Strange Fruit
Strange Fruit is a 1944 bestselling novel debut by American author Lillian Smith that deals with the then-forbidden and controversial theme of interracial romance. Originally using the working title "Jordan is so Chilly", Smith later changed the title to "Strange Fruit" prior to its publication. In her 1956 autobiography, singer Billie Holiday wrote that Smith chose to name the book after her 1939 song "Strange Fruit", which was about the lynching and racism against African Americans. Smith maintained the book's title referred to the "damaged, twisted people (both black and white) who are the products or results of our racist culture."