Soul Search

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In the broadest of strokes, it is the story of a young man who has spent a year in jail now returning to his traditional, middle-class, African-American family. In prison, Matthew became Muhammad, as he was converted to the Muslim faith (much to the consternation of his shoot-from-the-lip father, Sam). Muhammad though that conversion was complete; however, it was not. He is challenged not only to come to grips with his parents, steady, loving Eve and cantankerous Sam, but to avoid letting the persona of Matthew dominate him once again. After a disturbing struggle — in which his relationship with a young woman, both moral and physical, is defined — Muhammad is successful, at least momentarily, as the novel ends.

At its core, Soul search is about young African-Americans encountering problems and figuring out ways to solve them, often in family settings that are conventional but not necessarily supportive. The novel is full of humor, understanding of the human condition, compassion for his characters, and straightforward writing. Also, like wisps of smoke, Saint Solomon's prose often is fanciful, almost fantasy-like. The counterpoint between gritty reality and the more ephemeral is attractive and inviting to the reader.

Entanglements with the criminal justice system provide a thread for the novel, but they do not dominated the story. Soul Search is not politically correct. That is, the narrative is not dominate by references to prison life and ghetto life and violence and racial conflict and hip-hop and the dangerous streets of the city (although the author knows a good deal about such topics). The novel has the prospect of reaching a broad audience, much as a sitcom featuring an African-American family does.