Colson Whitehead is one of those rare voices that comes along once in a blue moon. He writes with an empathy that only a few have. Whitehead’s vocabulary is fluid and the characters live well beyond their pages.

Harlem Shuffle is no exception to this. He laid it all out on the table and then captured this beautiful story about Carney within. Starting in 1959 we are transported to Harlem to walk the streets with Carney and experience his life as a furniture salesman and also as a crook. The simple but relevant nods to furniture throughout the entire story was something I really enjoyed and appreciated that Carney’s character shared. Whitehead did an impeccable job at nailing time period details throughout the book from scenery to lingo. I easily had a running movie through my head as I read this book and from time to time might have even had a whiff of Harlem air come through the pages. Harlem Shuffle is historical fiction, however, Whitehead still reminds us that the problems faced decades ago in society are still relevant in modern times.

I’ll easily be thinking of Carney long from now like it was a friend I met at a diner to have coffee with from time to time. Whitehead has left me in awe yet again. Easily a masterpiece that will read by many generations.

This book is so great...suspenseful, laugh out loud funny, heartbreakingly sad, and so incredibly well written. The characters, especially Carney, are wonderfully well-drawn. The story kept me on the edge of my seat. I loved the glimpse of Harlem in the 60's.

I'd never read anything by Colson Whitehead before, but I will definitely be looking for his older novels and any upcoming works by him! I really enjoyed this story of a mostly honest man who does what he needs to to support his family, back in the 1950s/60s Harlem.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book

Harlem Shuffle, a crime/thriller novel with a cast of characters including petty thieves, mobsters, crooked cops and drug addicts, isn't typically the kind of book I would gravitate toward. It's a testament to Colson Whitehead's immense talent I enjoyed this book as much as I did. Ray Carney owns a small furniture store with big dreams of expansion. The books follows him over the course of a couple years in Harlem in the late 50's and early 60's as he straddles the line between running and growing a legitimate business and the crooked dealings he does on the side. It's a truly fascinating character study.


Thank you to Doubleday and NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy.

Harlem Shuffle is a Runyonesque hymn to the Harlem of the early 60's. Its main character, Carney, is the proud owner of a furniture store on Amsterdam Ave., in the heart of Harlem. He is a furniture maven and enthusiast; his mind rarely strays from furniture. Carney is a self made man, a graduate of Queen's College, married to his college sweetheart and the proud father of two small children. He is also the son of a well known, now deceased, criminal and was raised with a hapless, crook cousin named Freddie. His brother-like bond with Freddie, despite the different paths they have apparently taken, propels this book.

Whitehead plays with the theme day and night, dark and light throughout what amounts to a series of short stories with many of the same characters separated in time. Carney is not only a furniture entrepreneur but is also a small time fence. He lives a bifurcated life, an upstanding citizen by day but middleman fence in the dovay, the middle part of night. It is in this role that he interacts with many of the same criminals who used to work with his father, chiefly Pepper, an older crook thinking of retirement. It is also in this role that he must rescue Freddie from his many misadventures.

Despite some violence (a lot actually) this is a fun, entertaining book. Issues involving race are naturally present but are part of the story, not the whole story. Irony and humor are used often and to good effect. The first part of the book involves a robbery at the Theresa Hotel, a well known establishment in Harlem. One of the gang planning the robbery is a safecracker named Arthur. Arthur is the pride of underworld Harlem and is called “the Jackie Robinson of safecracking” because before Arthur, Blacks were not included in this particular part of the trade. Carney himself is the victim of race prejudice when he is blackballed from a well known Harlem social club. Although the club is for Blacks, he is excluded because his skin color is too dark-it is a “paper bag” club in which the members have skin as light as or lighter than a paper bag.

I loved this book. The main characters are rascals, but likeable rascals. Whitehead brings us along with them on a rollicking series of adventures. I received an ARC of this courtesy of Netgalley in turn for an honest review. I do however plan to buy this book, even though I have already read parts of it twice!

Let me start my review by saying I feel so bad giving this book a low rating. It seems this is one of those books people either love or hate (majority seem to really like it) and I'm sad to have fallen into the "didn't really like it much" category. I have read Whitehead's other two phenomenal books, The Nickel Boys and Underground Railroad, which I raved about and made a big impression on me. I was really looking forward to reading his newest book. I'm not a fan of this type of genre, which I'm sure was some of the reason it fell flat for me, but it was more than just that. I thought he did an okay job with some of the characters, but they didn't really jump off the page, as in his other books. Mostly, there were just too many characters. Some were important and some not and it just became confusing trying to hold them all in my head.

