Thulani Davis was born on July 19, 1949 in Hampton, VA. She is a journalist,
playwright, librettist, novelist, poet and screenwriter. She has written at least six books.
1959 was published in 1992. It tells the story of Willie Tarrant, a 12 year old black girl
living in Turner, Virginia in 1959. Civil rights unrest shatters the town, and Willie
is one of those chosen to attend the white school. School Library Journal said that the
book was ". . . a fine piece of fictionalized history told through a splendid voice."