Cover Image: Harlem Shuffle

Harlem Shuffle

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Member Reviews

This author is a great writer there is no doubt about that. The characters were well developed the atmospherics were wonderful and he is joy to read. So why two star? Because I couldn’t connect and get excited about this book I quit after reading about a third of the book. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley

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I love anything that Colson Whitehead writes and this book is no different!! Harlem Shuffle was wonderfully written and about a time period that I'm not too familiar with so this was a really enjoyable, information, and transformational book for me.

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Thank you to Doubleday Books and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book. Hugely enjoyable and captivating crime thriller set in early 1960s Harlem. This book doesn't compare to Whitehead's previous books; however, I'm enjoying the departure. This read doesn't have the emotional depth of the others but it's nice to see his range as an author.

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This one just wasn't as strong or as good as his others. Took a long time to get into it. It was a bit boring, in my opinion.

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I enjoyed this story very much. The crime and racism of New York City of the past was enticing. You were always trying to figure out what would happen next. The heist portion of the book was great. I've never read a novel including that "heist" culture and it was intriguing to be privy of all sides of the "job" and how it affects all involved. This was such a twisty ride and I loved every bit of it. I would not put Harlem Shuffle in my library as I am a middle school librarian, but I would recommend it for public and personal libraries again and again.

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This was a fun crime noir type adventure. However, I didn't enjoy it as much as Whitehead's other reads. I still enjoyed it, but it was lacking something from his works, not sure what, but it just didn't feel all there. I still think others will definitely enjoy this one.

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𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙚𝙢 𝙎𝙝𝙪𝙛𝙛𝙡𝙚 was an easy pick to read because of the writer Colson Whitehead. After writing Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning books like 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙐𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙍𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙 and 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙉𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙡 𝘽𝙤𝙮𝙨, Whitehead is an autobuy for me because he constantly pushes America forward with his social mores about race, class, and power. Once I realized Colson was going to infuse this dynamic into a Black family in a 1950’s Harlem backdrop—where the main character, family man Ray Carney, would straddle the worlds between the striver and the crook—then I was intrigued and so were many others. More than that, Whitehead also caters this book to be a “love letter to Harlem” as well.

I initially struggled to get into novel and at first I wished I could have shuffled to the end, but I did not want to let the book defeat me so I pushed through. It dragged in the first 50-60 pages or maybe even more. There was hardly any action so that didn’t help, but more so character development of Ray Carney, Freddie (his cousin), other crime mobsters, and supporting characters. The novel is also divided up into three distinctive historical times spanning from 1959-1964, where Harlem changes culturally and racially, too. It helped to just actually listen to the audio and hear the story being told to me for me to really enjoy it.

My favorite points from the novel:

* “The way he saw it, living taught you that you didn't have to live the way you've been taught to live. You came from one place but more important was where you decided to go.”
* “Plenty of crooks were strivers, and plenty of strivers bent the law.”
* “Ain’t nobody listening. Do you listen to what the roach says before you step on him?”
* “You have to know your limits as a man and master them.”

Carney’s main point overall in the novel remains to the striver or the crook: “there were always consequences.” Whatever we do in this life we have to be willing to ride the wave of that responsibility.

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I really enjoyed this novel and loved feeling like i was transported back to that era of time. Such a talented author that never lets me down. I highly recommend!

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Not my favorite of Whitehead's work but it will be a nice addition to our English literature curriculum and to the library.

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Colson Whitehead is a heavy hitter who takes on weighty issues, so stepping back and taking a breather with a semicomic heist-type tale is not surprising. What is surprising, however, is that this novel is so ordinary. Oh, it has some serious issues embedded in the story -- gentrification, economic segregation and corruption among public officials -- but they serve only as familiar road signs along the highway to hell. The plot was something akin to that of the great film, Chinatown, moved to New York City. Whitehead is a superb writer, so you can ride along on his prose, but the Harlem Shuffle, like the famous Ali Shuffle, sets you up for a sucker punch.

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I thought the prose was lovely but I spent the whole book waiting for something to happen. Ray just wasn't interesting enough for it to just be a character study. I would have loved some action or anything to really happen. Enjoyed the setting a lot though.

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Dazzling, entertaining and richly written novel by award winning Whitehead never fails to impress. A love letter to Harlem and to Black history and presents.

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This was a good book, but I normally love Colson Whitehead and I had to put this one down and come back to it a few times--I'm still glad I read it, as it was very different from his last few books. Thanks to Netgalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me. My main problem was that I wanted this to be like The Nickel Boys, and it is not. However, this book showcases Colson Whitehead's true talent and versatility as a writer, and I still consider myself a Whitehead fan. I look forward to his next book!

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To be the first book I read from Whiteheads this was awesome. I might reread again. Sadly due to time I will not be sending in review until next year

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“A gloriously entertaining novel of heists, shakedowns, and rip-offs set in Harlem in the 1960s.”

Based on the synopsis of the book I expected there to be more heists than actually took place so I was a little disappointed there. The book also moved a little slow for me and between that and all the different characters that you have to follow I often got a little lost. I also can’t really stand reading about characters that are just so blindly loyal to someone in the way that Carney is with Freddie. It didn’t seem believable to me. Maybe I was just looking for more crime drama and less family drama.

Whitehead does an excellent job of setting the scene and really putting the reader in the Harlem atmosphere of the 60s and he’s clearly a talented writer, this just wasn’t one that I enjoyed very much.

eARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

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This was my first colson whitehead book and it was great! I believe it was historically accurate with a lot of things but it was also entertaining. I did have to get through it sometimes but overall, I enjoyed it.

