Jessie Redmon Fauset may not be a familiar name but the literary icons she championed during the Harlem Renaissance certainly are. This is a fictionalized account of a very real woman's life, starting in 1919 when Fauset arrived in New York City to serve as the literary editor for The Crisis, the official magazine of the NAACP, founded by her mentor, W.E.B. Du Bois. In this role, Fauset promoted young Black writers and cultivated the talents of Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen. Her affair with the married Du Bois was risky, endangering her career, and delayed the writing of her first novel, which turned out to be ground-breaking.
Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray pays a well-deserved tribute to a remarkable figure of the Harlem Renaissance, now celebrating its 100th anniversary. While reading this thoroughly researched historical novel, you'll find it hard not to pause and look up the people and events of the period. Fauset, though ambitious, stayed in the background until her novel was published. She's an inspiring figure, much like Belle da Costa Greene, the subject of The Personal Librarian, her first historical fiction book co-authored with Marie Benedict, known for fictionalized biographies of real-life women who have been overlooked in history, often overshadowed by the more famous men in their lives. Fortunately, talented writers like Murray are restoring their rightful place in history.
Many thanks to Berkley Books for the advance copy.
Rated 4.25 out of 5 stars.
Historical Fiction.
Publication Date: February 4, 2025.
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