I'm giving it two stars because the writing is still good, it's just that for me the story never really went anywhere. The best part of the book was how vividly, and I imagine accurately, he described the Harlem of years past. The "n" word makes my skin crawl, and it was used a lot throughout the book. I understand it was probably used for authenticity, but I found it very difficult.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This delightful take on the crime caper genre is lighter fare than Whitehead's last two award-winning novels, but still contains deeply human drama and social commentary.

Furniture store owner Ray Carney, the son of a crook, takes pride in his honest business, even as he deals in questionable merchandise on the side to fund an apartment on Riverside Drive for his family. When his wayward cousin Freddie involves him in a hotel robbery, Ray's two worlds begin to collide.

Ray's travels take him from the streets of Harlem to the Diamond District and Park Avenue, down to Radio Row making way for the World Trade Center, with a side trip to the World's Fair in Queens. He encounters a wide cast of characters, from crooked cops to criminals with crazy monikers, and the equally shady elite of both Harlem and Midtown. He has to defend his store during a riot after a Black teenager is killed by a cop, while at the same time suffering the indignity of trying to convince a white salesman to sell a high-end furniture line in his store.

This novel succeeds on all levels, as a humorous escapade, a man's personal journey, and a portrait of a changing New York - and America - in the 1960s.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy.

Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead’s latest, has been billed as a “sizzling heist novel” set in 1960s Harlem. And it is a heist novel on the surface. I have a feeling, though, that that particular description puts a certain expectation in the reader’s head of a plot-driven, action-packed novel. (Maybe you are like me, and you have images of Ocean’s 11 in your head.) In reality, this is more of a character study. Ray Carney, on one hand, is an upright citizen: furniture salesman, father, husband. On the surface, it looks as if he’s a completely different man than his father was. He’s on the up and up and he’s doing things legitimately. On the other hand, maybe the apple hasn’t fallen so far from the tree. As the novel begins we find that Carney might help move some goods of unknown provenance every once in a while, for example. This novel examines the two sides of Carney and what people will do to secure a better life for their family, gain status, deal with being treated unjustly, and protect family. The book also begs the question of what is right vs wrong when so much is stacked against you in terms of social class, systemic racism, and family legacy.

This book was a bit confusing. Frequently jumped from one scene to another. It took me awhile to get used to it. Overall I enjoyed the story. All the characters had detailed backgrounds that sometimes took away from what was happening with the MC. The MC's life could have been more detailed if the minor characters and antagonists back stories were less detailed. One other problem was I had trouble following all the characters involved in this story.

This is a wonderful study of a character. Carney is shooting for the American Dream but it’s illusory unless he betrays the law. All the wealthy in this text have flexed privilege and power, while Carney works to maintain his dream for upward mobility. His love for his wife and children — touching. His fierce love for his cousin/ brother — heartbreaking. His love for Harlem and the wider NYC—realistic, not sentimental. I love a good novel with a sense of justice- Carney delivers justice —even if it’s a slow burn; those who wrong him will pay.

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead. I really tried to like this book. But I couldn't and it goes to the DNF pile. I didn't like the characters, so I didn't care about them. The writing fell flat for me. Thanks for letting me try this book.

I never know what to expect with a Colson Whitehead book (other than great writing). And this remained true with his latest novel Harlem Shuffle. It follows Ray Carney, a furniture store businessman, who is trying to better his and his family's situation in life. He finds this difficult to do while staying on the straight and narrow. This story focuses on three distinct episodes within a few years of each other. I'd rather not give anything away so I'll simply review from a high level. Whitehead's books are always exquisitely written with deep thought put into the descriptions. I could just imagine Harlem of the 1950s and 1960s. His characters are never perfect and I found myself rooting for them, especially Ray, to do the right thing. Additionally, it was disheartening to see that the issues from 60 years ago are still rampant today. I did think the book was a little slow going in the beginning while setting up the scene, but once I got into it, the novel read much quicker.
Thanks to #Netgalley and #Doubleday for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my review.

Ray Carney is married with two children and the owner of a used furniture store in 1960's Harlem New York in the latest Colson Whitehead novel; Harlem Shuffle.
Ray is also a petty thief on the side with his no good buddy Pepper.

The narrative has more wanderings then the people of Israel who wandered around the desert for forty years after their exodus from Egypt. At least the people of Israel had a goal in mind. This novel doesn't.

