By Chanda Temple
Cherith Glover Fluker walks into General coffee shop on Birmingham’s Clairmont Avenue and orders food that helped fuel her future as a first-time book author.
Coffee, black. Cinnamon roll, warmed.
She settles in at a small chestnut-colored table that’s flush against a huge window. Looking through the glass, the city street starts to stir as people walk their dogs or jog past for a morning run. It’s a scene that played on repeat for Cherith for almost a year as she visited the coffee shop six or seven times to jot down notes for, “Secret Birmingham: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful and Obscure.”
The book, which highlights well-known and not-so-well-known nuggets about the Magic City, was released on Aug. 1, which was a big day for Fluker. But an even bigger day for her was in April 2024 when she decided to stop letting her fears of wondering if she was “good enough” to write a book, get the best of her.
“This is my table when I come here,” she says, as steam rises from her coffee cup and sunlight streaming through the window sort of bounces off the glaze on the cinnamon roll. “This is where it all started.”
The “it” Cherith speaks of is when she sought reassurance from Javacia Harris Bowser, a Birmingham author and founder of See Jane Write, to write the book. Bowser reassured Fluker, a travel writer based in Alabama, that she was ready. The next day, Fluker signed her book contract with Reedy Press.
“My biggest lesson through all of this is, ‘Don’t count yourself out,’ ” Cherith says. “I counted myself out, and I think that’s why I needed Javacia’s reassuring me. The publisher and I had gone back and forth a dozen times, and I needed to be sure. I almost messed this up for myself, due to my lack of confidence.”
But taking the plunge to write her first book is paying off. Author and entrepreneur Tabitha Brown, who has more than 4 million followers on Instagram, highlighted Cherith on Instagram earlier this month; her is available in nine stores across Alabama and online at http://www.whatcheriththinks.com; and reactions to her book have been positive. While in the General, a customer lights up with excitement after hearing about the book.
“I don’t think I thought about who my audience would be,” Cherith admits. “I wrote this book because it was a goal of mine, but I didn’t know who would be interested in it.”
“I’ve had positive responses from folks as young as 16 to as old as 75. This book is truly for everyone interested in Birmingham.”
Researching is hungry business, so, during her writing and reflection, Fluker visited several popular food and beverage destinations in Birmingham such as Gus’s Hotdogs, Dread River Distilling Co., the Market at Pepper Place and Niki’s West. They are all in the book, as is the General, a quaint sandwich and coffee shop in Forest Park, where Fluker enjoys their homemade pastries. Her favorite? The blueberry scone.
“It’s not overly sweet. It’s just perfect,” Cherith says of the scone, adding that she also likes their breakfast. “Their brunch is like home. I usually get the bacon and eggs.”’
The flavors, ambiance and local energy from several eateries that Cherith visited while working on the book, found their way into the tone, pace and storytelling of her book. Here’s a list of some Birmingham-area restaurants and bars Cherith visited while writing the book:
- Cherith had never visited Birmingham staple Niki’s West until 2024, when she ordered the fried pork chop, greens, macaroni and cheese and cornbread. “It’s supposed to be a meat-and-three, but I wanted all of the vegetables,” she says. “It was hard to choose.” (Photo by Cherith Glover Fluker)
- For inspiration, Cherith visited the Market at Pepper Place, where she would order a cup of coffee from Red Cat Coffee House, sit on the patio and people watch. At the market, she discovered Ivory Leshore’s white chocolate bread pudding, which comes in a variety of flavors. Her favorite was the white chocolate bread pudding because it reminded her of “comfort and warmth.” (Photo by Chanda Temple)
- Cherith did what the locals do when visiting Gus’s Hot Dogs in downtown Birmingham, and that’s order a hot dog “all the way,” with Gus’ sauce, onions, sauerkraut and chili with a bag of Sweet Heat potato chips on the side. (Photo: Gus’s Hot Dogs Facebook)
- Cherith says she appreciated the seasonal offerings at Dread River Distilling Co., where the vibe is classy and not stuffy. The venue will host a book signing on Sept. 20 from 1 to 3 p.m., which is when they will unveil a special drink created in honor of the book. They call it The Iron City Elixir.
