Book Details:
Book Title: Nothing North of Delmar (a Novel) by Ellen Barker
Category: Adult Fiction (18+), 344 pages
Genre: Literary Novel
Publisher: She Writes Press
Release date: April 2026
Content Rating: PG-13: No sex, little profanity, but themes of racism and adulting.
Book Description:
It's 1976, the Bicentennial year and a watershed moment in America. The draft, the Vietnam war, Woodstock, and the Summer of Love are long gone. Tie-dye is out, and everyone has cut their hair. The Civil Rights Act has passed, the Equal Rights Amendment is just a few states from ratification, Roe v. Wade is firmly enshrined, and closet doors are creaking open. The sixties have changed the world.
Only they haven’t, as Novelle is about to find out.
At this moment, she arrives in St. Louis to start graduate school in economics, a clear-cut field of mathematic problem sets with answers. Except, it’s not. Almost immediately, she discovers that Delmar Boulevard is a Great Wall of China separating St. Louis into Black North and white South, and that economics is the mortar between the bricks. She gets caught up in unraveling a plan to “take back” a Black neighborhood that has leaked over the divide. By the time she finishes her degree, she is getting hate mail and death threats. But she’s also come into her own as a force for change. A satirical, witty look at a slice of history that still resonates today.
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Ellen Barker grew up in Kansas City, Missouri, and had a front-row seat to the demographic shifts, the hope, and the turmoil of the civil rights era of the 1960s. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies from Washington University in Saint Louis, where she developed a passion for how cities work, and don’t. She began her career as an urban planner in Saint Louis and then spent many years working for large consulting firms specializing in urban infrastructure. She now lives in Northern California.
My Review:
I have had the pleasure in reading previously released books from the talented author, Ellen Barker. I did not hesitate when I had the opportunity to read her newest novel, Nothing North of Delmar. I found myself being transported back in time to the Bicentennial of the United States. It was a joy for me to meet Novelle as she begins her new life in St Louis and starting her graduate school studies. I enjoyed the author's use of humor while bringing her story to life. Novelle thought she the world figured out and had suddenly having to rethink the world again. Even though she is fifty years in the past, I can still see that not a lot had changed with society. I wanted to keep reading to see how she navigates through it all. Overall, a fun and entertaining tale to dive into on a rainy spring day. I loved it every single page.
I am going to give Nothing North of Delmar a very well deserved five plus stars. I highly recommend it for readers who love to read historical adult fiction. I would be interested in reading more novels from Ellen Barker in the near future. This one is no doubt a novel that is worth reading and should not be missed.
I received a paperback copy of Ellen Barker's Nothing North of Delmar from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.
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