Gary Phillips has published various novels, comics, short stories and edited or co-edited several anthologies including the Anthony-winning The Obama Inheritance: Fifteen Stories of Conspiracy Noir. Violent Spring published twenty-six ago was recently named one of the essential crime novels of Los Angeles. He was also a story editor on “Snowfall,” an FX cable show about crack and the CIA in 1980s South Central where he grew up. Phillips’ latest novel is Matthew Henson and the Ice Temple of Harlem.