Customer Reviews (1)

Gives Great Insite into Cane and Toomer and Their Respective Place in the Harlem Renaissance
I'd recomend this book to anyone interested in digging deeper into the mistery that is Cane and Jean Toomer.Their is some litterary analysis but mostly the book disects Cane's role in the H.R. and the spiritual, racial, and philosophical motives Toomer may have intended by his novel and some that he may not have.By reading the essays in this book one can begin to understand the person Jean Toomer was and why Cane was over-looked in its time and is today an important work of the Harlem Renaissance. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Absolutely brilliant!!! best text on the subject out there.
Professor Ferguson has made a brilliant contribution, this text is in for the long run. ... Read more

Product Description
One of the most distinctive and prolific writers of the Harlem Renaissance, Anita Scott Coleman (1890-1960) found popular and critical success in the flourishing African American press of the early twentieth century.Yet unlike many of her New York-based contemporaries, Coleman lived her life in the American West, first in New Mexico and later in California.Her work thus offers a rare view of African American life in that region.

Also featured are vintage family photographs, a detailed chronolgy, and a genealogical tree covering five generations of the Coleman family - extensive research and written with the full cooperation of the Coleman family. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A Western View of the Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural and sociological movement born out of the failure of post-Civil War reconstruction, the migration of African-Americans from the rural south to northern cities, the after effects of World War I and the celebration of black dignity and creativity.

The most active period was from 1919 to the mid-1930s, though influences began to come together by 1900, and cultural effects still exist. The Renaissance brought black culture into an American context, expanded intellectual and social contacts for parts of both the black and white communities, and helped lay the foundation for the Civil Rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.

It was primarily a middle-class, urban, Eastern U.S. movement, centered around that part of New York City called Harlem.

Except that Anita Scott Coleman, a prize-winning short-story writer, poet, script-writer for silent films, and essayist, came from New Mexico.

Anita Scott was born in Mexico in 1890, the daughter of a black U.S. Calvary corporal and his wife. She grew up in New Mexico, graduated from the New Mexico Normal School, taught school, married a printer and photographer, and raised five children, as well as numerous foster children. Her husband, James Coleman, moved to Los Angeles in 1924, in the hopes of work for himself and better schooling for their children. Two years later, having found employment as a typesetter, he sent for Anita and the rest of his family. She lived in Los Angeles until her death in 1960.

This book is divided into four parts. The introduction is a scholarly discussion of Coleman's life and how that life, and her literary works, wove in and out of the Harlem Renaissance. It puts a human face on a cultural movement.

Part I is seventeen of her short stories, all of which were published between 1919 and 1943 in newspapers and magazines that were part of the Harlem Renaissance. Part II is a collection of her poems, and Part III contains two essays, "Unfinished Masterpieces," and "Arizona and New Mexico--The Land of Esperanza."

The short-stories are breathtaking. Initially, it takes a moment to get into the stories' style. The rhythm is of a different time and kind of story-telling, akin to the first reading of O. Henry, or the journals of the nineteenth-century Canadian journal-keeper, Susanna Moody. But by the second or third story, that strangeness falls away.

A woman sells her clothes to raise money so she and her husband can buy a bakery. A band leader tries to run a con so his band members can have places to stay while they are touring. A working man and a spinster cook both covet a little gray house. The endings are, for the most part, happy but not happily-ever-after. The most disturbing endings are in "Jack Arrives," where I thought I knew the ending but really hoped I'd guessed wrong; and "Cross Crossings Cautiously." The last sentence in that one sent a chill up my spine.

The short stories and essays appealed to me more than the poems, not because of anything lacking in the poems, but because my interest lies more in prose. If anything, the poems distill ideas expressed in the short stories to the point that reading them is painful, like a drop of hot acid on your skin.

If you are a short story fan, a poet, or interested in either history or black women's lives in the first part of the twentieth century, I recommend this book.

bySharon Wildwind
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

College-level collections strong in Afro-American history and literature need this
Western Echoes of the Harlem Renaissance: The Life and Writings of Anita Scott Coleman reveals Coleman's life and rise as Afro-American writer living not in New York but mostly in the Southwest and West. Her reflections and writings represent a rare look at Afro-American life in these areas and offers an anthology of her writings far broader than other collections, blending her stories, essays, poems and some rare pieces hardly published since their initial appearance. College-level collections strong in Afro-American history and literature need this.
... Read more

Product Description

"Wall's writing is lively and exuberant. She passes her enthusiasm for these writers' works on to the reader. She captures the mood of the times and follows through with the writers' evolution -- sometimes to success, other times to isolation.... Women of the Harlem Renaissance is a rare blend of thorough academic research with writing that anyone can appreciate." -- Jason Zappe, Copley News Service

"By connecting the women to one another, to the cultural movement in which they worked, and to other early 20th-century women writers, Wall deftly defines their place in American literature. Her biographical and literary analysis surpasses others by following up on diverse careers that often ended far past the end of the movement. Highly recommended... "  -- Library Journal

"Wall offers a wealth of information and insight on their work, lives and interaction with other writers... strong critiques... " -- Publishers Weekly

The lives and works of women artists in the Harlem Renaissance -- Jessie Redmon Fauset, Nella Larsen, Zora Neale Hurston, Bessie Smith, and others. Their achievements reflect the struggle of a generation of literary women to depict the lives of Black people, especially Black women, honestly and artfully.

