In Our Own Image: Treasured African-american Traditions, Journeys And Icons - Hardcover

Patrik Henry Bass is an award-winning journalist who has written and edited for numerous publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, and Essence, where he is currently Books Editor. Bass is also a well-regarded instructor on features magazine writing. Raised in Laurinburg, North Carolina, Bass lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Artist and photographer Karen Pugh, a 15-year veteran of the fashion industry, was the first African-American Creative Director on the Polo/Ralph Lauren Women's Design team. She has also designed and illustrated for Revlon, Old Navy, The Limited, and Celine in Paris, France. Born in Neptune, New Jersey, Ms. Pugh currently resides in Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey.

Who are we?
We are the embodiment of the Amerian Dream, the architects of rock and roll, the builders of cities, and the artisans on the assembly line.
We are revolutionaries of style. We turn cornrows into a work of art.
We reinvent ourselves when we wear our Sunday best.
We are pioneers of medicine and holistic healing. We are the mothers of invention and the fathers of funk.
We are soul survivors and style warriors. We are deep and real.
We're still here.
We manage to carry on in love and sorrow, in tragedy and triumph, through setbacks and breakthroughs.
In our kitchen wisdom, we serve home-cooked love and deep-fried soul. We understand the importance of peach cobbler and homemade mint ice cream.
In our daily lives, we jump the broom, sweep the floors for choir practice, chair church committees, and sing in the choir.
Now, let us say, "Amen."
We carry on.
We've always known what it takes to survive in this world: attitude, some good marching shoes, and spoonbread to share.
We celebrate one another at family reunions and fish frys, weddings and Funerals, barbecues and baby showers, and blue-light basement parties.
We've won major awards. Far more than winners of gold medals and Nobel Prizes, we're local spelling bee champions and holders of winning raffle tickets.
This is a portion of who we are...in our own image.