Eeny Meeny Miney Mo: Time to Lynch a Negro by Eddie Bell

Though rarely talked about, just a few short years ago and still in the memories of the older generation, lynchings happened, black life was cheap and expendable and could be taken summarily without consequence.

Through the fictional lives of everyday people, perpetrators, victims and bystanders, this volume of poetry, prose and stories helps define the fullness of lynching.

The stories refrain from dwelling too heavily on the grotesque and inhumane acts of torture and death, but do not shy away from the personal passions and real consequences that accompanied these acts of hate and retribution.

The author writes: "It is critical that public discourse on race include all aspects of black and white cultural underpinnings ... I have great hope that this book will be a catalyst to learn more about each of our stories and encourage us to apply what we learn to our efforts to form a more perfect union."

Eddie Bell is a retired faculty member of the State University of New York, a photographer, writer, poet and an ordained deacon.