And This Too Shall Pass

by E. Lynn Harris

E. Lynn Harris's bestselling and ground-breaking novel forms a heady cocktail of the romantic storytelling of Terry McMilan and the generous vision of Armistead Maupin.

Genres: Fiction, African American, LGBT, Romance, Drama, Novels, Queer

Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

E. Lynn Harris was born in Flint, Michigan and raised, along with three sisters, in Little Rock, Arkansas. He attended the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville where he was the school's first black yearbook editor, the first black male Razorbacks cheerleader, and the president of his fraternity. He graduated with honors with a degree in journalism.

Harris sold computers for IBM, Hewlett-Packard, and AT&T for thirteen years while living in Dallas, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta. He finally quit his sales job to write his first novel, Invisible Life, and, failing to find a publisher, he published it himself in 1991 and sold it mostly at black-owned bookstores, beauty salons, and book clubs before he was "discovered" by Anchor Books. Anchor published Invisible Life as a trade paperback in 1994, and thus his career as an author officially began.

Invisible Life was followed by Just As I Am (1994), And This Too Shall Pass (1996), If This World Were Mine (1997), Abide with Me (1999), Not A Day Goes By (2000), Any Way the Wind Blows (2001), A Love of My Own (2002), I Say A Little Prayer (2006), Just Too Good To Be True (2008), Basketball Jones(2009), and Mama Dearest(2009),all published by Doubleday, and In My Father's House(2010), published by St. Martin's Press. Ten of Harris's novels hit the New York Times bestseller list, and his books have also appeared on the bestseller lists of the Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times. In 2003, Harris published his first work of nonfiction, a memoir entitled What Becomes of the Brokenhearted, which was also a New York Times bestseller. Today, there are more than four million copies of his books in print.

Harris's writing also appeared in Essence, Washington Post Sunday Magazine, and Sports Illustrated, as well as in the award-winning anthology Brotherman: The Odyssey of Black Men in America, Go The Way Your Blood Beats. His novella, "Money Can't Buy Me Love" was published in Got To Be Real: Four Original Love Stories. Freedom in This Village, a collection of short stories edited by Harris, was released in the fall of 2004. His short fiction appeared in Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writers (Harlem Moon), a 2002 collection he edited with writer Marita Golden.

Harris won numerous accolades and prizes for his work. Just As I Am was awarded the Novel of the Year Prize by the Blackboard African-American Bestsellers, Inc. If This World Were Mine was nominated for a NAACP Image Award and won the James Baldwin Award for Literary Excellence. Abide with Me was also nominated for a NAACP Image Award. His anthology Freedom in this Village won the Lambda Literary Award in 2005. In 1999, the University of Arkansas honored Harris with a Citation of Distinguished Alumni for outstanding professional achievement, and in October 2000 he was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame. He was named to Ebony's "Most Intriguing Blacks" list, Out Magazine's "Out 100" list, New York Magazine's "Gay Power 101" list, and Savoy's "100 Leaders and Heroes in Black America" list. Other honors included the Sprague Todes Literary Award, the Harvey Milk Honorary Diploma, and The Silas Hunt Award for Outstanding Achievement from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.

Harris was a member of the Board of Directors of the Hurston/Wright Foundation and the Evidence Dance Company. He was the founder of the E. Lynn Harris Better Days Foundation, a nonprofit company that provides support to aspiring writers and artists.

E. Lynn Harris passed away in 2009.

http://us.macmillan.com/inmyfathersho...

Reviews

[Winter Sophia Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny, Unforgettable, Realistic, Sexy, Captivating & Addictive! An Amazing Read! I Loved It!

[Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book a longgggggg time ago and really enjoyed it. Ended up seeing a traveling production of the play version in Dallas a few years back. Great show!!

[Diane Rembert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Four lives intertwine to bring the readers a beautifully crafted story. Zurich is a rising NFL quarterback that is struggling with his sexuality, and the only one who knows is Sean, a gay sports reporter. When a lawsuit threatens both Zurich’s livelihood and freedom, his “dream team” ( including his attorney Tamela) steps in to save the day.

Each of these characters turn to their faith and personal relationship with God. My favorite character was MamaCee and my least favorite definitely goes to Mia. I understand she had a problem with alcohol, but it seems like her internal struggles were far worse.

I will continue to say that E Lynn Harris was before his time, and I often wonder what type of magic he would be creating today.

[Mary Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not life altering but a good solid read with a cast of African American & gay characters. Probably big news when it was written in the 90s.

The grandmother character who was supposed to bring the 4 more characters stories together was completely lovable.

[Rafael Suleiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting Black romantic novel.

[Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

He was an exceptional write. I went to one of his books signing.

[Claudette Denny]

Great book. A must-read!

[Rian Monson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it

[Bob Foote · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the characters in this book and the story. It kept my interest until the last page.

[Madlyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read and awareness into the gay world.

