Flowers for the Living

A riveting story of how a suicidal African-American teenagers forcing a young white cop to kill him devastates the teenager's mother as well the rookie cop. It also sparks a massive race riot and puts the mother and rookie in the crosshairs of a deranged gunman. The only place Emma Jennings, the mother, and Russell ';Rusty' Carter, Jr., the cop, find refuge from the chaos engulfing them is the teenager's serenely beautiful grave. Through initially awkward meetings there, Emma and Rusty establish a bond that they must ultimately rely on to rebuild their lives and help heal their city. Standing on Holy Ground is an inspiring work of good overcoming evil. It is a ruthlessly honest account of the new progressive South still struggling with a very old legacy of hate.--USA Today