Customer Reviews (1)

wonderful companion piece
This book is a wonderful companion piece to the works of Jessie Redmon Fauset, Nella Larsen and Zora Neale Hurston.Provides critical biographies for all three.Great reference for scholars, but interesting to anyone who's reading these amazing women. ... Read more

Product Description
Harlem in the 1920s and 1930s was the epicenter of a rebirth in African-American literature with the poetry and prose of writers such as Langston Huges and Gwendolyn Brooks. This title, The Harlem Renaissance, part of Chelsea House Publishers' Bloom's Period Studies series, features a selection of critical essays analyzing the writers and works that defined the Harlem Renaissance. In addition to a chronology of the important cultural, literary, and politcal events that shaped this period, this text includes an introduction and editor's note written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University. ... Read more

Product Description

The Harlem Renaissance is rightly considered to be a moment of creative exuberance and unprecedented explosion. Today, there is a renewed interest in this movement, calling for a re-evaluation and a closer scrutiny of the era and of documents that have only recently become available. Temples for Tomorrow reconsiders the period -- between two world wars -- which confirmed the intuitions of W. E. B. DuBois on the "color line" and gave birth to the "American dilemma," later evoked by Gunnar Myrdal. Issuing from a generation bearing new hopes and aspirations, a new vision takes form and develops around the concept of the New Negro, with a goal: to recreate an African American identity and claim its legitimate place in the heart of the nation. In reality, this movement organized into a remarkable institutional network, which was to remain the vision of an elite, but which gave birth to tensions and differences.

This collection attempts to assess Harlem's role as a "Black Mecca", as "site of intimate performance" of African American life, and as focal point in the creation of a diasporic identity in dialogue with the Caribbean and French-speaking areas.

Essays treat the complex interweaving of Primitivism and Modernism, of folk culture and elitist aspirations in different artistic media, with a view to defining the interaction between music, visual arts, and literature.

Also included are known Renaissance intellectuals and writers. Even though they had different conceptions of the role of the African American artist in a racially segregated society, most participants in the New Negro movement shared a desire to express a new assertiveness in terms of literary creation and indentity-building.

Product Description

Product Description
Harlem style has become a global style, bringing sophistication to urban home design everywhere. In 100 photographs that explore the work of some of the hottest names in contemporary urban design, this book surveys the historical roots and the stylistic elements that define this trend-setting aesthetic. 90 color photographs, 10 black-and-white historical photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Harlem Style: Desiging for the New Urban Aesthetic
Loved it! Full of really interesting historical information as well as beautiful photos. I leave it on my coffee table for others to enjoy!

Lovely book
I brought this book for my mom who loves interior design and she adores the photographs in the book.

Finally, a book about urban living!!
This wonderful coffee table book won't be on the coffee table long! It is chock full of beautiful pictures with practical ideas. Although many of the rooms are decidely high-end, there are several ideas that can be applied to more moderate tastes.
I highly recommend that this book be added to any home design library.

Harlem Style - a great book!
If you enjoyed Spirit of African Design, then you will love this book.There are nice room pictures showing african art in primarily a contemporary design style.

It's a great coffee table book for anyone who loves both African Art styles and contemporary interior design. ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
In the 1920s, Harlem was "the capital of Black America" and home to an epochal African-American cultural flowering called the Harlem Renaissance. This book presents the work of the most important visual artists of the day, including Meta Warrick Fuller, Aaron Douglas and Palmer Hayden. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A wonderful overview.
This is a very nice looking book that not only provides context about the Harlem Renaissance and the proliferation of Black artists during the 20's and 30's, but it also includes many reproductions of some of the period's most representative works. From the cover photo which is a copy William Johnson's "Boy in a Vest," to the James VanDerZee's striking black and white photography, to the sculptures of Meta Warwick, the reader is treated to many examples of the visual arts. There are also essays and poems by the Countee Cullen and other writers of the time. This is a good introduction to the period and is suitable for children and young adults. And old adults too for that matter!

