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"Number's Up: Cracking the Code of an American Family"
Thu, Sep 11
|Cafe con Libros
Join us for a thoughtful conversation with debut author Johnisha Matthews Levi whose stirring new memoir, Number's Up: Cracking the Code of an American Family, explores how public policy has disrupted Black institutions and communities. She will be joined by Bridgett Davis.
Time & Location
Sep 11, 2025, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Cafe con Libros, 724 Prospect Pl, Brooklyn, NY 11216, USA
About the Event
ABOUT THE BOOK
For four decades, Johnisha Matthews Levi believed a conventional story about her birth, picturing her happy parents at the hospital together. While sorting through her late mother's belongings, however, she discovered a document indicating that her father was instead serving time in the Lorton Correctional Complex. This revelation, along with rumors about an FBI investigation of her deceased parents' "private business," leads Levi to unearth the hidden history of her family. She ties this story to public policy, demonstrating how state lottery legalization and the War on Drugs disrupted Washington, DC's Black institutions and communities.
Levi's stirring memoir centers on her brilliant but troubled father, a Black World War II radioman who, facing economic barriers after his naval service, reinvents himself as a "numbers man" for an underground gambling operation. The job enables John Matthews to provide for his loved ones and to achieve a level of…
Tickets
General Admission
This ticket grants entry to the event; it does not include a book. In addition, it does not guarantee a signed book. Purchase of a book is entirely dependent on stock availability at the time of the event.
$5.00
+$0.13 ticket service fee
GA + Signed Book
This ticket grants entry to the event and guarantees a signed book during the event. If for any reason, you are unable to attend, you will receive an email outlining the options on how to receive the book. Please do not worry; your book will not be sold.
$32.95
+$0.82 ticket service fee
ONLY the Signed Book
This ticket does not grant entry. This ticket is only for folx who are not able to physically attend the event AND who like a signed book. 1-2 business days after the event, you will receive an email outlining the options for receiving the book: a. ship or b. pick-Up. If you opt for shipping, you will receive an invoice with shipping cost. Once paid, the book will ship. If you choose pick-up, you will receive an email with pick-up information.
$27.95
+$0.70 ticket service fee
Community Offering
Books and bookish events are not the province of the privileged. This ticket is for those who most need the help. If you can afford the $5.00 charge for general admission, please save this for someone who can’t.
$0.00
Total
$0.00