{"product_id":"down-the-road-a-piece-a-fictional-historical-memoir-9798517574527","title":"Down the Road a Piece: A Fictional Historical Memoir","description":"It is summer, 1957. Full of excitement and a sense of adventure, a thirteen-year-old, African-American boy, Gaylloyd, embarks on an eye-opening road trip with his parents and five brothers to meet relatives in the Deep South. Gaylloyd is a Boy Scout from San Diego who has grown up in diverse communities and attends a parochial school, as his parents have worked hard to give him a better life. None of his life experiences, though, have prepared him for what he will learn on his journey across the United States on Route 66. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs Gaylloyd's family passes through segregated states, Gaylloyd is cheerful, observant, but naïve about the white public's reactions to them. For a time, his parents have to dodge his questions about new things, like the Dixie flag, separate restrooms, and Jim Crow. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFinally, the family reaches Gaylloyd's father's isolated, rural hometown of Winona, Mississippi for a visit full of new experiences plus several traumatic events. Gaylloyd becomes angrier and more confused, blaming his dad for a host of confrontations and humiliations, until his father explains to him the historical differences between the Deep South and the West Coast. With a new appreciation for his father's struggles growing up and insights into his country not yet taught in school, Gaylloyd has an epiphany that entering manhood is more than just a trip\u003ci\u003e Down the Road a Piece.\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJoseph G. Sissón is an educator, philosopher, and natural science writer with membership with the African American Writers Alliance. He hosts three writer's study groups and is a political activist, serving the city he lives in as an Arts Commissioner. He has been a guest speaker for the American Association of University Women, written articles for the University of Washington's \u003ci\u003eVOICE\u003c\/i\u003e, and a newsletter for the horticultural organization, Plant Amnesty. He is a published poet and novelist of short stories. His poetry themes are scientific phenomenon, natural sciences, and personal political opinions. \u003ci\u003eDown The Road A Piece\u003c\/i\u003e is his debut novel. The book's genre is autobiographical, historical fiction. This is a coming-of-age story written in the voice of a well-educated privileged child. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eVisit Joseph's website at josephgsisson.com\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Independently Published","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50486286385426,"sku":"9798517574527","price":25.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_ccdc876c-1d90-4af1-aa4f-cf07595e1d59.jpg?v=1730422858","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/down-the-road-a-piece-a-fictional-historical-memoir-9798517574527","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}