Wonderful!
This is a great book for someone interested in learning about the Harlem Renaissance.The author presents vital information in an accessible way, and illustrates the diversity and complexity that is American Art. ... Read more

Product Description

"Heretofore scholars have not been willing -- perhaps, even been unable for many reasons both academic and personal -- to identify much of the Harlem Renaissance work as same-sex oriented.... An important book." -- Jim Elledge

This groundbreaking study explores the Harlem Renaissance as a literary phenomenon fundamentally shaped by same-sex-interested men. Christa Schwarz focuses on Countée Cullen, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, and Richard Bruce Nugent and explores these writers' sexually dissident or gay literary voices. The portrayals of men-loving men in these writers' works vary significantly. Schwarz locates in the poetry of Cullen, Hughes, and McKay the employment of contemporary gay code words, deriving from the Greek discourse of homosexuality and from Walt Whitman. By contrast, Nugent -- the only "out" gay Harlem Renaissance artist -- portrayed men-loving men without reference to racial concepts or Whitmanesque codes. Schwarz argues for contemporary readings attuned to the complex relation between race, gender, and sexual orientation in Harlem Renaissance writing.

Customer Reviews (4)

Informative
Honestly, the book is a a difficult read in some spots. Some items may require a second reading just to make sure the point is taken the way it is meant by Schwarz.That said, it is not an impossible read.Usually, Langston Hughes is the primary focus of such detailed scharlarship.This book examines Nugent, Cullen, and McKay who were, in their distinctive ways, just as important as Hughes in contributing to the Harlem Renaissance.All men were gay and dealed with their sexuality in printin a the mannor comfortable to them. Hughes, Cullen, and McKay employed Whitmanesque techniques and Nugent was completely unguarded in his sexual proclivities.For me, that Hughes and Nugent were both gay and yet showed different tastes in men and how they dealed with their sexuality is so interesting.The two men are the same and yet polar opposites of one another. Anyway, the reader will be happy with this book.Such work as Schawrz provides a new way of reading and re-reading these important figures in general literature and adds to the growing study of literature by gay African Americans, an under represented and all to often overlooked area of study.

A valuable contribution to black and queer studies
I'm not sure why the other two reviewers found Christa Schwarz's Gay Voices of the Harlem Renaissance difficult to read.I find Schwarz's prose clear and natural and her organizational scheme transparent.More important, Gay Voices of the Harlem Renaissance is a valuable contribution to black and queer studies--Schwarz's scholarship is impressive and thorough.Until this book appeared, the critical question of how queer genealogy intersected with the New Negro literary movement tended to be localized in debates over individual authors, such as the question of Langston Hughes's sexual orientation.But Schwarz's book does much more than merely consolidate archives into a single text.Gay Voices of the Harlem Renaissance performs the necessary labor of demonstrating that to talk of the Harlem Renaissance is to speak of the beginning of the queer revolution in the U.S., to suggest that among the emancipatory products of the New Negro was queer counterculture.The significance of Gay Voices of the Harlem Renaissance cannot be understated.

Not So Quiet Gay Voices!!!
A.B. Christa Schwarz's GAY VOICES OF THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE isn't an easy read.Barring the first two chapters, "Gay harlem and the Harlem Renaissance" and "Writing in the Harlem Renaissance....Burden of Representation and Sexual Dissidence," the remaining chapters will need a second or third reading for a coherent understanding for those interested in her discussion.

Ms. Schwarz looks at the work of three male writers from the period who are given their own chapters:Countee Cullen, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, and Richard Bruce Nugent.Of these writers, Cullen, Hughes, and McKay are identified as using
Whitmanesque techniques to express in coded forms their desire for those members of their own sex.For the none initiated, Walt Whitman often changed male gender specific pronouns in his poetry to the feminine form for public consumption.Bruce Nugent was the only one of this group out and open, to some extent, with his sexuality in work and life, even during the down low days in his marriage of comformity.

