Keith P Mankin

“Keith Mankin is a novelist and creative consultant in Dallas TX. Born in Pittsburgh PA and raised in Boston MA, he earned a humanities degree from Harvard University, and then an MD from University of Pittsburgh. He worked for thirty years as a developmental orthopedist until retirement from medical practice in 2016. He has authored eighteen novels, four children’s books, four non-fiction works, and innumerable short stories and essays. He has been a staff writer at Theater Jones Arts Journal and is a featured reviewer for the LA Review of Books and the New Books Network.”

“Motley by Madhalasa Iyer is a charming story that tells a much larger tale.

The sweet friendship between two young students is complicated by the prejudices of the societies that their two families inhabit. Brianne, a fun and candy-loving Black girl has been best friends for years with Whitney, a studious youngster from a white family. But the two families do not let them socialize outside of school and discourage their friendship at all turns. With a school camping trip on the horizon, the two plot ways to get their families to accept their friendship.

Ms. Iyer has done a great job in presenting a common quandary – how the ingrained beliefs of a society and not the interactions between individuals create separation. She has developed characters that do not merely bear the disappointments of their community’s prejudices, but who also work to overcome them. The outcome is clever and unexpected, leading to heart-felt lessons in accepting individual people and not the thoughts of a group.

With beautiful illustrations by Zoya Farooqui, Motley is a fun and important book to be shared and discussed with family and friends.”

Peter LaBerge

University of Pennsylvania '17, M.F.A. & Writers in the Public Schools Fellow, NYU '22, B.A., Founder & Editor-in-Chief, The Adroit Journal

"In Motley, Madhalasa Iyer has done what we as writers should all endeavor to do: shine a spotlight on systemic barriers present in our world and inspire us—move us, really—to do what we can to eradicate them."

Arvin Vohra

Author of The Equation for Excellence,

In an era of increased polarization, Motley shows how openness and kindness can bridge racial and cultural divides. It's a story about how the bonds between two best friends can overcome familial and cultural biases, and bring people together.