Damon Young’s Book “What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker” Challenges Perceptions of Race

Young joins Detroit Today with Stephen Henderson ahead of his appearance at the Detroit Public Library main branch next week.

It’s clear when you read his writing on VerySmartBrothas.com — Damon Young is one of the sharpest, funniest and most compelling writers out there.

His new memoir is 16 essays about his life, “What Doesn’t Kill you Makes you Blacker,” reflects on Young’s life from childhood to the present day, and takes an incisive look at the forces that bear down on the African American experience.

Young will be in town next Wednesday, April 17, at the Detroit Public Library Main Branch to talk about the book. The event was organized by DPL and Literati Bookstore.

He joins Detroit Today with Stephen Henderson to talk about his book, the first time he was called the N-word, and his belief that his mother would still be alive today if she was white. 

Click on the audio player above to hear that conversation.

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  • Detroit Today
    Dynamic and diverse voices. News, politics, community and the issues that define our region. Hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Stephen Henderson, Detroit Today brings you fresh and perceptive views weekdays at 9 am and 7 pm.