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Ray Carney, a slightly “bent”, but admirable black man living in Harlem in the early 1960s, is constantly on the move trying to better his life. The income from his legit business, a furniture store, is often barely enough, so it’s supplemented by various other, less legitimate endeavors. Along with a host of unusual characters, he participates in a number of crazy criminal schemes, endangering all he’s worked for. Ray is a man you can’t help but root for. He is so earnest, cares so much for his loved ones, and tries so hard to do the right thing, you can’t help admiring him and worrying that one of these misadventures will tear his hard won life down.
Whitehead paints a beautiful portrait of Harlem in the 1960s. Using his astonishing writing skills, he transports the reader to a place hard to imagine, both wonderful and terrible at times, but always fascinating. Ray’s struggle to survive there shows how rigged the system is against people like him. He faces rampant racism, as well as discrimination based on his social status and family background. On top of that, corruption permeates the society, and he is constantly having to pay various officials and crooks for protection or favors.

I enjoyed reading this, but, in my humble opinion, it would have been a much better book with less extraneous information. Most of it was fascinating, but it was excessive. This is the only reason I give it 4 stars.

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Colson Whitehead never writes the same book twice. He jumps genres and styles with every new release. From the post-apocalyptic Zone One to the magical realism of Underground Railroad to historical fiction of The Nickel Boys to a nonfiction book where he enters the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas with $10,000 (The Noble Hustle). There is no predicting what he will write next. The only constant is his work. Everything he does, Colson Whitehead does well.

Whitehead’s latest book, Harlem Shuffle, brings him into the realm of crime fiction. This is structured like a triptych, three sections, each section almost the same length, each section two to three years apart, but each section tied to the one before. The main character, Ray Carney, runs a furniture store on 125th Street in Harlem. He has a family that is growing, an apartment that is too small, and people who always sell him used TVs and jewelry and other property that might not have belonged to them very long before entering the store. This gives Carney a reputation as someone who will move stolen goods, even though he pretends to be on the straight and narrow. In the first section, Carney’s cousin is part of a heist and comes to him to help them move some of the jewels they steal. This job does not happen without hiccups to their plans, and before he knows it, Carney is much more involved than he ever wanted to be.

The second and third sections are not related to the first section, but they continue the life of Carney and his business, which becomes more and more lucrative but shady with the passing years. Carney becomes well known as someone who moves stolen merchandise. This means he gets more business, can expand his furniture store, get rid of all of the used furniture and only sell new, while paying off the police and buying a new apartment for his expanding family. He becomes a successful businessman, but in the second and third sections, there is proof that he is only one step away from crime and the criminal element.

Many of the most famous triptychs in art have a religious theme. In Harlem Shuffle, Whitehead writes about Harlem in a way that almost feels religious, like he has chosen holy ground for the setting of his novel. He writes about the way the neighborhood changes in the years between the three sections, but even with the changes, reverence still exists. Whitehead shows us that the spirit of Harlem will always be the same, with some honest people doing honest work, but many people doing whatever they can to get by.

In each section, not only does he revisit different buildings, streets, and businesses and how they have changed, but he also does the same with neighborhood characters. We are updated with many different stages in people’s lives. The strongest example of this is the character Pepper. Pepper is someone who Carney calls whenever he has some work that needs done that might be slightly against the law. Pepper is loyal, reliable, and always willing to help Carney, usually paid in pieces of new furniture. He feels like more of a staple to the neighborhood than a side character, someone that is Harlem, someone that knows everything about the neighborhood. Pepper feels like the evangelist, always telling Carney the News, whether Good or Bad. Harlem Shuffle does not have any religious overtones, but it does feel like the Harlem in Harlem Shuffle, with all of it’s faults, deserves our respect and reverence.

Harlem Shuffle is literary pulp fiction. There is not a great amount of mystery, but the tension is high, the characters are all crooked, and even though Carney is a great character, he also brokers stolen merchandise, pays off cops and gang leaders, and keeps it all from his family. Colson Whitehead still writes in his literary but very readable style. Since the book is broken into three sections, it is very easy to get swept into the story and read the entire section in one sitting. Colson Whitehead is a true American Master, and his novels deserve all of the praise they receive. Harlem Shuffle is just another achievement in an already award-winning career. But if you don’t like this book, try his next. It will be completely different.

I received this as an ARC from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Whitehead places you in Harlem in the late 50s early 60s with a businessman who tries to convince himself and others that he isn't as shady as he appears. Following protagonist Carney through the turbulent years of this story, getting to know all the colorful characters he encounters on the way and wandering by his side through the vibrant streets of 1960s Harlem was an interesting way to introduce characters and plot. This is a total switch-up from Whitehead’s previous two acclaimed novels. The story of a furniture store owner in Harlem in the 1950s and 60s who walks the fine line between legit businessman and small-time (encroaching on big-time) criminal. Ray Carney and Harlem in the years 1959, 1961 and 1964. Ray Carney works as a furniture salesman who occasionally receives stolen goods through his furniture store, also helping out his cousin Freddie, a Harlem underworld criminal. Through Freddie, Ray finds himself getting involved in criminal activities. Ray’s father was a full time criminal underworld figure and Ray is trying not to follow in his father’s footsteps. This book is different from the previous book I have read by Whitehead and although the writing can be engaging at times the story and overall pace of the book really fell flat, I was disappointed in the overall book. Although this book is not for me I believe others may find it engaging and enjoyable.
Thank you to NetGalley, Colson Whitehead, and Doubleday Books for the ARC.

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