By Christi Carras
Los Angeles Times
Eric Jerome Dickey, the bestselling author of Milk in My Coffee, Friends and Lovers and several other influential works, has died at age 59.
The celebrated novelist died Jan. 3 in Los Angeles after battling a long-term illness, publisher Penguin Random House confirmed last week. Throughout his illustrious career, Dickey wrote dozens of novels, including his final project, The Son of Mr. Suleman, which hits shelves on April 20. Eric Jerome Dickey loved being a writer and all that it encompassed, his longtime publisher, Dutton, said Jan. 5 in a statement. He loved challenging himself with each book; he adored his readers and beloved fans and was always grateful for his success. We are proud to have been his publisher over the span of his award-winning career. He will truly be missed.
Eric Jerome Dickey, the bestselling author of “Milk in My Coffee,” “Friends and Lovers” and several other influential works, has died at age 59.
The celebrated novelist died Jan. 3 in Los Angeles after battling a long-term illness, publisher Penguin Random House confirmed Tuesday morning. Throughout his illustrious career, Dickey wrote dozens of novels, including his final project, “The Son of Mr. Suleman,” which hits shelves on April 20.
“Eric Jerome Dickey loved being a writer and all that it encompassed,” his longtime publisher, Dutton, said Tuesday in a statement. “He loved challenging himself with each book; he adored his readers and beloved fans and was always grateful for his success. We are proud to have been his publisher over the span of his award-winning career. He will truly be missed.”
New York Times bestselling author, who was 59 years old, had been battling an illness, his publicist confirmed. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Dickey began writing stories in 1989 and saw his first work,
Sister, Sister, published in 1996. Dickey was celebrated for illustrating Black life as it was, without mentions of slavery and civil rights or falling into what many readers saw as stereotypes of Black storytelling.
Roxane Gay and journalist Ernest Owens paid their respects on Twitter, along with a number of other fans, expressing their sadness over the loss of a favorite author and a prominent Black voice. Dickey published 29 novels before his death.
Eric Jerome Dickey, bestselling author of "Friends and Lovers" and "Milk in My Coffee," has died in Los Angeles at age 59 after battling a long illness.