Of the writers featured here, Countee Cullen is known to have had a few affairs with black and white men as Claude McKay.Cullen was the only one to envelope much of his work in the traditional European framework.Even his funeral many years later was staid in the European tradition of ceremony, contrary to the funeral of Langston Hughes who embraced his blackness in a funeral ceremony far, far away from the white American and
European traditional dogma and form.Langston Hughes wrote primarily for a black audience, celebrated his blackness with radical pride, and avoided with great distaste the traditional European style in the framework and subject matter of his body of work.This should come as no surprised after reading Arnold Rampersad's meticulously researched biographies of Hughes, particularily Vol. 2 where inthreeuncommom moments absent
of sexual prejudice Rampersad states Hughes's "preference" for black men as evidenced by Hughes's work and "life" (the label of Rampersad being entirely homophobic is not totally fair to him).Schwarz has this in mind when making the comment that in many of Hughes sea/sailor poems, race isn't specified because of the camaraderie of sailors of different nationalities which is in synch with Hughe's socialismpoetry of the 1930's.Claude Mckay had the most in common with Hughes in terms of radical black pride and a like of the "low life" or common working class black, but his foreigner status as a Jamaican also made him an outsider to Harlem both figuratively and literally; he chose Greenwich Village as a primary residence and spurned many of the Harlem black intelligentsia.McKay was the only real bisexual of the bunch who had affairs with men and women, black and white, domestic and foreign.Yet, as many of his coded gay references appeared to indicate, he could be harsh toward white society in gerneral.Richard Bruce Nugent was the only openly gay black man of the men in this book who did not employ Whitmanesque techniques to conceal his interest.He was open and primarily showed an interest in white men and white Latin men in his work and life, the complete polar opposite of Langston Hughes.Sadly, Ms. Schwarz fails to grasp an accurate understanding of the work SMOKE, LILLIES, AND JADE whose protagonist is black, not white or of underminded race.This bias is disturbing and ignores on her part that its inclusion in the short lived FIRE!! that was devoted to works "by," "about," and "for" black Americans (i.e. Negros circa 1920's).Two, she fails to realize that "Beauty," the Latin object of desire in the story is a composite of Langston Hughes, Harold Jackman, and Valintino.

The book isn't an easy read, but it is a worthwhile read providing one shows patience and at least a little knowledge of the subjects other than that of their surface persona. Incidentally, the cover is based on Cullen's poem "Tableau" where a black and white man are portrayed as walking hand in hand at the surprise and disgust of onlookers, black and white.The painting was designed by Jacob Lawrence.

A Must for everyone interested in the Harlem Renaissance
A. B. Christa Schwarz wrote a really learned book. Maybe it's the only way a German scholar can write. Not always easy to read it's a interesting study to read not only for literary historians. The study is a must for everyone interested in the Harlem Renaissance as a literary phenomenon. Schwarz focuses on Countze Cullen, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay and Richard Bruce Nugent. Readers learn a lot about Alain Locke as well. Locke played a leading role in the Harlem Renaissance. Maybe Schwartz' next book will tell us more about Locke. We are waiting for it. ... Read more

Product Description
This collection of essays by American philosopher, Alain Locke (1885-1954) makes readily available for the first time his important writings on cultural pluralism, value relativism, and critical relativism. As a black philosopher early in this century, Locke was a pioneer: having earned both undergraduate and doctoral degrees at Harvard, he was a Rhodes scholar at Oxford, studied at the University of Berlin, and chaired the Philosophy Department at Howard University for almost four decades. He was perhaps best known as a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance. Locke's works in philosophy, many previously unpublished, conceptually frame the Harlem Renaissance and New Negro movement and provide an Afro-American critique of pragmatism and value absolutism, and also offer a view of identity, communicative competency, and contextualism. In addition, his major works on the nature of race, race relations, and the role of race-conscious literature are presented to demonstrate the application of his philosophy.Locke's commentaries on the major philosophers of his day, including James, Royce, Santayana, Perry, and Ehrenfels help tell the story of his relationship to his former teachers and his theoretical affinities. In his substantial Introduction and interpretive concluding chapter, Leonard Harris describes Locke's life, evaluates his role as an American philosopher and theoretician of the Harlem Renaissance, situates him in the pragmatist tradition, and outlines his affinities with modern deconstructionist ideas. A chronology of the philosopher's life and bibliography of his works are also provided. Although much has been written about Alain Locke, this is the first book to focus on his philosophical contributions. Author note: Leonard Harris is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Morgan State University. ... Read more

Product Description
"Caribbean Crusaders and the Harlem Renaissance" is a study of the emergence of African American radicalism in Harlem, a crossroads of the African Diaspora in the early twentieth century. Turner reveals that the Harlem Renaissance was more than just an artistic fluorescence; it was also a political movement to counter racism and colonialism. To explore the roots of the Caribbean emigres' radical ideology and the strategies used to extend agitation from Harlem to national and international platforms, the study draws on the papers and writings of Hermina Huiswoud, Cyril Briggs, the Reverend E. Ethelred Brown, Langston Hughes, and Richard B. Moore, as well as from interviews and biographies of related contemporary figures. It also incorporates census records, FBI files, and hundreds of documents from the recently opened Russian Archive. Through a focus on Otto Huiswood, the sole African American charter member of the Communist Party, and his wife, Hermina, Turner exposes the complex developments within the socialist and communist parties on the question of race.The account ranges beyond Harlem to Europe, Africa, and the Soviet Union to reveal the breadth, depth, and nearly global reach of the Afro-Caribbean activists' activities. Joyce Moore Turner is the co-editor of "Richard B. Moore, Caribbean Militant in Harlem: Collected Writings 1920-1972". W. Burghardt Turner is emeritus professor of history at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Franklin W. Knight is Leonard and Helen R. Stulman Professor of History at Johns Hopkins University. ... Read more

