This small yet powerful book challenges all of us, as Americans, to begin developing a truly United States. The writer uses Zora Neale Hurston's works to give us an example of how to bear witness to historical traumas and begin a long overdue healing process. This is a must read for anyone interested in culture, gender, and race studies!
Charles

This book is a must read for anyone interested in American culture, race relations, gender relations, and/or Zora Neale Hurston. The book is small but powerful. It has made me rethink my whole understanding of the process America needs to undergo in order to bring about true healing. Through her study of Husrton, the writer addresses many, many levels of continued discontent in this country and suggests ways in which we can move to new and more sincere cross cultural relationship by awakening our national consciousness. Great text!

The book offers an assessment of the diverse women that comprise Hurston's fiction, folklore and drama. All are talking women whose identity is reflected in speech power. They are empowered with language expertise. They are indeed greet, talking women according to Peters' critical perspective.

This book is very good, if you are doing research on Zora Neale Hurston or Eatonville, Florida that is. I don't mean to say that it is not good for anything else, I'm just saying that, as a 16 yr. old Junior in H.S., this is a great book for doing research in.

THIS BOOK IS WONDERFUL! HURSTON IS A WONDERFUL WRITER. IT IS A SHAME THAT SUCH A TALENTED WRITER DID NOT RECEIVE MUCH RECOGNITION UNTIL AFTER HER DEMISE. "THE GILDED SIX-BITS" HAS TO BE THE MOST COMPELLING SHORT STORY WITHIN THIS ANTHOLOGY. IT IS A VIVID TALE THAT TRULY REFLECTS THE POWER OF MONEY. IT ILLUSTRATES THE EXTENT THAT SOME PEOPLE WILL GO TO IN ORDER TO GET THEIR HANDS ON "THE GREEN." SIMULTANEOUSLY, IT DOES REINFORCE THE IDEA THAT "ALL THAT GLITTERS IS NOT GOLD." MOST IMPORTANTLY, THIS STORY ILLUSTRATES THE POWER OF LOVE AND THE BEAUTY OF LOYALTY AND "FORGIVENESS." NEVER BEFORE HAVE A READ SUCH A POSITIVE STORY ABOUT AFRICAN-AMERICAN LOVE.

i haven't read sweat but i have been hearing great things about this book and i would like to know how i can get a preview of this book"Sweat"by author Zora Hourston

The debate of whether Ms Hurston was a true Harlem Renaissance writer is does so little justice to her contributions to that scene that I spent an entire semester debating it. Of course she was and she was one of the writers who helped give it its significance. Just the scene in Jonah's Gourd where she is talking about the physical features of the male protagonist is important enough. Her "peope" are real and you wonder if she had interacted with them in real life because they are your neighbors, relatives and friends...they are just that touchable. Her pain in life comes through all her books but you are so busy savoring her prose that you only wonder about it after you are done. The best thing to do is to gather several authors from that period and read them all. She is among the genius of the era but you will see how far she stands out from the brilliant.

Just when it seems that every possible scholastic measure has been exercised to determine the depth and breadth of Zora Neale Hurston's wit, her exceptional imagination and intense preoccupation with the varied nuances of African American culture, there comes along a new stroke of genius that provides an end of the 20th century punctuation mark on the more than half a century of Zora phobia. The newest of these is Ayana Karanja's handiwork Zora Neale Hurston the Breath of Her Voice (Peter Lang Publishers). It is an absolutely captivating and engaging meditation on the life of a legend whom we have all come to love as Zora. The book comprises an interesting admixture of scholastic and literary forms and probings, including direct and indirect narratives and poetry. It beckons Zora's presence to its pages. This work is not a recycling of previous literary efforts on Hurston nor does it bear much of the jargon that we have come to expect from current and past research on this Harlem Renaissance figure.

Karanja exhibits a strong connection with Hurston's spirit as translated through the now legendary pages of her works. In this regard Karanja suggests:

"Hurston pushed the boundaries of ethnographic writing in a fashion similar to ethnographers who are now referred to as postmodernist anthropologists (those who challenge conventional forms of ethnographic writing and who demonstrate unconventional discursive practices)."