There is microscopic descriptions of secondary characters, places, events, organizations, people who just show up on one page then disappear. Descriptions of what is going on in the South, in the early sixties, which has nothing to do with what is going on up North.
The story not only jumps timelines from 1961 - 1964, but also abruptly changes narratives changing the genre of the story from a crime novel to an historical fiction.
For instance. The robbery, at the Hotel Teresa, which takes place at the beginning of the novel involving Ray and Pepper is never mentioned when the narrative changes.

Colson Whitehead descriptions of the Caucasian race as whitey, white people, cracker, pecker wood, and racist white. The n word is used throughout the novel.
Any other author using the words, that Colson Whitehead used, The manuscript wouldn't see the light of day.

2 stars
I just couldn't connect with this books or the characters. I did not finish. There will be some who love this book.

Harlem Shuffle is another great book by the wonderful writer Colson Whitehead. On the plus side, this book isn't as emotionally devastating as The Nickel Boys. But perhaps because of that, it lacks some of the punch his other books have.

Harlem Shuffle tells the story of Ray Carney, an African American entrepreneur. He opens a furniture store in Harlem, selling quality pieces to black families on installment plans. He "married up," and his in-laws don't approve of their apartment (too small and not in the right neighborhood), his background (the son of a crook, he grew up around rough people), or even the color of his skin (his mother-in-law's look when their first child was born and was darker than her daughter told him all he needed to know). But Carney has always been a "striver" - trying to improve his circumstances, live on the up-and-up, and become a successful businessman.

However, those installment plans, the bribes he has to pay the police and the gangs in his area, and the costs of doing business mean that if his cousin (who didn't escape from the crooked life) brings him some jewelry or small electronics to sell for him, Carney doesn't ask any questions. When his cousin makes him the fence for a big robbery, this begins another revenue stream for Carney, one that keeps his legitimate business going and his family on the upward trajectory. His two sides - the respectable striving businessman, and the slightly crooked criminal - uneasily co-exist as he tries to survive and thrive in a crazy world.

Whitehead has a way with words and does a great job of creating multifaceted characters. I felt like I was inhabiting 1960s Harlem when reading this book. However, as I said earlier, this doesn't measure up to The Nickel Boys or Underground Railroad. However, it is amazing how versatile a writer Whitehead is, because each book he writes explores a different genre. So perhaps I hold Whitehead to a higher standard than other writers, because I have loved his books so much! This is a definite must-read for Whitehead fans and anyone who enjoys a great story.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reader's copy of Harlem Shuffle!

While reading #Harlem Shuffle, Colson Whitehead’s riveting new novel, many thoughts for this review went through my mind,. Unfortunately those thoughts just started breeding other tangential thoughts instead of being part of a cohesive review.. So try this on for size. More than any recent book I’ve read #HarlemShuffle makes maximum use of its semantics. Harlem SHUFFLE. According to Merriam-Webster one of shuffle’s definitions is - to move about, back and forth, or from one place to another : SHIFT. The “good” guy of the piece , Raymond Carney, certainly shuffles about in both legal and nefarious ways as he work’s hard keeping his store, “CARNEY’S FURNITURE “ well stocked with fine new furniture and the occasional used artifact, lineage undetermined. Then, the name, CARNEY : works for a carnival. CARNIVAL : an instance of merrymaking,feasting, or masquerading . Our Ray Carney is a man of many faces needed to accommodate his various selves You see, Ray’s father was a career criminal and Ray couldn’t help but pick up a few tricks along the way. Then there’s Ray’s brotherly cousin Freddie who’s trouble from the ground up. Despite Ray’s college education and his desire to be well respected, it’s the criminality that lurks in both his immediate world and in. the world. in generalThe story takes place in three parts : 1959, 1961, and 1964 so we can watch Ray’s blossoming from a businessman, to a Businessman, to a BUSINESSMAN.. Yes , in my mind #HarlemShuffle is a story about moving about from one place to another while masquerading your true nature. And through all Mr. Whitehead’s written shuffling and disguising he does a yeoman’s job taking the reader’s eye’s off the bunny so the ironic ending is also well disguised. It would be a crime to pass on #HarlemShuffle. and everyone knows crime doesn’t pay ( except, of course, when it does ).

