I hadn’t heard of Jessie Redmon Fauset before, but according to the Preface of my Quite Literally Books copy, she was one of the most prolific writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Her novels were later critiqued for centering on the Black middle class, labeled as “bad fairytales,” a problem that doesn’t seem to have been resolved since then, if I can go by Percival Everett’s Erasure.
Angela and Virginia Murray are two sisters living in Philadelphia at the beginning of this novel. Their working-class parents have worked hard to purchase their house and provide them a comfortable life. Jinny appreciates this and loves her life, but Angela doesn’t want a life like they have. Unlike, Jinny, she looks White, and the only situations in which she has been made uncomfortable have been when White people discovered she was a Negro, to use the novel’s own terminology.
As young adults, the sisters lose both parents and inherit the house. Angela decides to sell her half to Jinny and study art in New York City, where no one knows her and she can pass as White. She wants to meet someone with money, so she can lead a carefree life. Girls just want to have fun.
In her art class, she meets Anthony from Brazil. She is drawn to him, but he is very poor, and when he asks her if she could live a poor life to be with someone, she says no. Then she meets Roger, a wealthy young man from a good family. He pursues her, and she comes to believe she can get him to propose. Unfortunately, she is being naïve and doesn’t seem to understand that he has no intention of marrying her, as she does not have the right social and economic background. She also ignores signs of racial bigotry.
But this book isn’t just about Angela’s relationships with men. It’s about the compromises and deceits involved in Angela’s decisions. It’s about her development from a selfish young girl to a woman who has learned empathy. It’s about what should underlie one’s life decisions. And it’s about the insidiousness of racism. It’s another time, so be prepared for some nasty attitudes that were okay at the time to express.
I didn’t like Angela for quite some time—she’s too cold and calculating, too selfish. But through strife, she learns to understand the feelings of others. I enjoyed this book very much.
I want to thank the new imprint, Quite Literally Books, for sending me the beautiful package that contained this book, in exchange for a free and fair review.
What? Me Read? 