- Cherith says the French toast at Automatic Seafood & Oysters is “amazing.”
- A burger and a beer at Back Forty Beer Co. reminded Cherith why she was doing this writing project: to connect the people of Birmingham in a new way.
- For Cherith, the banana split at Big Spoon Creamery in Avondale stands out because it’s a reimagined version of the classic sundae.
- Anytime. Cherith felt stuck, overwhelmed or needed a break from research deadlines, she’d treat herself with a trip to Juniper, where she hung out in the courtyard to soak up the calmness of the patio, and enjoy their Sunday brunch or a cocktail. (Photo by Cherith Glover Fluker)
- On a recent return visit to General, Cherith had their chicken salad sandwich on wheat bread, which has been known to sell out. She says the chicken salad hype is real for a cozy, creative space that simply feels like an unofficial writing studio. “Since Secret Birmingham started here, it felt necessary to include it in the book,” Cherith says. (Photo by Cherith Glover Fluker)
In the book, Cherith explores legendary and unknown locations. For example, Oak Hill Cemetery, which was created when Birmingham was founded in 1871, is the final resting place for more than 11,000 people, including civil rights trailblazer, the Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. The cemetery is also known to have been unsegregated during the height of segregation in Birmingham. Fluker wrote that veterans of the Civil War, World War I and World War II are buried at Oak Hill, which is located at 1120 19th St. North. It is diagonally across from the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex.
“I didn’t know they did tours there until I started doing my research,’’ said Fluker, 46. “Who knew?’’
Throughout the fall, Fluker will host a series of book signings at several places mentioned in the book to increase awareness about their existence. Her first book signing will be Saturday, Aug. 30 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the House Plant Collective, a brick-and-mortar store and a greenery shop on wheels, 3621 Fifth Ave. South, for “Pages and Plants.’’ There, attendees will be able to learn more about the book and do a plant-themed craft.
“I felt like a history buff writing this book,’’ she said. “I really had to dig and read other books, talk to people, make sure that the information was correct, as opposed to just going around taking pictures and relying on word of mouth,’’ she said.
Fluker started out with a list of 150 places to include in the book. But her publisher encouraged her to cut it to 84. So, within 169 pages, she touched on a variety of locations, including Vulcan Park and Museum, Sloss Furnaces, the Japanese Garden at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Frank’s Table Sculpture on the Rotary Trail and Joe Minter’s African Village in America near Elmwood Cemetery. The city’s civil rights history is also highlighted, including Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, which is where four little girls were killed after segregationists planted a bomb under a set of steps in 1963; and the Historic Masonic Temple Building, which was built in 1922 and served as a meeting place during the civil rights movement.
Even though Fluker grew up in Talladega, she has strong ties to the Birmingham area. She worked for the Jefferson County Board of Education for six years; she volunteers with her sorority, the Birmingham Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; and her father, the late Willie C. Glover, sold cars at Edwards Chevrolet on Third Avenue North. On pages 36 and 37, she writes about how the dealership, which opened in 1916, is a testament to resilience and tradition.
“That was a way for me to have a part of him in the book. I don’t mention his name, but I say my father worked there,’’ she says. “Even when I drive by there today, I look back at his corner office to see if someone is in there. He didn’t spend a lot of time in his office because he was always out on the lot, selling cars.’’
“I think he would just be proud that I’m creating a legacy in that book,’’ says Fluker, who has an undergraduate degree from Auburn University and a doctorate from Samford University.
“He would be happy that I pushed myself out of my comfort zone because I had talked about writing a book for years. I wished I had done this sooner.’’
For more information about Fluker’s book tour, visit https://whatcherithinks.com/events .
Savor This! Cherith’s new book can be found at Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, Wal-Mart, the Birmingham Museum of Art, Board in Birmingham, Southern Museum of Flight, Leaf&Petal, Alabama Goods, Thank You Books and Weeping Willow Books.
Chanda Temple is an award-winning writer living in Birmingham, Ala. She blogs at http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. If you have a food story idea, email her at chandatemple@gmail.com. Follow her on Instagram at @chandatemple.
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