Unlike Elizabeth, his wife, Ray Carney is not raised on Strivers’ Row. His childhood was filled with sorrow and abandonment, yet taught him fierce loyalty to the little family he had left, especially his cousin Freddie. Seen as a reputable furniture salesman by the community, he is at times a fence for stolen property. When his cousin involves him in a major heist at the Hotel Theresa, his involvement with shady dealings deepens. To elevate his social standing he applies to the Dumas club but is blackballed and sets in motion a plan for revenge. Colson Whitehead shares a piece of New York history, Harlem in the 60’s. His characters evoke events, philosophies and figures of the past. His protagonist is complex, a man of warring personalities. Living through riots and civic unrest and corruption on every level of society, he maintains his role as provider for the family he loves yet copes with illegal transactions to survive.

Carney told himself that he wasn’t crooked, only a little bent. It’s all in the perspective of how legit Ray Carney thought of himself. The title of Harlem Shuffle is aptly named as Ray shuffles his way through life, just this side of being an honest as a semi-respectable furniture store owner in Harlem. Never mind that one third of his inventory was acquired by questionable means. Additionally, on the occasion, Ray would fence stolen baubles for his cousin Freddie when needed. But no, he wasn’t a crook, not like his old man. Ray just wanted to provide a good life for his pregnant wife and daughter. But then, due to his beloved cousin Freddie, Ray becomes entangled with a robbery and into the Harlem underworld. As accomplices start ending up missing or dead, Ray struggles to survive.

Once again, Colson Whitehead tells a great story. His portrayal of Harlem in the late 50’s or early 60’s depicts the rough environment for all who tried to disengage from becoming sucked down by the everyday realities on the streets. Hearing what Ray experienced as a child and then as an adult, made me reflect on growing up in Detroit in the 60’s and also of the racial tensions of today, seeing all the parallels. Although I found it a bit slow to get into in the beginning, the story became engaging and then hard to put down. His character development is flawless. Without being preachy, Whitehead delivers a story that makes you think far beyond the last page.

Add Harlem Shuffle to your TBR list. It’s a good one.

Many thanks to #netgalley #colsonwhitehead #harlemshuffle for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I haven't read a lot of Colson Whitehead's work, just Underground Railroad and now Harlem Shuffle, so I can't provide context for this review that many of those who know his work better can. What I can say with certainty is that I'm glad I read this title. Set in Harlem on the cusp of the 1960s, Harlem Shuffle presents the story of Ray Carney, son of a career criminal who is succeeding on his own as a legitimate—mostly—furniture store owner. Carney sells the occasional item that "fell off the back of the truck" and helps fence occasional buts of stolen jewelry, but he also offers quality furniture at fair prices.

Carney's father wasn't always around, so Carney spent a significant part of his growing up in an Aunt's home alongside his cousin Freddie. Carney has always been the kind of guy who thinks things through; Freddie acts on impulse. Now, one of Freddie's impulses has gotten Carney involved in the robbery of Harlem's best-known hotel, an undertaking much more risky than occasional fencing. Whitehead lays out this situation at the start of Harlem Shuffle, then leads us through several years of Carney's life, watching him juggle his quest for legitimate status and security with the temptation of quick money to be made on the side.

This book didn't shake me up the way Underground Railroad did, but I enjoyed every moment of reading it. Carney and his cohort are engaging characters, and Whitehead's use of third-person omniscient narration gives readers plenty of insight regarding Carney's explanations to himself of the choices he's made and is making. A number of the secondary characters are equally well drawn, placing readers in the elaborately structured community that Harlem was at this time. The "action" of the novel moves in fits and starts, but that's how life moves—few of us consistently travel direct, purposeful trajectories.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley; the opinions are my own.

A bit different than Whitehead's usual book, Harlem Shuffle is a crime novel set against the backdrop of 1960's Harlem. Our main character, Ray Carney is just a bit crooked but his cousin Freddie gets him knee deep in shady business, heists, shakedowns and capers. Told in three parts, from Ray's point of view, we get a glimpse of the underbelly of Harlem and find out who's really got the power.

My thoughts:
-Undeniable that Colson Whitehead is a fantastic storyteller and I will read anything penned by him.
-The Characters are written real, believable, likable with flaws and all.
- Harlem is described as if your walking the streets with the characters.
The backdrop and back story of the Harlem Riot of 1964 was insightful.
- Overall I enjoyed the story, although for me the story got bogged down with overly descriptive scenes that slowed the pace of the book, but didn't add much to the overall story. I found myself having to reread some sections because my mind would wander. I loved the characters and found the story to be solid.

Thank you to netgalley and publisher, doubledaybooks for an advanced copy in exchange of a honest review.