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The Man Who Haunted Himself

By: Ishmael Reed
Narrated by: Adam Lazzare White
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Publisher's summary

Dr. Douglass Garnett is about to break all the rules to save himself—and push mankind into the future.

He’s one of America’s most brilliant neuroscientists. He’s also Black and dying of cancer. But he has a plan—a brain transfer. He’ll put his gifted mind into the body of Sammy Sturgeon, a White high school football star who was on the rise until a touchdown collision left him brain-dead.

He convinces his co-conspirator, Dr. Dino Battaglia, to help him with the forbidden procedure. Douglass wakes up in Sammy’s White, athletic body, with his new family and legions of fans weeping at his miraculous recovery.

As Douglass starts his life anew at Junipero Prep, complications ensue. There’s the messy breakup with Sammy’s blonde cheerleader girlfriend; then there’s an even messier relationship with his high school science teacher, Marie. Before he can win the Nobel Prize—or be charged with murder—Douglass’ transplant will force him to reconsider everything he thought he knew about race, progress, and life in America.

The Man Who Haunted Himself is a new sci-fi-horror classic from legendary author Ishmael Reed, who The New Yorker dubbed “America’s most fearless satirist”. Reed continues the literary tradition of California noir established by Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett and issues a new entry into the genre he helped launch, Afrofuturism. This hilariously subversive Audible Original is expertly narrated by Adam Lazarre-White (Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal).

Does the body or the brain make the man? Listen and find out.

©2022 Ishmael Reed (P)2022 Audible Originals, LLC.
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About the Creator

Ishmael Reed is the author of more than 30 books, including his essay collection, Why No Confederate Statues in Mexico (Baraka Books, 2019); his 11th novel, Conjugating Hindi (Dalkey Archive Press, 2018); and his 11th nonfiction work, The Complete Muhammad Ali (Baraka Books, 2015). In 2019, New York’s Nuyorican Poets Café premiered his ninth play, The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda, which garnered three AUDELCO Awards. His poetry collection, Why the Black Hole Sings the Blues: Poems 2007-2019 (Dalkey, 2020), features "Just Rollin' Along," a poem about the 1934 encounter between Bonnie and Clyde and Oakland Blues artist L.C. "Good Rockin'" Robinson, which was chosen for The Best American Poetry 2019. In addition, Reed has edited numerous magazines and 14 anthologies, including Black Hollywood Unchained (Third World Press, 2015). He is also a publisher, songwriter, cartoonist, public media commentator, lecturer, teacher, and founder of the Before Columbus Foundation and PEN Oakland, nonprofit organizations run by writers for writers.
After teaching at the University of California, Berkeley for more than 30 years, he retired in 2005. Now a Distinguished Professor at California College of the Arts, he also taught a spring 2019 creative writing class at UC Berkeley. He is a MacArthur Fellow and the recipient of many other honors, including a National Book Award, the 2018 Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History Award, the 2017 AUDELCO Pioneer Award for the Theater, the University of Buffalo’s 2014 Distinguished Alumni Award, a Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Award, San Francisco LitQuake’s 2011 Barbary Coast Award, and Pulitzer Prize nominations. Reed was also named 2008 Blues Songwriter of the Year by the West Coast Blues Hall of Fame, and his collaborations with jazz musicians spanning 40 years were recognized by SFJazz Center with his appointment, from 2012 to 2016, as San Francisco’s first Jazz Poet Laureate. Additionally, in 2016 he became the first recipient of the Alberto Dubito International Award in Venice, Italy, recognized as "a special artistic individual who has distinguished himself through the most innovative creativity in the musical and linguistic languages."
Photographed by Jason Henry

