Colson Whitehead, winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, presents his newest effort, Harlem Shuffle, a genre-bending amalgamation of historical fiction, family drama, and noir-ish crime drama. It is a multi-layered look at New York City’s Harlem neighborhood during the 1950s and 1960s. The cast of characters is well-developed and diverse. Whitehead manages to capture the vibrance of the area during an era of social change while also shining a light on race, race riots, political corruption, white privilege, mob bosses, and the Civil Rights movement. The heaviness of these subjects is lightened by comic relief provided by characters and events. This nuanced story is a pleasure to read.
Ray Carney is more or less a decent family man. He has moved on from his low-brow past, has married Elizabeth, and is running his own furniture store. The couple is expecting their second child, and finances are tight. He walks a tightrope between being a legitimate business man while “not seeing” the origins of the stolen goods his cousin brings him. Carney treads the streets of Harlem, showing the down-and-out hotels, the greasy spoon coffee shops, and the worn-out houses in which people struggle to survive. Various celebrities and Civil Rights leaders make cameo appearances as do places and events such as Coney Island and the World’s Fair.
I enjoyed being transported back to this historical time and place which Whitehead so lovingly depicts.
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Harlem Shuffle is available through:
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