u0026amp; Cafe, Harlem on \u003ci\u003eBetter Than I Know Myself\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Strong, colorful characters distinguish DeBerry and Grant's warm and moving African-American family drama...moves gracefully between the 1950s and the present day, and an unusually varied cast of minor characters add spice to the full-bodied tale.\"\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e on\u003ci\u003e Far From the Tree\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Keenly drawn characters...a seamless work...a winning book about real, flawed people.\"\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ci\u003eQBRL The Black Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e on\u003ci\u003e Far From the Tree\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"With sassy dialogue and a suspenseful narrative, this novel whips through its prologue and 23 well-written chapters.\"\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ci\u003eDallas Morning News\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eFar From the Tree\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Captivating and compelling...brave, realistic, and touching.\"\u003cbr\u003e- \u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eFar From the Tree\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50104842944735,"sku":"9781250846648","price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/S675_WSDA39781250846648.webp?v=1781111431"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/virginia-deberry.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}