Harlem Speaks: A Living History of the Harlem Renaissance
Cary WintzOverview
Harlem Speaks showcases the lives and works of the artists, writers and intellectuals behind the stunning outburst of African American culture in the three decades after World War I. In the tradition of the New York Times bestseller Poetry Speaks, the book combines each subject's key works with biographical and critical essays by leading Harlem Renaissance authority Cary Wintz and other experts. The integrated audio CDs feature music, poetry and literary readings, interviews, radio broadcasts, discussions and speeches, bringing the Harlem of legend to vibrant life once again.Hear, see and read the best of:
Langston Hughes Claude McKay Zora Neale Hurston Richard Wright Duke Ellington Ethel Waters Josephine Baker Marcus Garvey Alain Locke and more
The audio also includes never-before-released interviews conducted by Pulitzer Prize—winning author David Levering Lewis. Evocative and encompassing, Harlem Speaks places you at the zenith of this vital cultural movement.
Synopsis
A living history in the words, poetry and music of the participants.
William Gargan - Library Journal
Wintz (history, Texas Southern Univ.; The Harlem Renaissance: A History and an Anthology) has assembled a diverse collection of biocritical essays on artists, writers, and intellectuals whose lives and works greatly influenced African American culture in the three decades following World War I. Those covered include writers (e.g., Langston Hughes), musicians (e.g., James Hubert "Eubie" Blake), artists (e.g., Romare Bearden), stage performers (e.g., Josephine Baker), and civil rights leaders (e.g., Asa Philip Randolph). Contributing scholars, experts in their fields, do an excellent job of tying their respective subject's accomplishments to the overall aims of what became known as the Harlem Renaissance, which remains best known for its contributions in literature. Wintz provides background essays on Harlem, NY, and the movement as well as introductions to each of the book's six sections. One advantage this work has over its competitors is that it includes a CD featuring speeches, poetry, music, never-before-released interviews, and radio broadcasts; another is its price, a real bargain compared with the Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance, also by Wintz, which costs $325. Recommended for public and academic libraries.
Editorials
From Barnes & Noble
James Weldon Johnson called it "the flowering of Negro literature," but the Harlem Renaissance truly blossomed in numerous fields. This remarkable book and the two accompanying CDs brings the breakthrough work of writers, poets, critics, political leaders, artists, performers, and musicians into readers' homes. Among the talents featured are Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Richard Wright, Bessie Smith, Paul Robeson, Louis Armstrong, Josephine Baker, Duke Ellington, Marcus Garvey, Countee Cullen, and W.E.B. Du Bois. A historic outpouring of creativity.Library Journal
Wintz (history, Texas Southern Univ.; The Harlem Renaissance: A History and an Anthology) has assembled a diverse collection of biocritical essays on artists, writers, and intellectuals whose lives and works greatly influenced African American culture in the three decades following World War I. Those covered include writers (e.g., Langston Hughes), musicians (e.g., James Hubert "Eubie" Blake), artists (e.g., Romare Bearden), stage performers (e.g., Josephine Baker), and civil rights leaders (e.g., Asa Philip Randolph). Contributing scholars, experts in their fields, do an excellent job of tying their respective subject's accomplishments to the overall aims of what became known as the Harlem Renaissance, which remains best known for its contributions in literature. Wintz provides background essays on Harlem, NY, and the movement as well as introductions to each of the book's six sections. One advantage this work has over its competitors is that it includes a CD featuring speeches, poetry, music, never-before-released interviews, and radio broadcasts; another is its price, a real bargain compared with the Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance, also by Wintz, which costs $325. Recommended for public and academic libraries.—William Gargan