[Monique · Rating 3 out of 5]

So never read an infamous E. Lynn Harris book and wanted a light pageturner, and got just that..This book had pretty transparent characters with an okay plot that turned ridiculous near the end..I cant say that I was disappointed as I expected something kind of like this: a plot focused on a woman looking for a man and a great guy coming to save her,a mysterious man looking for something or someone to give him closure and a steamy romance scene (in this case with two men and pretty graphic but tasteful) and thats what it is..to me the plot twist or book ending conclusion on the Mia case was a little too farfetched and should have had some subtle or minor references earlier in the novel to be believable and also I didnt buy the end romance, not enough backstory--come to think of it maybe I didnt like that book that much, so I will read some more from the late Mr. Harris (RIP) and hopefully find some of the humor, soul and poignancy I have heard from some many of his reviews...

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

(FROM JACKET) In "And This Too Shall Pass", Harris takes us into the locker rooms and newsrooms of Chicago, where four lives are about to intersect in romance and scandal. At the heart of the novel is the celibate Zurich, a rookie quarterback for the Chicago Cougars whose trajectory for superstardom is interrupted by a sexual assault charge by Mia, a sportscaster with her own sights on fame. With his career in jeopardy, Zurich hires Tamela, a high-powered attorney, to defend him, while Sean, a gay sportswriter, covers the story and uncovers his heart.
All of these characters facet the challenge of keeping faith-in themselves and in God-while Harris's heartfelt storytelling reveals how the love of family can help one to face the terrible legacy of long-held secrets. Throughout these character's search for self-knowledge, Harris weaves the stories of MamaCee, Zurich's grandmother, whose leasson of faith teach one and all.....

[(a)lyss(a) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea what I was getting into when I picked up this book. It's a page turner full of well written characters and thought-provoking stories.

I was drawn in by the emotions behind the characters and the way the stories interact with one another. While it starts out prose-y at times a narrative combining these unique characters came together quickly. Touching on stories of sacrifice and love and sadness this book is beautiful. Talking about black, gay lives in an unexpected and positive way. The author captures the recognizable cadences of close relationships along with self love and forgiveness. It's a more emotional story than I expected that had me rooting for the characters, for their happiness, while touching on the fears people face in relationships and the scary realities of AIDS and stereotypes and what it means to be a man.

It's an exceptional book with amazing characters and insight into people.

[Emilie Andersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good because it's different! The gay stories you read nowadays are very alike and not very mature, which I felt this was. It was grown-ups who found each other and it was so much better than the typical cliché stories, that are very popular at the moment. I liked how it followed 4 different people whose lifes intervene in one way or another. The only story I found boring was Mia's, but because her story had a great impact on Zurich's, then I read almost all of it :b. The reason why it gets 4 stars and not 5 is because there was a little too much God in it for my taste and in some points it was a little cliché, but other than that it was a interesting mix of sport, love, sex, rape, STD and homosexuality. It was more real and that's what I loved! The ending was just as it should be!

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book but the Tamala story was too much. She is bigoted and homophobic. I found her relationship with Caliph lukewarm, dull and uninteresting. I didn't pick up on the chemistry.
Mia was written as a selfish and uppity bitch. I could not garner any sympathy for her. What happened to her was horrible yet I wasn't sympathetic. I hate that she accused an innocent person of hurting her then went around being even more rude and bitchy than before,
Loved Gina and her relationship with Zurich.
Loved Sean after getting to read about him with Zurich. I was rooting for them from the beginning.
MamaCee, loved her relationship with everyone.
Basii, I first me him in Any Way The Wind Blows so to see him here, was a surprise.

[Kemesha Gabbidon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pretty underwhelmed by this book. I found myself not caring much about most of the characters.I however was very sympathetic towards Sean and to be fair the book was an easy read. Many of the characters tended to be one dimensional and almost cliche in some aspects but still entertaining. I expected Tamela to be a bigot and not even be certain why. I expected the all knowing grandmother and I expected Zurich to be naive. I did like the way the author intertwined the story lines. It read like a movie for me. For the most part the story was about people being honest with themselves and coming to terms with their choices and beliefs and that was interesting. Maybe this was not the best book to begin trying to get to know Mr. Harris.

[T Neff · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an inspiring story! It was a page turner from beginning to end. I really enjoyed it. It was spiritually touching. If you like books like this, you should also "Under the Peach Tree" by Charlay Marie.

[KC Hurst · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldnt put this one down...but then again,I cant put any of his books down...

[Mario Desean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I realy like this book, although other people i know who hae read this book didn't

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read everything that E. Lynn Harris writes and I am so hooked.

[Nickoya · Rating 4 out of 5]

He is one of my favorites. Love his work.

[Corinne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have this book, but read it some time ago, but I am a fan of all of e. lynn harris books, all of them are good.

[Tasha]

Great if you love this author's style of writing!

[Jessica Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was awesome!

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the "faith in god" overtones in this book, especially in that god loves everyone- even homosexuals and they too are just as derserving of true love.

[Anne Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good read. Fun and engaging and thought-provoking on occassion. However, the quickie ending kind of irked me. It seemed rather slap dash but all and all. It was a good book. I enjoyed it.

[Andrea F Gordon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read when it first came out.

[Cynthia Paschen]

recommended by :Mary Ann

[Candi]

Loved it and try to read his books in order.

[Agnes Duncan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Great reading.Helps to keep an open mind on spirituality....bascially that we are all sinners yet we are all loved by the father.We are in no position to judge .