Product Description
This remarkable exploration of the underbelly of New York City life from 1880 to 1930 takes readers through the city's inexhaustible variety of distinctive neighbourhood cultures. "Slumming in New York" samples, a number of New York 'slumming' narratives - including Stephen Crane's Bowery tales, Paul Laurence Dunbar's "The Sport of the Gods", Hutchins Hapgood's "The Spirit of the Ghetto", and Carl Van Vechten's "Nigger Heaven" - to characterize and examine the relationship between New York writing and the city's cultural environment. Using the methods of ethnicity theory, black studies, regional studies, literary studies, and popular culture, Robert M. Dowling reveals the way in which 'outsider' authors helped alleviate New York's mounting social anxieties by popularizing 'insider' voices from neighbourhoods as distinctive as the East Side waterfront, the Bowery, the Tenderloin's 'black Bohemia', the Jewish Lower East Side, and mythic Harlem. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fascinating
SLUMMING IN NEW YORK is a history of the streets when they were leaner and meaner than ever. With the guiding hand of the author's "outsider" perspective we get an "insider"'s look at the Jewish ghettos of the Lower East Side at the turn of the last century; the Bowery and it's plethora of Irish "undesirables," loathsome to the morally upright uptown Victorians who tried to infuse "morality" into the waterfront; The Black Bohemia of the Tenderloin where ragtime was born, a crucible of culture and an initial point of arrival for the black diaspora that occurred after the Civil War; The Harlem Renaissance, an era so rich with great writers, artists, and personalities it ranks comparably to the Paris of the same era. A colorful and comprehensive exploration of the city's early struggles for identity, SLUMMING IN NEW YORK is a compelling and satisfying way to get your hands dirty without ever leaving the house. ... Read more

Product Description

The phrase “Harlem in the 1920s” evokes images of the Harlem Renaissance, or of Marcus Garvey and soapbox orators haranguing crowds about politics and race. Yet the most ubiquitous feature of Harlem life between the world wars was the game of “numbers.” Thousands of wagers, usually of a dime or less, would be placed on a daily number derived from U.S. bank statistics. The rewards of “hitting the number,” a 600-to-1 payoff, tempted the ordinary men and women of the Black Metropolis with the chimera of the good life. Playing the Numbers tells the story of this illegal form of gambling and the central role it played in the lives of African Americans who flooded into Harlem in the wake of World War I.

For a dozen years the “numbers game” was one of America’s rare black-owned businesses, turning over tens of millions of dollars every year. The most successful “bankers” were known as Black Kings and Queens, and they lived royally. Yet the very success of “bankers” like Stephanie St. Clair and Casper Holstein attracted Dutch Schultz, Lucky Luciano, and organized crime to the game. By the late 1930s, most of the profits were being siphoned out of Harlem.

Playing the Numbers reveals a unique dimension of African American culture that made not only Harlem but New York City itself the vibrant and energizing metropolis it was. An interactive website allows readers to locate actors and events on Harlem’s streets.

Customer Reviews (3)

Really Boring and Hard to Follow
I had to read this book for my African American History class and It was very boring. The authors fail to write in a way that grabs my attention. Make sure before you read you have rested up or you just might fall asleep.

Flaccid Acacemic Study that Lacks the Vitality of the Street
Major disappointment. If you're looking for the heartbeat of the streets. steer clear of this title. This title uses the banal stereotypes of popular, academic social science to re-frame the police blotter. It's dry, lifeless, and patronizing to readers and, sadly, those who lived the story.

should be in the library of anybody who reads about Harlem
This book is both a cultural study of the people who played the Numbers, and a history of the game. The latter was, to me, more interesting than the former. We learn about the evolution of the Numbers from the earlier "policy" game, the biographies of the early Numbers bankers and the later "Kings" and "Queens" of the game after its rapid expansion in the 1920s following the adoption of Clearing House totals as a perhaps incorruptible source of random numbers. Among the most amusing parts of the book are the discussion of how black New York's fascination with this game trickled into the lives of uncomprehending white Americans, as employees of the New York Clearing House were bombarded with calls and letters from black Numbers players looking for an edge, and newspapers printed financial statistics of no interest to anybody but numbers players.

The book loses steam when the gangsters Dutch Schultz and, later, the Italian Mafia, intruded on the game. The authors end the tale entirely around the late 1930s, though it continued to be played for decades.

