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The Writings of Chester Himes are colored by a fascinating blend of hatred and tenderness, of hard-boiled realism and generous idealism. His life was complex, his relationships complicated. How did this gifted son of a respectable southern black family become a juvenile delinquent? How did he acquire self-esteem and a new sense of identity by writing short stories while in the Ohio state penitentiary?
Drawn from his letters, notebooks, memoirs, and fiction, this straightforward account of Himes's varied, episodic life attempts to trace the origins of his significant literary gift.
It details the socioeconomic, familial, and cultural background that fed his ambivalent views on race in America. His Deep South childhood, his adolescence in the Midwest, his young manhood in prison, his years as a menial laborer, his struggle as an author in California and New York City, and finally his glory days as an expatriate and celebrity in France and Spain are plumbed deeply for their effects upon his creative urges and his works.
In his native country Himes is recalled more as the author of successful detective novels such as Cotton Comes to Harlem than as a practitioner of the art of fiction. In France and Spain, his adopted countries, he is regarded as a literary master. This critical biography is the bittersweet story of a troubled man who found salvation in writing.
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Previews available in: English
Subjects
African American novelists, African American prisoners, African Americans, American Novelists, Biography, Novelists, American, Biografie, Himes, chester b., 1909-1984, African american authors, Literature, history and criticismPeople
Chester B. Himes (1909-)Places
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20th centuryShowing 2 featured editions. View all 2 editions?
Edition | Availability |
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1
The several lives of Chester Himes
1997, University Press of Mississippi
in English
0878059083 9780878059089
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2
Several Lives of Chester Himes
1997, University Press of Mississippi
in English
1934110965 9781934110966
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Book Details
Edition Notes
Includes bibliographical references (p. 177-193) and index.
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- Created April 1, 2008
- 14 revisions
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August 7, 2024 | Edited by MARC Bot | import existing book |
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April 1, 2008 | Created by an anonymous user | Imported from Scriblio MARC record |