Winner of 2024 Next Generation Indie Book Award for African American Fiction "Despite his magnanimity being a focal point of the novel, Jimmy is a flawed hero.But it's precisely these flaws that make Jimmy's generosity not only believable but meaningful. In the novel, a disgraced man models open, unrelenting kindness in the face of the worst conditions." -- Foreword Reviews " Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way is a thoughtfully written, thought-provoking, complacency-smashing novel of redemption and restoration, and a testament to the truth that it is in lifting up others that we ourselves are lifted up." --Marie Bostwick, NYT and USA Today bestselling author of Esme Cahill Fails Spectacularly "Blount makes us pause to take an up-close look at poverty and racism in our collective backyard. This powerful novel shows the true meaning of 'it takes a village,' and that doing the right thing should be color blind." --Karen White, New York Times Bestselling Author "This tender story is for any of us who have fallen and found the only way up is by reaching out a hand to others.
" --Cassandra King, author of Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy " With a true sense of place and authentic dialogue, the author introduces characters not easily forgotten. I found myself crying and cheering for those characters, lost in their pain and ultimately, joy. Mr. Jimmy from Around the Way is a heartwarming story with the emotional depth of an important read." --Johnnie Bernhard, author of Hannah and Ariela , winner of the National Federation of Press Women, Novel Award 2023 " A feat of beauty and cultural significance. Jeffrey Blount has delivered a vivid portrait of love, race, redemption, and the American dream. It reaches into your heart, twists it, breaks it, mends it, and ultimately transforms it--it doesn't let you go. An instant classic.
" --Pamela Hamilton, author of Lady Be Good: The Life and Times of Dorothy Hale " Blount balances page-turning plot twists and turns with elegant literary prose and emotional integrity in this amazing novel. Fans of the 1970 movie, They Call Me Mister Tibbs! and Pat Conroy's The Water is Wide will love Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way ." --Susan Cushman, author/editor of John and Mary Margaret and Cherry Bomb , and the anthology Southern Writers on Writing "A moving novel with richly-drawn characters and sharp prose. Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way teaches us that every journey to redemption ultimately must involve a painful reckoning with your true self." --Steve Majors, author of High Yella: A Modern Family Memoir "Using a deft hand, Jeffrey Blount takes us behind "Mr. Jimmy's" agonizing journey, where black and white figure prominently, and yet--as in the lives we all lead--everything is a thousand shades of gray.
" --Steve Piacente, author, life coach and communications trainer "A graceful narrative with sparkling and witty dialogue. You will find yourself smiling, even laughing, as you journey along with Blount's characters. But you will, by the end, find yourself moved to tears by what abject poverty does to human beings. At least, I was." --Larry I. Palmer, author of the memoir, Scholarship Boy: Meditations on Family and Race , and professor of law emeritus at Cornell University.