As seen on TikTok, Daniel BlacksPerfect Peaceis the heartbreaking portrait of a large, rural southern familys attempt to grapple with their mothers desperate decision to make her newborn son into the daughter she will never havea complex, imaginative story of one unforgettable black family in mid-twentieth century Arkansas (Atlanta Magazine).

When the seventh child of the Peace family, named Perfect, turns eight, her mother Emma Jean tells her bewildered daughter, You was born a boy. I made you a girl. But that aint what you was supposed to be. So, from now on, you gon be a boy. Itll be a little strange at first, but youll get used to it, and thisll be over after while.

From this point forward, Perfects life becomes a bizarre kaleidoscope of eventswhile the rest of his family is forced to question everything they thought they knew about gender, sexuality, unconditional love, and fulfillment.

A morality tale of the consequences of letting our selfish needs trap the ones we love into roles they werent born to play. The characters here are as flawed, their sins numerous, as any living human being held under the lens, but the author brings a compassion and understanding to their plights.Mat Johnson, award-winning author ofInvisible Things

Part cautionary tale, part folk tale, part fable, Daniel BlacksPerfect Peaceis a complete triumphIn Emma Jean Peace, Dr. Black has created a character as complex, equivocal and unforgettable as Scarlett O’Hara.Larry Duplechan, Lambda Literary Award-winning author ofGot Til Its Gone