When two times Pulitzer Prize winner Colston Whitehead has a new book, it's a must read. When it's the second in his crime trilogy starring Ray Carney it's a 'get very excited must read'.

Harlem in the 1970s. New York is broke and falling apart, not least Harlem where kick-backs and mobsters are the norm and buildings are regularly torched for the insurance money (regardless of whether anyone is still inside). Ray Carney, who we first met in Harlem Shuffle, is the proprietor of a furniture store and a sometimes fence. Mainly trying to stick on the straight and narrow, his good intentions go awry when he hooks up with some of his less salubrious contacts to secure Jackson Five tickets for his daughter.

Told over 3 (fairly self-contained) stories, based across different years in the 1970s, we find Ray getting into scrapes, normally emanating from a good intention. Interspersed throughout (and starring in the middle section) is Pepper, violent criminal and friend of Ray's late father.

There is little to be said about Whitehead that hasn't been said before - I would agree with the description that he is perhaps America's greatest living novelist. Getting under the skin of Harlem, Crook Manifesto is a magnificent novel. Revisiting Ray, Elizabeth and their children is a treat, the plot zips along and the writing is superb. The middle section felt a little out of kilter as the pace slowed considerably but it sets the scene for the final third.

This would work as a standalone but it is likely more enjoyable to start with Harlem Shuffle.

Thanks to Little Brown and Netgalley for an ARC.

Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead
This book, the second in a proposed trilogy, revisits the life of Ray Carney who we were introduced to in Harlem Shuffle. This time we see him in the 1970’s he is now a mostly respectable Harlem furniture dealer with a wife who runs a travel agency and two children. He is however constantly pulled back into dealing stolen goods. Everyone around him is doing some kind of deal there are gangsters dealing drugs, police taking bribes, politicians giving out favours to friends and even the Black Liberation Army are involved in jewellery thefts so why shouldn’t Carney join in?
Carney gets involved in fencing some hot jewellery for Munson, a corrupt white police officer. Munson is worried that he is about to be questioned in relation to corruption and Carney becomes involved with him in return for tickets to see the Jackson 5, his daughter’s favourite group. The book is brutal and deals with some very violent situations but throughout the author maintains a sense of humour about the situations in which the characters find themselves. There is for example a scene when Pepper is expected to remove his shoes to enter a drug dealer’s abode but refuses to do so. This inevitably ends in violence and the reason he refuses is because he has a hole in his sock! Carney is an interesting character not wholly good or bad; he is the product of his upbringing by Big Mike Carney.
The book is extremely well written and there are some beautiful descriptions. It was a pleasure to meet Ray Carney again and I am looking forward to his next outing. Many thanks to the author, the publishers and to Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Description:
Follows Ray Carney, a former crook getting dragged back into the scene in search of Jackson 5 tickets for his daughter, and Pepper, a taciturn and surprisingly endearing thug.

Liked:
The characters were vivid and mostly charming. There's a pervasive warmth which really brings these stories to life. The first of the three (fairly self-contained) stories was pacey and immediately engaging.

Disliked:
The pace seemed to slow for the second and third stories: by the end of the third I didn't care much about getting to a conclusion. The search for Lucinda proved fairly anticlimactic, and the final story bounced around, visiting some interesting places but ultimately feeling quite disjointed.

Would recommend: it’s my first by this author and I’ll be checking out more.

A selection of short stories essentially about dodgey cops and New York criminals .I didn’t realise it was short stories and do not generally enjoy books written in this way as I tend to enjoy getting more deeply involved in a novel .
I very much enjoyed the authors novel The Underground Railroad and was drawn to read this novel because of this
My first impression was that the boom was fun lighthearted pacey ,I did however find that the pace tended to dip significantly half way through the book and I found it starred to drag and not interest me as much
I enjoyed some aspects of the novel such as the Crooks buying furniture amusing throughout for some reason. This really amused me
my general impression of the novel was that it was like Beano meets goodfellas .It’s quite a blokey novel and I’m sure will have lots of readers who will enjoy it .
In summary this was not really a novel for me ,it is well written and an easy read but lacked the character driven storylines that I personally enjoy .
This review will be published on Goodreads NetGalley uk and my book blog bionicsarahsbooks.Wordpress.Com
The book is published in the uk on 18 the July 2923 by Little Brown Book Group I read an early copy on NetGalley uk

This novel is the sequel to Harlem Shuffle, featuring character Ray Carney, who has been going straight and is trying to get tickets for his daughter to see the band, Jackson Five. Written in three sections, this is a novel I wanted to love. I do love a literary fiction novel, and can get very excited by writing that is slightly off-whack or even vaguely experimental, but I don't know about this one... I love the setting and it's great to revisit Carney, but the writing is not as effective as in Harlem Shuffle, and I think the reason is, perhaps, in an effort to make things (plot, character, setting etc.) appear complex (which I like and totally approve of in a novel) Whitehead has, in fact, made his writing complicated (which is different, and truly tricky to get into.)

