I Am Not Sidney Poitier

Not Sidney Poitier is an amiable young man in an absurd country. The sudden death of his mother orphans him at age eleven leaving him with an unfortunate name an uncanny resemblance to the famous actor and perhaps more fortunate a staggering number of shares in the Turner Broadcasting Corporation. Percival Everett's hilarious new novel follows Not Sidney's tumultuous life as the social hierarchy scrambles to balance his skin color with his fabulous wealth. Maturing under the less-than watchful eye of his adopted foster father Ted Turner Not gets arrested in rural Georgia for driving while black sparks a dinner table explosion at the home of his manipulative girlfriend and sleuths a murder case in Smut Eye Alabama all while navigating the recurrent communication problem: ''What's your name?'' a kid would ask. ''Not Sidney'' I would say. ''Okay then what is it?''