The Long Dream (Northeastern Library of Black Literature) [Paperback]

Richard Wright (Author), Keneth Kinnamon (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 16, 2000 | Series: Northeastern Library of Black Literature

Now available in a new edition. Set in a small town in Mississippi, The Long Dream is a novel rich in characterization and plot that dramatizes Richard Wright's themes of oppression, exploitation, corruption, and flight. It is the story of Fishbelly (called Fish), the son of Tyree Tucker, a prominent black mortician and owner of a brothel whose wealth and power were attained by forging business arrangements with corrupt white police officers and politicians. The riveting narrative centers on the explosive and tragic events that shape and alter the relationship between Fish and his father.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A surging, superb book that closely examines the anatomy of southern racial prejudice and reveals some awful truths. In the process, [Wright] has given us a social document of unusual worth. . . This book is not for the squeamish. Wright's catalog of lynching, police brutality, meanness, and emotion running riot in a small town is calculated to disturb even the most callous. This story, balanced by Wright's compassion for his people, is an experience of almost nightmarish quality." --Roi Ottley, Chicago Sunday Tribune

From the Publisher

In the powerful tradition of Native Son, Richard Wright's last novel is a stirring story of racial prejudice in the South. "No honest reader can remain wholly unmoved."--Time --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Northeastern (March 16, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555534236
• ISBN-13: 978-1555534233
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,068,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard T. Wright holds a Ph.D in biology from Harvard University and is professor emeritus of biology at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts. He is the author of numerous scholarly articles and is widely sought as a lecturer in biology and ecology.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wright's Most Effective, April 10, 2002

By 

"mencken61" (Metairie, La. United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Long Dream (Paperback)

"Native Son" was great, barring the party-line that marred the last third. "Black Boy" haunts. His existential stuff is first-rate. But.... But here is Mr. Wright's best. We find here the story of poor Fishbelly, whose father holds the highest position possible for the Mississippi oppressed at the time: undertaker. The events that overtake him strike the reader across the face as rudely as those in previous novels; the civilized are outraged. Read this in the name of liberty.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking book, June 7, 2000

By 

Kim Pelton - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Long Dream (Northeastern Library of Black Literature) (Paperback)

Wow! What a book. The book was written so percisely that I felt that I was reading a true story. I felt that the characters were real people facing racism in the south during the 1940's. I read his first novel Native Son and loved it! I just happened across this book (The Long Dream) and decided to try it out. I'm so glad I did. Although this was a book of fiction, it was written in such a way that it made you believe that it was a true story. Fishbelly, the main character dealt with the inner struggle of hatred toward white people and people of his own race. He watched how his father bent his knees, dropped his shoulders and shuffle his feet when talking to white people. Fishbelly felt his father was coward for acting that way in front of whites, therefore, hating his father for acting so cowardly, and hating white people for having that kind of power over black people. His father tells him that "A black man's a dream, son, a dream that can't come true." Only later when Fishbelly was falsely accused of raping a white woman did he realize why his father behaved the way he did. The plot thickens at the turning of each page. This book is well worth taking the time to read, you won't regret it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Long Dream Is Captivating, July 28, 2006

By 

Tom Hazel "Tom" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Long Dream (Northeastern Library of Black Literature) (Paperback)

I have read Wright's Black Boy, his compelling autobiography that depicted the enormity of racism in America. The Long Dream is no different. However, in this novel other factors surface, all which contribute to the rise and fall of the Tucker family. Clintonville, the town in which the family resides, is plagued by not only overt racism, but an inconspicuous corruption as well.

The plot is captivating. I give this novel 4 stars instead of 5 only because I do not think that Wright made as many connections to the title as I would have liked to seen. Nonetheless, this book is meritorious and is an excellent read on the heinousness perpetrated by whites in the 20th century.