Those familiar with Harlem know how important the Numbers were; more than one source says that over 50% of all economic activity in the neighborhood derived from the game as recently as the 1970s. However, I've read dozens of books about Harlem, including Francis Ianni's Black Mafia, and no other book covers this topic nearly as well as this one. ... Read more

Product Description
In her new book, Valerie Kinloch investigates how the lives and literacies of youth in New York City s historic Harlem are affected by public attempts to gentrify the community. Kinloch draws connections between race, place, and students literate identities through interviews with youth, teachers, longtime black residents, and their new white neighbors. Harlem on Our Minds is a participatory action narrative that brings emerging theories of social ecology to life for the high school English classroom. Vividly drawn lessons show how teachers can engage urban youth in school-based literacy by linking canonical text, particularly of the Harlem renaissance, to current events. ... Read more

Product Description
From 1985 to the present, Hank O'Neal interviewed 42 jazz legends who made music in Harlem during its heyday and decline.In their homes or immediate neighborhoods, he took their portraits with a large-format view camera and talked with them about what had been the best places to play, the interaction of the races, and about why the Harlem scene had faded.

For each 'session' with a jazz legend, O'Neal has supplemented the interview and portraits with many of his other photographs, historical photographs and memorabilia.From the archives of Chiaroscuro Records, O'Neal has produced a CD that accompanies the book, which features sixteen of the 'ghosts' playing at the ends of their careers, between 1972 and 1996, including Cab Calloway, Milt Hinton, Doc Cheatham, Dizzy Gillespie, Buddy Tate, Eddie Barefield, Earl Hines, and Illinois Jacquet. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Superb
A superb collection of oral histories. As a serious student of the history of the music, this book knocks me out. Buy it.

The Ghosts of Harlem
Sensational photohistory of Jazz; reflects the milieu that is THE venue of an unparalleled artform; you can all but hear the riffs beats rhythms; these artists come alive in these pages ... ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from MELUS, published by The Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnics Literature of the United States on December 22, 2007. The length of the article is 1008 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Post-Bellum, Pre-Harlem: African American Literature and Culture, 1877-1919.(Book review)
Author: Sidra Smith Wahaltere
Publication: MELUS (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 22, 2007
Publisher: The Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnics Literature of the United States
Volume: 32Issue: 4Page: 148(3)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

Product Description
As one of the country's best-known neighborhoods, New York City's Harlem area has a rich history that has impacted countless Americans. While best known as a center of African-American culture, Harlem has also been home to Irishmen, Italians, Jews, and several other ethnic groups. In Forever Harlem, New York's Hometown Newspaper combines it's vast archives with the resources of the Uptown Chamber of Commerce to provide an informative and rich visual history of Harlem. Readers will see images and stories from Harlem's beginnings as a destination for European immigrants of many cultures, through to the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920's, and on into the current growth and development of Manhattan's hottest new place to live. Included are profiles of Harlemites as diverse as Al Pacino, Burt Lancaster, Willie Mays, Harry Houdini, and President Dwight Eisenhower. Special attention is also given to Harlem's rich history in music and entertainment. ... Read more

Product Description
Harlem brings to mind a kaleidoscope of images-the jazz clubs and cultural ferment of the 1920s and 1930s, the urban decay of the 1960s and 1970s, and the revitalization of the past twenty years, with artists, writers, professionals, and even an ex-president moving to a community often seen as the capital of black America. Integral to the ongoing transformation of Harlem has been the return of the African-American middle class to what had become an overwhelmingly poor area. In this lively book, Monique M. Taylor explores the stresses created by this influx, the surprising ways class differences manifest themselves and are managed, and what we can learn from examining a community in which race and class are so closely intertwined.

Harlem between Heaven and Hell is told through a look at history, literature, redevelopment strategies, community activism, and extensive interviews with black professionals-married and single, with children and without, long-term residents and recent arrivals. In their voices we hear of the cultural legacy, political commitments, economic considerations, and desire for community that drew them to Harlem. They tell us of the complexities of gentrification and their own role in it: the trepidation and distrust that often greeted their arrival, the challenges of renovating Harlem's historic brownstones in the face of entrenched neighborhood decay, learning and shaping the social mores of the area. Two key questions underlie these accounts: What does it mean when blacks move in alongside blacks of a different social class? How can a neighborhood successfully balance racial and class diversity in the face of rapid change?

Taylor places this intraracial class conflict within the context of America's changing race relations, showing how the feelings and issues that have arisen-to oppose, embrace, or participate in gentrification-reveal unsettled questions surrounding race, racism, class, and culture in a changing urban landscape. Through her incisive description of the everyday ways race and class are experienced, she has created a vivid exploration of black middle-class identity in the post-civil rights era.

