January's Book: Random Family by Adrian Nicole LeBlanc




Midday on WNYC show

Summary: Leonard Lopate Show Book Club’s first selection for 2014 is Random Family: Love, Drugs, Trouble, and Coming of Age in the Bronx. Author Adrian Nicole LeBlanc spent years with one extended family in the Bronx to create a portrait of poverty, and of life in and of public housing, prison, and court. It received high praise when it was published in 2003, and remains as relevant and important a decade later. We chose it after we read Andrea Elliott's powerful New York Times series Invisible Child: Dasani's Homeless Life, which reminded us of the extensive reporting on a family's struggles with poverty in Random Family. Share your thoughts and questions below! Adrian Nicole LeBlanc shared some of her favorite authors, stand-up comedians, and feminist books. Watch the video!