Putting words to paper, from writing letters, notes, or even a book often epitomizes the need to garner those thoughts that should be preserved lest we forget that when done right, can be worth the work. Zora Neale Hurston: A Life In Letters, edited by Karla Kaplan captivates an anthology revealing contradictions and conjectures of a woman who was the most brazenly impious of the Harlem literary avant-garde, and who never fit happily within any political group. This is truly a big book at 880 pages, certainly not one to read verbatim. Even in bulk, the substance therein is worth spending time getting a gist of what was on her mind while appealing to the personalities that she directed the letters to. Ironically, I used a unique method to get more out of this tome by reading it in tandem with Wrapped In Rainbows, a biography written by journalist Valerie Boyd. By doing it this way, I was able to make direct reference to certain passages outlined in the biography whenever emphasis was made to specific letters written. This book has a character of its own, and allows you to feel the essence of Zora herself. The fact that Zora was quoted often enough to be elevated to legendary status, and what you read therein is Zora at her best. The letters were more than 500 in all, written through the eyes of a woman who always had something to say and said it vociferously.

I personally feel that her life in letters reveal more about her than perhaps the entire body of her published works combined, especially since books that were considered autobiographical didn't reveal nearly as much as they should have. Her tone and tenor for the most part was vivacious illustrating wit, irony, satire, and quirky anecdotes that were evident in some capacity as she conveyed her thoughts. The subjects of her intent were to authoritative figures such as Carl Van Vecten, Lanston Hughes, Franz Boaz, Dorothy West, W.E.B. DuBois, Alain Locke, and many others..And you could see what gave her spunk. The true essence of the book other than giving you what you already know about Zora, would be other facets of her personality. I was able to get views of different transitional periods as she endeavored to reinvent herself whenever the mood struck. To wit: Her years as a Barnard College undergrad; Turbulent years trying to conform to Columbia University studying under Franz Boaz; Zora the twice honored Guggenheim fellow; Zora the folklorist; and, Zora in total chaos.

To suffer bitterly and not be considered within the public domain for acceptability, A Life In Letters reads like a gigantic reference manual with gobs of information, a well-documented glossary of the people, places, events, and institutions meticulously annotated by Ms Kaplan. Check out how each decade is introduced by an essay on societal and personal points that distinguished Zora relative to that specific time frame. This is a fine, well put together, if not revealing work into the intimate psyche about this brilliant and complex woman who all acknowledge now of being way ahead of her time. Reading this book, Hurston fans will slake thirst, appease hunger, and get a better flavor to what has been cooked up about her....real or imagined. What better way to shed light than to illuminate periphery than with the vivid letters she wrote?

Valerie Boyd's biography of Zora Neale Hurston is an important corrective to the many myths which have swirled around this major 20th century American writer since her death in 1960. Of course, the myths began in part because Hurston died in poverty and obscurity, all her books out of print, but Boyd has done the needed research to present a full picture of the writer's life, and it's a picture that will add immensely to Hurston's stature. A writer of enormous talent who wrote not only novels (Their Eyes Were Watching God, 1937) but folklore (Mules and Men, 1935), Boyd shows how Hurston struggled against enormous odds. As an independent African-American woman, Hurston was constantly reinventing herself in order to overcome the racist and sexist limitations of her society. Boyd's biography will last a long time, and will help readers to rediscover the less familiar Hurston, both novels (Jonah's Gourd Vine, 1934, and Seraph on the Sewanee, 1948) and her autobiography (Dust Tracks on the Road, 1942).

Wrapped In Rainbows is the biography of literary giant, Zora Neale Hurston and
chronicles her life from early childhood to her death in 1960. Valerie Boyd
does an excellent job with her subject and her extensive research is apparent.

Boyd paints a wonderful picture of Zora as a free spirit who has two loves,
writing and black folklore. Zora's years of researching the folk history of
black people is depicted as well as her burning desire to merge her two loves.
Animated and full of spunk, Zora's story is told through the eyes of people who
knew her and the back drop of American history.

The Harlem Renaissance is also featured in glorious detail interspersing Zora's
friendships and kinship with many of the writers and artists of that era and
with the white patrons of black art and literature. Zora loved Harlem and in
some of the descriptions in the book, the reader can almost see Zora strolling
the streets of "Harlem City" as she affectionately called it.

Fans of Zora Neale Hurston will thoroughly enjoy this account of her life and
those who are unfamiliar with her will long to read her work. Wrapped In
Rainbows is beautiful tribute to an awesome talent.