Monique M. Taylor is associate professor of sociology at Occidental College. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Harlem Review

Harlem Between Heaven and Hell
By: Monique M. Taylor
Throughout history there have been struggles to make America a safer place, improve our local communities and the communication with our fellow people.The book entitled Harlem Between Heaven and Hell by Monique M. Taylor depicts the struggles Harlem has overcome as their neighborhoods fell looking at the issues of race, class, culture and the gentrification of Harlem.After Harlem had hit rock bottom the only way for improvement was upward.To do so middle class people needed to move into the neighborhoods to help improve the livelihood and well being of Harlem residents.This book is a good read if you are interested in gentrification and the struggles of fitting into a rundown community.I didn't like how the book was compiled of bits and pieces of individual interviews.Although what the interviewees have a lot of interesting information to say, it becomes a bit confusing to me at times, trying to keep them straight.Also, the book primarily focused on how Harlem needed the black middle class to help bring the community back together, Monique's words seemed to be a bit contradicting at the end.I agree with the fact that different classes are needed to keep the community whole, but to depend on one class in general makes no sense.At the end of the book Monique says that depending on the black middle class will not solve their problems.There you can see how her words are contradicting.
Overall the ideas presented in this book made sense for the most part I agreed with them or at least understood why Monique felt the need to mention them.Harlem needed the black gentry to make their move in to make sure the community didn't get any worse.If you like books that are more personal, relating the main issues to real people, then this book is one you might want to check out.Personally, I like books that are more structured but that is my opinion.Learning about Harlem can be very interesting, especially with the Harlem Renaissance just the history of Harlem altogether.Monique M. Taylor writes a lot of important information.If you are unfamiliar with the gentrification of Harlem then this book might appeal to you.

an interesting point of view
Harlem is almost completely unique in the U.S. in that the residents are actively trying to keep the city's (black) population predominantly black. Whereas in most cases (as in the definition of the word `ghetto') black areas are kept black by society and other forces, citizens and officials in Harlem try to promote immigration of black citizens from the rest of the city and country. Many of these new citizens of Harlem however are members of the middle class, many of whom work in Manhattan or other `white' areas of town, and are consequently moving in with people who although are black, are not of similar economic means. This of course creates not necessarily conflict among neighbors (although it often does), but a very unique blend of behavioral differences with which then new residents have to deal. Moving to a mostly black neighborhood is a godsend for many African-American members of the middle class, says Ms. Taylor. They note feeling constantly like outsiders. Being a minority among mostly white people in their jobs, in Ivy League and other upstanding educational institutions, and in their former homes in more upscale areas they often felt out of place. Several individuals interviewed in the book mention being mistaken for bellhops in the elevators of buildings in which they lived. In these same buildings young white people would ask them `what they were doing there', or `how they got there'. Despite being professionals, dressing similarly to their white peers, talking just like them, having been educated, and obviously having a respectable career just as they did, they didn't feel welcome. They also felt as if they had to constantly try to represent their people, as respectable black citizens, as if the way they were judged as individuals would be the way the black community would be judged. This of course added yet more stress to an already tougher than usual life. Living in Harlem, among fellow African-Americans, they said, just eased the stress they felt all day at work. Once they got home none of these problems were left with which they had to deal. Many of the problems found in Harlem could be tolerated in comparison to the problems they found living in white areas. As for the book itself, being a man with a very short attention span, I found it somewhat hard to read, butas an informative book by my standards it was good. It is packed with as much information as one would need about modern Harlem, and especially with people's personal views, experiences, and accounts of the city. A great deal of the book is in residents' words, which adds authenticity as well as flavor. The book is of course meant for a reasonably astute readership, as the vocabulary is quite advanced and it can't be skimmed. For a wide range of views and accounts of Harlem, New York, in any case, Harlem: Between Heaven and Hell is a great source of insight.

Harlem Between Heaven and Hell
After reading Harlem between Heaven and Hell, I think that the argument that Taylor was trying to make was that of how people of the same race can live together in an area over time.I think she was trying to show how people of the same race, but yet different economic status or class structure could live amongst each other.This book gives a voice to all different types of people from who they were, who they have become, and how they got there, whether it was through racial or economic freedoms or struggles throughout their living in Harlem.I also think that in Taylor's argument she was trying to argue the issue of race relations and how they changed over time, along with the changes on other conflicts and issues surrounding the area.Taylor argued that there were social changes present and that feelings and emotions had over these changes were either opinions or outlooks that were embraced or ridiculed by the public.
This book tells a story of the history of Harlem.Taylor is able to show the history of Harlem throughout its time from starting out at its humble beginnings in the 1920's through the 1930's and at its not so good times in the 1960's and 1970's, and at other periods of time in-between.I think Taylor did this to have the audience get a better understanding of all the issues and situations that happened in Harlem.Harlem was a place where the middle-class African American population could settle and expand on their own culture and make connections with other races and groups of people.At its beginnings, Harlem became a booming place for people to come to for inspiration, and to start a new understanding of art, music, and culture for people to be proud of, especially those of African-American ethnicity and diversity.
In the book, I think Taylor is able to covey here argument of how the African-American middle class was able to make it through community and neighborhood struggles with those of similar racial but diverse economic conditions with the help of talking to people who lived or know of what went about in Harlem.Taylor was able to conduct interview with many different kind of people. She spoke to people who had professions, those who were married or single, and those with or without children.This book was interesting because so this aspect.The interviews were able to give a new perspective on the history of Harlem, its development, activism tat went on, and other connections made.I think this was able to help Taylor's argument by showing other perspectives and experiences of those who lived in Harlem.It gave these people a voice to try and explain and describe their personal struggles with racial and economic conflict.
I think this book also explores the stresses that the African-American middle-class went through while living in Harlem.They had to go through a lot of social change even in the very beginning of Harlem.Stresses such as inequality and activism, among other things, played a large role in the racial and class struggles in the communities of Harlem.This culture needed to learn how to work together to make their conditions better and more effective.Each person needed to learn from the next and needed to listen to one another to better understand where everyone was coming from, even if they weren't at the same status as their neighbor.

