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Synopses & Reviews
In these acrid and poignant stories, Hughes depicted black people colliding — sometimes humorously, more often tragically — with whites in the 1920s and '30s.
Synopsis
A collection of vibrant and incisive short stories depicting the sometimes humorous, but more often tragic interactions between Black people and white people in America in the 1920s and '30s.
One of the most important writers to emerge from the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes is best known as a poet, but these stories showcase his talent as a lively storyteller. His work blends elements of blues and jazz, speech and song, into a triumphant and wholly original idiom.
Stories included in this collection:
"Cora Unashamed"
"Slave on the Block"
"Home"
"Passing"
"A Good Job Gone"
"Rejuvenation Through Joy"
"The Blues I'm Playing"
"Red-Headed Baby"
"Poor Little Black Fellow"
"Little Dog"
"Berry"
"Mother and Child"
"One Christmas Eve"
"Father and Son"
About the Author
Langston Hughes (1902-1967), a central figure of the Harlem Renaissance and one of the most influential and esteemed writers of the 20th century, was born in Joplin, Missouri, and spent much of his childhood in Kansas before moving to Harlem. His first book of poetry, The Weary Blues, was published in 1926; its success helped him to win a scholarship to Lincoln University, in Pennsylvania, from which he received his BA in 1929 and an honorary Litt.D. in 1943. Among his other awards and honors were a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Rosenwald Fellowship, and a grant from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Hughes published more than 35 books, including works of poetry, short stories, novels, an autobiography, musicals, essays, and plays.