16 Bars: A Short Story Mixtape

Ran Walker's first "short story mixtape" pulls together a varied collection of seven stories about black men and how they are shaped by the relationships they enter. With topics ranging from break-ups to awkward first dates, 16 Bars is a bold, unflinching, and even humorous take on what goes on in the minds of black men when romance enters the picture. INCLUDED STORIES: In "A Night with Nina Simone," Jasper hopes to find one last connection with his ex-girlfriend. In "Discovering Charles Buckner," Charles, a guy with low self-esteem, learns that there is more to him than meets the eye. In the humorous tale "A Theory on Toilet Paper," Aaron watches a date disintegrate because of a little ice cream. "16 Bars" takes us through a college professor's dilemma of participating on a student's mixtape. "Eight Million" brings together two people who thought (and hoped) they would never see each other again. And finally, "Dancing in My Dreams" shows what Kyle is willing to go through to keep love alive.