Beloved Harlem: A Literary Tribute to Black America’s Most Famous Neighborhood, from the Classics to the Contemporary

A passionate ode to an American mecca, Beloved Harlem is a literary look into the vibrant African-American haven, edited by one of its celebrated native sons. William H. Banks, Jr., combines the classics with the contemporary as he showcases some of the best essays, short stories, and novel excerpts inspired by the diversity of Harlem life, from the early twentieth century to the new millennium.

The days and nights of black Manhattan come alive in the words of historically famous writers like W.E.B. Dubois, Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Dorothy West, Ossie Davis, and Toni Morrison, along with the works of brilliant newcomers to the neighborhood, including Brian Keith Jackson's witty examination of identity politics in The Queen of Harlem and Rosemarie Robatham's "Dreaming in Harlem," a moving tale about a woman at the edge of society who finds sanctuary with a stranger.

From renaissance through tough times to revitalization, this triumphant homage gives Harlem the historical perspective it so rightly deserves. Beloved Harlem is a welcome addition to the libraries of readers who are either already in love with Harlem or ready to take the fall.

WILLIAM H. BANKS, JR., is the executive director of the Harlem Writers Guild. His first book, A Love So Fine, was published in 1974 and is widely regarded as the first African American romance novel. He is a professor at New School University and the host of In Our Own Words, the only regularly scheduled television program dedicated exclusively to black writing.