I'll certainly read this novel again, just to see if a second read-through eases that sense of over-writing. My grateful thanks to NetGalley and the publishers.

Colson Whitehead's 2021 novel Harlem Shuffle introduced us to the world of Ray Carney, a man trying to stay on the straight and narrow in a borough rife with crime. It was a great novel, chock full of detail which truly allowed you to breathe the city streets of decades long ago. It earned Whitehead his second Pulitzer.

This new novel, Crook Manifesto, picks up the story of Carney and Harlem itself, and takes us through the 1970s. Life in Harlem hasn't changed much from that first novels opening in 1959 - yet the world has been changing around Harlem. Whitehead retains his power to show us his entire world with vivid colour. Carney remains our centre point - but as with Harlem Shuffle - there are many other characters who have their moment to shine.

In this novel crime remains the backdrop, but Whitehead is able to make social, economic and psychological insight not just into his characters but into the very soul of Harlem.

Each of the three sections in this novel felt very distinct yet separate - from blaxploitation movie pastiche to family drama to the criminal - but yet feels like a very cohesive whole and a wonderful continuation of Harlem Shuffle. If you loved that novel, you will this one too.

Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC.

A former fence turned furniture salesman gets pulled back into the criminal underworld while trying to get his daughter tickets to a sold out Jackson 5 concert.

I had great hopes for this book but unfortunately I found it very hard to follow. The language is very flowery and the plot skips mid paragraph to something unrelated.

This book was not for me.

COLSON WHITEHEAD – CROOK MANIFESTO *****

I read this novel in advance of publication through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Though two time winner of the Pulitzer prize for consecutive books, until this novel I had never heard of Colson Whitehead and therefore hadn’t read Harlem Shuffle, its predecessor. Such is his esteem he is jetting round the world – literally, France, Spain, Canada, Scotland, Australia, New Zealand, England – giving talks, including London which is already getting booked up months in advance. It’s a wonder he has time to write.

Crook Manifesto plunges you into the dangerous world of Harlem 50 years ago, seen from the shady, seedy side of the street. (Was there any other?) And it is breath-taking.

Ray Carney is the owner of a successful furniture store. And a bit of a crook, though on the light side, compared with most of the people he meets: even the police shoot other police if they step out of line. Buildings are set on fire every night, either to burn those inside to death for an infringement, or for an insurance scam. Black against white, rich against poor, gangster against gangster. Someone you want taking out? No problem.

Because there is not a high percentage of dialogue you can’t skim down the page. If you do you will miss the brilliant prose, the subtle humour, the intricacies of all those characters involved. And there are many who by the end of the book you will recognise as though you live in the ‘hood.

It is an astounding book. Don’t want to give away the plot. From the very first sentence you are thrown into the melee and given clues as to what happens later, the web of politicians and police and fire starters and thugs. Haven’t read such an immersive book in years.

Out of interest I went into the 3D google maps and was able to look down on the whole area, as it is today, which is fascinating.

A book to be savoured, a book to be read. First class.

First off this is an extremely entertaining read, beautifully crafted by a very skilled author the book takes you to a world few have experienced. I was transported to this world by a story that was captivating, full of surprises delivered through brilliant characters who delivered this story in wonderful segments, the book comes with a number of layers, it’s a wonderful read but will need your full attention, it’s a book fir a long journey or a time when you need an interesting companion.

Crook Manifesto is the sequel to Harlem Shuffle. It also features Ray Carney, an ex-fence who also owns a furniture showroom.

In this book he has been going straight for a number of years and is attempting to buy scarce tickets to see the Jackson Five for his daughter. The first of three parts of the book detail the lengths he has to go to to try and do this.

The book is in three sections that are loosely linked. I found the first part enthralling and on a par with Harlem Shuffle but the rest of the book I found less gripping and in parts rather rambling and long winded.

This is a well written book set in Harlem, New York in the 1970s. The main character is Carney who owns a furniture showroom. But Carney is a crook who is trying to go straight. He has managed this for several years but his daughter is leaning on him to get her tickets for the Jackson Five, as they were at that time. Especially Michael. These are impossible to get.

So Carney has a contact, a bent detective, who can get tickets but he will want a favour in exchange. This will lead Carney back into the world of crooks that he has been trying to leave behind.

Twists and turns. Will suit a reader who likes thrillers. I found it quite a difficult read, not knowing about black culture in Harlem in the 70s, and couldn’t keep up with all the names and descriptions.

I read a copy provided by NetGalley and the publishers.

It was all Michael Jackson's fault.

Ray Carney's daughter wanted to see the Jackson 5. But he hadn't got tickets - they were like gold dust.

Ray had been straight for four years. He told himself that it wasn't going back to his old ways, it was just one favour for some tickets...

Ray's day was about to get a whole lot worse...

Excellent