Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writing [Paperback]

E. Lynn Harris (Author), Marita Golden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 3, 2002

A literary rent party to benefit the Hurston/Wright Foundation of African-American fiction, with selections to savor from bestselling authors as well as talented rising stars.

Not since Terry McMillan’s Breaking Ice have so many African-American writers been brought together in one volume. A stellar collection of works from more than fifty hot names in fiction, Gumbo represents remarkable synergy. Edited by bestselling luminaries Marita Golden and E. Lynn Harris, this collection spans new and previously published tales of love and luck, inspiration and violation, hip new worlds and hallowed heritage from voices such as:

• Edwidge Danticat
• Eric Jerome Dickey
• Kenji Jasper
• John Edgar Wideman
• Terry McMillan
• David Anthony Durham
• Bertice Berry
…and many, many more

Also featuring original stories by Golden and Harris themselves, Gumbo heralds the debut of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Awards for Published Black Writers (scheduled for October 2002), and all advances and royalties from the book will support the Hurston/Wright Foundation. Combining authors with a variety of flavorful writing, Gumbo will have readers clamoring for second helpings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Over 70 writers have contributed to this "literary rent party," the proceeds of which will benefit the Hurston/Wright Foundation, an organization that gives annual financial awards to novelists, nonfiction writers and students. Novelists Golden (The Edge of Heaven, etc.) and Harris (Invisible Life, etc.) offer a motley collection of previously published short stories and excerpts from novels. The book starts off strong with Edwidge Danticat's "The Dew Breaker," in which a Haitian expat marries the man who she believes tortured and killed her brother, followed by an excerpt from Percival Everett's excellent satire Erasure, which hilariously skewers "ghetto prose" and poseurs. Contributors run the gamut from recent M.F.A. grads to such established figures as Walter Mosley, Gloria Naylor, Terry McMillan and Jewelle Gomez. Formidable newcomers include R. Erica Doyle, whose brief but potent "Fortune" hints at a love affair between two Trinidadian women, while Bryan Gibson's epistolary tour de force "Fear of Floating" features a housing project resident who inadvertently becomes a kind of therapist to his troubled neighbors. While it is at times clear that literary excellence was not the only criterion for inclusion, this sprawling collection handily reflects the diversity and vibrancy of contemporary African-American fiction. Readers can also take comfort in the fact that they aren't just getting a real bang for their fiction bucks, they're also supporting a worthy cause.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Meant to convey a literary rent party (sales proceeds to benefit the Hurston/Wright Foundation that awards talented new black writers), this anthology is a tribute to the diverse literary styles of Zora Neale Hurston and Richard Wright. Inheritors of Hurston's love of folklore and the speech and cadence of common black folk and Wright's more intense, highly charged portrayals and condemnations of racism are evident throughout this collection of new and previously published stories by new and established writers. The collection of more than 70 stories is a melange, a gumbo, of styles, rhythms, subjects, characterizations, moods, and sensibilities. Among the contributors are the editors Harris and Golden, Edwidge Danticat, Eric Jerome Dickey, J. California Cooper, John Edgar Wideman, Bebe Moore Campbell, Tananarive Due, Gloria Naylor, and Terry McMillan. Stories are arranged under broad themes of family life, love and romance, racial identity, and religion and faith. Readers who appreciate the diverse genres of African American writing, as well as the heritage wrought by Hurston and Wright, will enjoy this collection. Vanessa Bush
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 828 pages
• Publisher: Broadway; 1 edition (December 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767910419
• ISBN-13: 978-0767910415
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.8 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,131,750 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I think I came into the world called to write. I have been a passionate reader and writer since I was a child. Books and language have provided me with a way to live in the world with an enlarged sense of my possibilities. Writing has thrust my personal questions and inner dialogues into the public space. In the process I have inspired others and learned from them through my work.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pause for the Cause, December 9, 2002

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writing (Paperback)

Editors Marita Golden and E Lynn Harris introduce us to a concoction of witty, soulful, provincial, urban, thrilling, and stunning works by some of the most talented African American authors on the planet. Pronounced a literary rent party benefiting the Hurston-Wright Foundation, Gumbo is divided into 4 sections spanning everything from the "Family Tree" to a "Love Jones". Numerous affecting short stories and excerpts contribute to this amazingly filling collection.

Witty stories like Yolanda Joe's Miss Prissy and the Penitentiary and Harris' Dinner Party modulate the emotions invoked by pieces such as David Anthony Durham's "The Boy-Fish" and acclaimed horror author Tananarive Due's "The Knowing", my personal favorite. Other notables include J. California Cooper's "$100 and Nothing", Tayari Jones' "Press and Curl", Faith Adiele's "Fire: An Original Tale", Elizabeth Nunez's excerpt "from Discretion", and Alexs Pate's "To Haiti or To Hell." There is truly something for everyone in this abounding congregation of African American authors coming together for a cause.

~Reviewed by CandaceK

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Idea for Marketing..., February 12, 2003

By 

Shamontiel L. Vaughn "Message from Montie" (Chicago) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writing (Paperback)

I love to read books about people like me and I love short stories...this book put both into one and introduced me to a variety of writers I didn't know about along with ones I already did. I ended up buying a couple more books because the short story was so interesting (ex. Douglass Women & Ain't nobody's business if I do). It's a very good source for writers to show off and I thoroughly enjoyed it and tried to roll with the WHOLE book page by page.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's about time!, December 28, 2002

By 

Paul Harris (Chicago, Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gumbo: A Celebration of African American Writing (Paperback)

Finally the collection we've all been waiting for! There's something here for everyone, from the usual to the bizarre;I personally like oddities myself, so I truly loved the last part of the book, where nuts are everywhere (read Fear of Floating and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about). Anyway, as you can see I'm not a writer or a critic, but I know what a like, and I really liked "Gumbo", and I'm sure you will too. E. Lynn Harris does it again!