Ayana Mathis

Author and Writer at Freelance

Author of THE TWELVE TRIBES OF HATTIE and THE UNSETTLED (@AAKnopf), Iowa Writers' Workshop Alum (student, former faculty and proud), wanna-be chef

Articles

‘Circle of Hope’ asks: What is a church called to do?

Sep 14, 2024 | fredericknewspost.com | Ayana Mathis

Circle of Hope was a little church that would. Founded in Philadelphia in 1996, 700 members strong at its peak, Circle was a “beloved community” built on salvation through Christ and the radical mutuality of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
Celebrating James Baldwin's Centennial, with Ayana Mathis and Viet Thanh Nguyen

Aug 23, 2024 | loc.gov | Ayana Mathis |Viet Thanh Nguyen |Eric Deggans

James Baldwin, born in 1924, wrote some of the most impactful books of the 20th Century — including “Another Country,” “Giovanni’s Room” and “Notes of a Native Son.” Join Ayana Mathis (“The Unsettled”) and Viet Thanh Nguyen (“A Man of Two Faces”) as they discuss the influence of Baldwin’s work on writers of all stripes. Moderated by Eric Deggans. Note: Book signing before event.
Review | ‘Circle of Hope’ asks: What is a church called to do?

Aug 9, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Ayana Mathis

Pulitzer Prize winner Eliza Griswold’s new book shows how clashes over the answer tore one faith community apart(Illustration by Jess Suttner for The Washington Post)8 minSorry, a summary is not available for this article at this time. Please try again later. Review by Ayana MathisAugust 9, 2024 at 11:24 a.m. EDTCircle of Hope was a little church that would.
Does It Seem Like the End Times Are Here? These Novels Know Better.

Apr 11, 2024 | nytimes.com | Ayana Mathis

Imprinted by BeliefWhat can fiction tell us about the apocalypse? Ayana Mathis finds unexpected hope in novels of crisis by Ling Ma, Jenny Offill and Jesmyn Ward. On the day my mother died, I sat by her bedside and read the Psalms. The room was quiet - the need for machines had passed - save for the sound of my voice and my mother's labored breathing.
Novel depicts hard times in Philadelphia and in Alabama | DON NOBLE

Feb 4, 2024 | gadsdentimes.com | Ayana Mathis

Don NobleContributorAyana Mathis had a bestseller with her first novel, “The Twelve Tribes of Hattie,” and has followed that with this very powerful story. “The Unsettled” is long, dense, serious and worth the effort. Her depiction of life in the later '80s, in fictional Bonaparte, Alabama, modeled after Gee’s Bend, right on the Alabama River, and in Philadelphia, is unrelentingly harsh, but rings true.
Why Do Evil and Suffering Exist? Religion Has One Answer, Literature Another.

Nov 19, 2023 | nytimes.com | Ayana Mathis

You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. In the church of my childhood, we believed God’s angels battled demons in a war for our souls. This was not a metaphor. We were Pentecostals, though not strictly and not always. We weren’t picky about denomination; what mattered was belief in the redeeming blood of Christ, in the Bible literally interpreted and in God’s endless love. And evil.
Why Do Evil and Suffering Exist? Religion Has One Answer, Literature Another.

Nov 19, 2023 | nyti.ms | Ayana Mathis

In the church of my childhood, we believed God’s angels battled demons in a war for our souls. This was not a metaphor. We were Pentecostals, though not strictly and not always. We weren’t picky about denomination; what mattered was belief in the redeeming blood of Christ, in the Bible literally interpreted and in God’s endless love. And evil. We believed in evil. Sometimes evil was obvious — lies, betrayals, the misfortunes of innocents — but just as often it was camouflaged and seductive.
Why Do Evil and Suffering Exist? Religion Has One Answer, Literature Another.

Nov 19, 2023 | nyti.ms | Ayana Mathis

In the church of my childhood, we believed God’s angels battled demons in a war for our souls. This was not a metaphor. We were Pentecostals, though not strictly and not always. We weren’t picky about denomination; what mattered was belief in the redeeming blood of Christ, in the Bible literally interpreted and in God’s endless love. And evil. We believed in evil. Sometimes evil was obvious — lies, betrayals, the misfortunes of innocents — but just as often it was camouflaged and seductive.
Book Club Picks for November 2023

Nov 10, 2023 | publishersweekly.com | Ayana Mathis |Deborah A. Miranda |Alice McDermott |Jennifer Barnes

Amerie’s Book ClubThe book: One Hundred Days by Alice Pung Our reviewer says: "In the nuanced latest from Australian writer Pung, a teen mother-to-be reflects on her ill-fated pursuit of freedom in 1980s Melbourne." Read more. The Audacious Book ClubThe book: The Unsettled by Ayana MathisOur reviewer says: "Mathis offers a simmering family saga involving fraught efforts in building Black communities.... Readers won’t want to miss Mathis’s accomplished return." Read more.
Ayana Mathis on Her New Novel, “The Unsettled”

Sep 27, 2023 | harpersbazaar.com | Ayana Mathis

Ayana Mathis’s first novel, The Twelve Tribes of Hattie, was a national bestseller and an Oprah’s Book Club 2.0 selection when it came out in 2012. Her highly anticipated follow-up, 11 years in the making, The Unsettled, is a family saga concerned with a son and his mother’s search for community and belonging.

Contact details

Emails

[email protected]

Socials & Sites

Try JournoFinder For Free

Search and contact over 1M+ journalist profiles, browse 100M+ articles, and unlock powerful PR tools.

Start Your 7-Day Free Trial →

X (formerly Twitter)

Followers: 2K
Tweets: 1K
DMs Open: No

Ayana Mathis @Ayana_Mathis

1 Jul 24

Think I'm saying good-bye to this platform. Not that I think anyone will actually see this post - I'm pretty sure the algorithm doesn't share anything of mine. So, message in a bottle style: Farewell! You can find me on IG.

Ayana Mathis @Ayana_Mathis

29 Jun 24

RT @kwelijournal: Faculty this year includes 🌟 Ayana Mathis @Ayana_Mathis 🌟 Jaquira Díaz @jaquiradiaz 🌟 Megha Majumdar @MeghaMaj 🌟 Tyr…

Ayana Mathis @Ayana_Mathis

13 Jun 24

Y'all know I am not on here so often these days-- this post is so late. But not for lack of gratitude! Very big massive thanks to Jeff O'Neal for this amazing convo on First Edition @BookRiot !!

Book Riot @BookRiot

Jeff O'Neal talks with Ayana Mathis about her latest book, The Unsettled. The Unsettled was a 2023 New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and a Best Book of the Year selection by The New Yorker, The Washington Post, Oprah Daily, and others. https://t.co/JNGZJVZK65