Diane McKinney-Whetstone is the author of the critically acclaimed novels Our Gen, Tumbling, Lazaretto, Tempest Rising, Blues Dancing, Leaving Cecil Street, Trading Dreams at Midnight, and Family Spirit. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Black Caucus of the American Library Association's Literary Award for Fiction, which she won twice. A past lecturer a the University of Pennsylvania, her work has appeared in The Atlantic, Essence, Philadelphia magazine, and the Philadelphia Inquirer. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband, Greg.