Susan Cushman, Author
Memphis-based author Susan Cushman has announced her latest book, John and Mary Margaret (Koelher Books, June 2021).
John and Mary Margaret is a rare insider’s look into the white privilege bubble of a young girl growing up in Jackson, Mississippi and participating in sorority life on the Ole Miss campus in the late 1960s. But it’s also a candid portrayal of a young Black boy from Memphis who follows his dream to study law at the predominantly white university.
What happens when their shared love for literature blossoms into an ill-fated romance? Spanning five decades of historical civil rights events in Mississippi and Memphis, John and Mary Margaret’s story will challenge the status quo and give us another opportunity to examine our history and our hearts.
Susan Cushman sets John and Mary Margaret, her second novel and seventh book, in her home state of Mississippi and her current city of Memphis. Cushman’s published books include Friends of the Library (short stories), Cherry Bomb (novel), Tangles and Plaques: A Mother and Daughter Face Alzheimer’s (memoir), and three anthologies she edited.
Susan writes with deep insight into the South’s storied past, bringing elements of hope and healing to her short stories, memoir and novels – honoring the heart, soul and history of the South.
Susan is a wife, mother and grandmother.
