The Professor S Daughter

A daughter's future and her father's past converge in Emily Raboteau's explosive first novel exploring identity, assimilation, and the legacy of race "My father is black and my mother is white and my brother is a vegetable." When Emma Boudreaux's older brother, Bernie, winds up in a coma after a freak accident, it's as if she loses a part of herself. All their lives, he has served as her compass, her stronger, better half: Bernie was brilliant when Emma was smart, charismatic when she was awkward, and confident when she was shy. Only Bernie was able to navigate-if not always diplomatically-the terrain of their biracial identity. Now, as the chronic rash that's flared up throughout her life returns with a vengeance, Emma is sleepwalking through her first year at college, left alone to grow into herself. The key to Emma's self-discovery lies in her father's past. Esteemed Princeton professor Bernard Boudreaux is emotionally absent and secretive about his family history. Little does Emma know just how haunted that history is, how tortured the path from the Deep South town to his present Ivy League success has been. Though her father and brother are bound by the past, Emma might just escape. In exhilarating, magical prose, The Professor's Daughter traces the borderlands of race and family, the contested territory that gives birth to rage, confusion, madness, and invisibility. This striking debut marks the arrival of an astonishingly original voice that surges with energy and purpose.

Follows the adventures of Lillian, the daughter of renowned Egyptologist Professor Bowell, and Imhotep IV, a dashing mummy owned by the professor who is awake for the first time in thirty centuries and is in love with Lillian.

From Jerusalem to Ghana to Katrina-ravaged New Orleans, a woman reclaims her history in a “beautifully written and thought-provoking” memoir (Dave Eggers, author of A Hologram for the King and Zeitoun). A biracial woman from a country still divided along racial lines, Emily Raboteau never felt at home in America. As the daughter of an African American religious historian, she understood the Promised Land as the spiritual realm black people yearned for. But while visiting Israel, the Jewish Zion, she was surprised to discover black Jews. More surprising was the story of how they got there. Inspired by their exodus, her question for them is the same one she keeps asking herself: have you found the home you’re looking for? In this American Book Award–winning inquiry into contemporary and historical ethnic displacement, Raboteau embarked on a ten-year journey around the globe and back in time to explore the complex and contradictory perspectives of black Zionists. She talked to Rastafarians and African Hebrew Israelites, Evangelicals and Ethiopian Jews—all in search of territory that is hard to define and harder to inhabit. Uniting memoir with cultural investigation, Raboteau overturns our ideas of place, patriotism, dispossession, citizenship, and country in “an exceptionally beautiful . . . book about a search for the kind of home for which there is no straight route, the kind of home in which the journey itself is as revelatory as the destination” (Edwidge Danticat, author of The Farming of Bones).

*A DIGITAL-EXCLUSIVE SHORT STORY* The day of the Langton Park community fair has arrived and Evie Preston, a well-respected professor's daughter, is eager to spread the word about her afternoon lecture programme for ladies. She has no clue how her ideas will affect three very different women... Lady Alice is struggling with the life her mother and brother believe she should be living. Surely she should be making these choices for herself? Florence is bright but she's bored. She's keen to continue learning but her parents think she's had all the education she needs. And then there's Meg, who is young and full of hope for the future, but frustrated with the obstacles in her way. Authentic, gripping and spellbinding, The Professor's Daughter is a short story about a group of strong women who are unable to ignore their responsibilities but who also refuse to ignore their hearts. *Contains an exclusive extract from Catherine King's new novel, A Sister's Courage: a story of tragedy, strength and hope*

It’s the end of the term, and Nadia Hill hopes for a romance with her young literature professor, once she graduates. But there are obstacles. For starters, she’s attending college under an alias—made necessary because she’s the daughter of a high-ranking figure in organized crime, who vowed that Nadia would receive all A’s throughout her college career. Standing in the way of such perfection is Heath Alexander, a man of unimpeachable integrity, who is about to give Nadia a B+ in his literature course. Will he budge off his principles and award her the higher grade—especially if he is made to understand the dire consequences of not doing so? In this delightful and hilarious novel, matters are complicated further by several of the professor’s colleagues, who plot to deny him tenure; the Don’s loyal yet inept associate; and the Don’s irrepressible and crafty former lover.

"The Professor's Daughter" is a fictional memoir about an eccentric professor who's been a non-conformist his entire career. After his wife's death, he tries to re-establish his relationship with his estranged daughter, Athena. She wants to know about her father's secret life that he lived apart from both her and her mother. Reluctantly, the professor tells Athena about the other women in his life through stories filled with passion, humor and irreverence. In writing what he calls a "fictional memoir", Gamow knows that there is always a risk that friends and family might take offense. However, his aim is to explore the mysteries of romance and have a good-natured laugh at the wild chemistry created when mixing men, women and love. "The Professor's Daughter" is a fictionalized memoir in which the life and loves of a recently widowed professor are recounted to his estranged daughter. Drawn home by the death of her mother, Athena must confront her father and the memories of the night years ago that pushed them apart. In the telling of "his side of the story," the professor tells of the many loves in his life, and expounds on his unique perspective on romantic love. Gamow's extensive experience in film is evident in this narrative, which is filled with vibrant characters, crisp dialogue, and a well developed sense of scene. A highly entertaining read, with a flare for the risqu ." - Stephanie Walker, Literary Editor, Boulder, Colorado "I am both shocked and enthralled after reading The Professor's Daughter Like a number of his heroes: Watson and Crick, Einstein, and Charles Darwin, the controversial Professor Gamow has turned heads and ruffled feathers with a surprising new publication. I have known him over the past twelve years as a teacher, mentor, research partner, and friend. Nothing could have prepared me for this revealing "memoir," which sheds an interesting light on a man with an extremely divisive history. I have long been inspired by Professor Gamow's quixotic idealism, but this book will cause many to question whether or not he has gone too far. I highly recommend this read as it places an interesting twist on decades of rumors, hearse, and speculation." - Aaron M. Shupp, MD Candidate, University of Colorado School of Medicine "In typical Gamowian fashion, this book entertains while stretching the imagination with both humor and innovation." - Gino Segre, Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Pennsylvania and Author of "Faust in Copenhagen" "Gamow paints a picture that will leave the reader questioning just how much is real. The dialogue is crisp and believable, making the story an easy read..." "The change in point of view is smooth and easy to follow. Gamow leads the reader to an almost instant empathy with Athena. Like her, the reader is waiting for her father to prove himself. The plot moves smoothly from the time she hears of her mother's death, goes home and reconnects with those who influenced her childhood; and as her father returns to tell his story. The unexpected ending leaves the reader wondering." Pat Avery ForeWord Clarion Reviews

Reprint of the original, first published in 1883.