Harlem between heaven and hell

Harlem: Between Heaven and Hell is about the ongoing struggle between race and class that exists in Harlem. The main conflict is based on gentrification and economics. Monique M. Taylor uses interviews with middle class African Americans as support for her claims. Harlem used to be considered a "black Mecca", but more recently has become overtaken with poverty and deterioration, which is where we see the heaven and hell complex come into play. In her introduction Monique M. Taylor lays out the objectives of the book and goes on to explain them throughout the rest of it.
In the first chapter Taylor gives us a look into Harlem and its history as an African American community, a heaven. She points to significance in literature as well as other art forms, using such historical figures as Langston Hughes, to illustrate Harlem's importance in the black community. After the times of the Harlem renaissance there is a shift where Harlem becomes "just another festering black ghetto"(17). This is the beginning of hell in Harlem.
Taylor introduces to the idea of "insiders and outsiders", long time residents of Harlem and newcomers to Harlem, respectively. Here we see a conflict between whites and blacks about the gentrification of Harlem. The question raised is whether this reconstruction of a community is "in Harlem or for Harlem?"(30). Many insiders see the white gentry as having motives that are not in the interest of the community and will lead to the displacement of those already in Harlem. They also see the middle class black gentry as a threat and as outsiders. While there is no racial tension between the lower and middle class blacks, there is certainly class tension. Some argue that race should not be the issue, but instead it should be about capital. Whoever has the money will be most beneficial to the community because there has been no supply to satisfy the demand of the housing market since the government so much of the housing (37). So while some think that whites could help Harlem economically with the addition of businesses, while others fear they may bring an uncomfortable undertone to the community and take over the whole community through displacement.
Harlemites are also suspicious of the Black gentry and their motives. Because they have money people assume they have no interest in the black community and only want to restore the community for financial gain, thus leading to displacement. Through her interviews with members of the middle class black "outsiders", Taylor shows that they do admittedly have economic interests, but are also interested in being in a community where they are surrounded by their people. She illustrates the struggle for middle class blacks between home and work very well. As a result of their race they are uncomfortable at work in the white corporate world, and then they go home to Harlem expecting acceptance, but again face rejection because they have money. The black gentry argue that they want the same thing for Harlem that they insiders want, which is a nice place to live and that with their money that is possible. There is also the conflict between the private and public aspects of the lives of the black middle class. Taylor points to "the stoop" as an example where the middle class ride a fine of being respected and resented (120). In an attempt to avoid trash and loitering they will prohibit neighbors from sitting on their stoop. This could be seen by lower class people as a way to show that the middle class is too good for them, but based on the interviews it is more often taken as a request that gains them respect. In Chapter 5, Taylor sets out to show how the community in Harlem can have an incredible emphasis on togetherness. She demonstrates this by showing the importance of institutions like church and businesses as social networks. While there is tension between classes, many times there is a coming together on political issues for the sake of Harlem. There is also a constant sense of looking out for others, while they look out for you. This is even extending to the middle class. Some see the black middle class a resource with their college educations. Later Taylor claims that the black gentry's "ability to move in and out of Harlem to work, shop, and socialize means that their...is part-time and voluntary."(168). Following that she concludes that because of this they cannot be expected to solve Harlem's problem. From this I see Taylor as saying that it is up to the insiders to fix their community and to not depend on the middle class to make the changes.
Overall I thought the book was just ok. I think that Taylor could have interviewed insider residents of Harlem to get a better picture of the conflict, rather than just getting the gentry side. I also found it hard to figure out what side of the issue Taylor herself was on. Another thing I wonder is how accurate her portrayal of the middle class was. It seems that everyone had similar ideas, so what about the black middle class people who had no interest in preserving the traditional Harlem and were just in it for the money? While I thought the book was a bit hard to get through and repetitive, I think that her use of interviews did have an affect that made her claims seem more valid.


... Read more