Not Without Laughter

By Langston Hughes

Book Overview

2020 Reprint of the 1930 Edition. Hughes award-winning first novel, about a black boy's coming-of-age in a largely white Kansas town. When first published in 1930, Not Without Laughter established Langston Hughes as not only a brilliant poet and leading light of the Harlem Renaissance but also a gifted novelist. In telling the story of Sandy Rogers, a young African American boy in small-town Kansas, and of his family--his mother, Annjee, a housekeeper for a wealthy white family; his irresponsible father, Jimboy, who plays the guitar and travels the country in search of employment; his strong-willed grandmother Hager, who clings to her faith; his Aunt Tempy, who marries a rich man; and his Aunt Harriet, who struggles to make it as a blues singer--Hughes gives the longings and lineaments of black life in the early twentieth century an important place in the history of racially divided America.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1684224772
• ISBN13: 9781684224777
• Release Date: June 2020
• Publisher: Martino Fine Books
• Length: 226 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Superb!!!!!

I was so thankful to find this lost gem. We have all loved Langston for his poems but never knew wrote a novel. This one is so poignant and exceptional. He always told great human stories that touch the heart and this one is one that I can relate to. It is about a poor black boy growing up in the rural Kansas and his tribulations. As you can imagine, the 1930's was a tough time for all Black America and Langston does not hold back in giving us the nitty gritty on living from day to day in this era. Sandy is the saving grace of his family as he navigates childhood and puberty to reach higher heights. This is a favorite of mine and I am telling everyone that I know to pick up a copy of a precious gem that will touch your soul.

Wow!

Such heart! I have read his poetry, but I had never read his prose. So smooth, so wonderful. I adore the characters. They followed me throughout the day. This is written so well, I really felt like I was right there. I also ran through a gamut of emotions while reading this. That's what a book should do - make me feel, make me think, make me wonder... This book did that for me.

Laughter and Living

Despite his considerable output of poetry, short stories and autobiographical work, this is Langston Hughes' only novel. It is the tremendously crafted story of Sandy, a black child of the 1920s in rural Kansas. In poignant tightly written chapters, Hughes' depicts various events in Sandy's life often slipping into the perspective of those closest to him. Sandy lives most his life with his strong-willed and deeply religious grandmother Aunt Hager. She is a benevolent woman who desires peaceful racial relations despite the overwhelming amount of racism and discrimination professed by both white and black community members. Sandy's mother Annjee is a loving and hard working woman eternally devoted to her husband Jimboy who is a good hearted man constantly on the move. Sandy's aunt Tempy is a well-off woman trying to immerse herself in white society and denigrating her own race in the process. His other aunt Harriett is a wilful woman who turns from the church for a different kind of existence. Through these expertly drawn characters, Sandy views their examples and he must make the choices that will effect his future. The novel is a tremendous chronicle of the struggle of a family to survive financially. It gives accounts of the psychological dilemma created by growing in a racially divided society and the diffuse joy in life that can be found even in troubling circumstances.Maya Angelou wrote of Not Without Laughter: "This book was written when preachers had to be poets and poets were preachers, because they needed to be available to all the people all the time." The messages this novel gives are not subtle. But, through its varied perspectives and eloquently written prose, it envelops the issues it preaches with emotionally edifying ideas. It leaves the reader with a feeling of deep connection to all the characters, particularly the beautiful Sandy in whom we invest our hope and trust to fulfil his potential to become a good, intelligent and strong man who does not feel limited by his racial heritage despite any restrictions society may attempt to place for him. Although it may be a shame that Hughes never wrote another novel as he aptly demonstrated his skill in this one, Not Without Laughter stands as shining work be a skilled artist.

Not Without Laughter

If you're not a Langston Hughes fan-once you read this book you'll be a fan for life. I guarantee you'll want to read everything he's ever written. Wait until you discover" Simple". Not without Laughter took me back in time to a small southern town and the loving, secure, life defining relationship I shared with my grandmother.