Reviewed by: Diane Marbury (HonestD)

Valerie Boyd has written an incredible biography of an amazing life. Before reading Wrapped in Rainbows, I considered myself pretty knowledgeable about Zora Neale Hurston. I had read Hurston's autobiography, Robert Hemenway's biography, several of Hurston's books, and various articles about her work. However, Boyd's book gave me a deeper understanding of Hurston than I would have thought possible. Boyd's meticulous research and insightful analysis bring the places and times of Hurston's life into detailed focus. This gives a rich backdrop to the events of Hurston's life and helps clarify her actions. This is the job of any good biographer.

What makes Boyd a great biographer is her ability to get inside Hurston's skin so that the reader experiences the complexities of her great life. Many people view Hurston's life as tragic. She was a wonderful writer and champion of the "folk," yet she died in poverty--with all of her books out of print--and was buried in an unmarked grave. Boyd skillfully takes us on the journey of Hurston's life--through her successes and failures, her accolades and obscurity, her dreams and realities. I felt the passion and conviction and courage Hurston must have called on to accomplish what she did despite the challenges she faced. When I finished the book, I cried--not because Hurston's life was tragic, but because of the wonder of the Wrapped in Rainbows experience. Boyd's poetic writing was a joy to read. The beauty of her writing was breathtaking at times. Perhaps more significantly, through it, I identified with Hurston more than I ever had before and felt the supreme contentment of a life well lived.

Hurston is incredible. Jonah's Gourd Vine is a book that everyone should read. I couldn't get my nose out of it. Look at the story of Jonah in the Bible to find some parallels within Hurston's text.

INCREDIBLE.

John Buddy Pearson's life got off to a rocky start. His stepfather resented him for his light skin and the fact that another man's blood ran through his veins, and often picked fights with him. John worked hard in the cotton fields on their sharecropping tract, but little could be done to please his stepfather.

John always longed to see what life was like "on the other side of the tracks", so after a particularly serious brawl with his stepfather, he decided to go for it. He moved across the bridge, where children went to school in their free time, and his real father, Alf Pearson, resided on his large plantation. Alf encouraged John to attend the local colored school in his spare moments, and it was here that John first lay eyes on the smart and beautiful, albeit young, Lucy Potts. John, with his high yellow skin and godlike stature, was a favorite among the ladies on the Pearson estate. However, he cast their advances aside as he pined for Lucy.

John and Lucy eventually married and moved to Eatonville, Florida, a "whole town uh nothing but colored folks", where John was called to preach the gospel, honing his already strong speaking skills. John was still a favorite with the ladies, and in a position to do so, he strayed from the mores he was supposed to uphold and engaged in illicit affairs. Thus begun the descension of our character, as his deviant ways became exposed and no longer shrouded in his notoriety.

Zora Neale Hurston's first novel, Jonah's Gourd Vine marks the beginning of a dazzling writer's craft. Peppered with the southern dialect that Hurston is so well-known for, it was, at times, a bit unclear as to what the characters were saying. I found myself saying sentences, and even paragraphs, aloud to discern their meaning. Lucy's character is particularly strong throughout the story. John's character, to me, represents both the "good guy" and later "the bad guy," as I was taken through his struggles, comeupances, and downfalls. I believe everyone should read Hurston, if only for her superb use of language and, in this case, biblical themes. Jonah's Gourd Vine is a great place to start.

Reviewed by CandaceK
The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Every bit as enjoyable as "Their Eyes Were Watching God," Hurston's first novel recounts the rise-and-fall trajectory of John "Buddy" Pearson from a backwoods adolescent to pillar of an all-black community to a philandering preacher. What gives her debut special resonance is that it is a wholly undisguised portrait of her family--not even the names of her siblings have been changed--and she incorporates much of the black folklore, Caribbean mysticism, and African spirituality she encountered in her scholarly research.

Hurston enviably manages to present her father and her long-suffering mother with all their strengths and weaknesses; her account is unsparingly brutal, yearningly affectionate, and remarkably nonjudgmental. (Her portrayal of her wicked, hoodoo-leaning stepmother is less even-handed; here Hurston takes the opportunity for revenge.) A sign of her achievement is that it is hard to tell where fact ends and fiction begins (for example, Hurston's father died in 1917, but John Pearson's story continues through the 1920s).

Even though the story never lags, I found the representation of black Southern dialect hard-going for the first few chapters. After a while, though, you get used to the cadences and colloquialisms, and the reader's diligence is repaid tenfold. "Jonah's Gourd Vine" is one of those surprising discoveries you wished more people had read.