About the Performer

Adam grew up in New York City, went to public school, The Fieldston School and then Harvard University, graduating with Honors in Government & Political Philosophy. He started at Quarterback for The Harvard Crimson and played guitar and saxophone in The Harvard Jazz Band.
Coming soon as Captain Cam Wilson romancing Wanda Sykes, and across from Mike Epps on the new Netflix show, The Upshaws—Adam's recent work includes the hit film, The Gift, The Blacklist, Lethal Weapon, Glow and Scandal. Adam is known for his 25 year acting career, which began on Living Single, Martin, Hangin’ w/ Mr. Cooper, continued on Will & Grace, The Parkers, as the notorious Flynn in the Emmy-winning NBC mini-series, The Temptations, and being nominated for an NAACP Image Award for his lead role as Nathan Hastings on The Young & The Restless. Notable roles include Ocean’s 13 with Al Pacino, Grey’s Anatomy, Rosewood, Criminal Minds, Royal Pains, Private Practice and starring as Ian on Heroes.
Now, the newest member of the NCIS New Orleans writing team for Season 7—which began airing on Sunday, November 8th, 2020, Adam was a senior writer on Vin Diesel’s groundbreaking web-series, The Ropes (available on Netflix). As a director, Adam reached the third round of Oscar voting with his short film 200 Years produced by Rob Fried ( Collateral, Rudy, Boondock Saints). Adam co-wrote, produced and starred in, Forgiveness with Richard T. Jones, which won The Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival, International Black Film Festival; swept The San Diego Black Film Festival; was featured at The Pan-African Film Festival and more. Adam adapted and produced TV movies for Proctor & Gamble: Just Passin’ Through and What Angles Fear—both won Emmys for Regional TV and Adam won Regional Emmys as Leading Actor in both. His theatre credits include Mercutio in Michael Arabian’s Romeo & Juliet, Trojan Women; Bobby Seale (Black Panther leader) in Ron Sossi’s Chicago Conspiracy Trial, Neil LaBute’s This Is How It Goes, LATC’s You Morons Shoulda Stayed Home; and John Bishop’s Confluence and Legacies, at Circle Rep West where he was an executive member. Adam is the Founder of ALW Acting Studios, teaching beginners, intermediate, and advanced actors. He is a highly regarded acting coach who coached all the NBA stars in the popular film, Uncle Drew. His students include many well-known working actors. Adam taught at AMDA Conservatory in Los Angeles; at Gray Studios, and was a guest professor for the both drama and film departments at the U. of Alabama, when his film, 200 Years, and presentation, Media, Race & The Power of The Pen were featured at the Civil Rights and Arts Conference at UAB, alongside Harry Belafonte, celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Martin Luther King’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail.

What listeners say about The Man Who Haunted Himself

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more for young adult or middle school age

It's an interesting story, but it is definitely better suited to middle school or high school ages. I would definitely recommend it to those age groups for education about race and culture. I also think it could be a great movie if it's done well.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Not as advertised

This work was said to be a horror/science fiction story. It has very little of either. It is a liberal manifesto…which is fine, people have a right to their opinions…but it is simply not what it is advertised to be.

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Good overall

I thought it was a interesting concept. He uses imagination to highlight the plights of African-Americans well telling a futuristic story.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Vacuous social commentary.

Recommend the author watch any YouTube video by Alex Epstein, who wrote Fossil Future. Facts require context to be of value. The story line was interesting. Narrator was very good.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Compelling story without an ending

Fish out of water story with an interesting premise. Sociologically and culturally, it’s a very compelling way to put an intellectual black man in the position of a wealthy and privileged young white man to get their perspective but the storylines just ended. It was building toward some thing but
The end.

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I so wanted to finish this

The story is unique and super interesting! But. Sadly, the author's blatant and hateful distain for the Caucasian race is derailing and I refuse to encourage this kind of racist rhetoric. Really fascinating plot though.

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Bad

A tedious political screed that neither enthralls nor scares the listener. Just a boring monotone that ruins what could have been an interesting examination on race in America.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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it's ok

I was looking more for a story about things that happened to him with the brain and body switch this was mostly about evil white people and the reader is very monotone

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Worth a listen for the open-minded

"Terry D." is clearly a closeted bigot. While I felt like there were things that this story could have explored further, it is definitely told from a point of view that is worth hearing. The above mentioned reviewer seems to have gotten uncomfortable with the story but if a book doesn't occasionally make you uncomfortable, are you really even reading? The narrator is very talented.

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    3 out of 5 stars

Very interesting but hoped for more

This could have been so much more. I was hoping for some more haunting component. Still interesting in general.

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