Arna Bontemps (1902–1973)

This book gets 5 stars for its priceless historical value alone but there is in fact even much more to it. Nothing else in American/African-American history and literature comes even close to this volume because to date it represents the only comprehensive collected correspondence between two giants of African-American literature. That by itself is notable but possibly even more so is the span of time, as indicated in the title, covered. Bontemps and Hughes were both stars of the Harlem Renaissance but these collected letters only begin there and take readers through the writers' first-hand experiences of, and reports on, the Great Depression, life during World War II, and the thunderous rumblings of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement.

They also contain the kind of shared literary intimacies and insights you hope to find in such books. For example, Hughes writes the following to Bontemps on Feb 18, 1953: "If you'll tell me what Dick Wright's book is like (since I haven't it) I'll tell you about James Baldwin's Go Tell It on the Mountain which I've just finished: If it were written by Zora Hurston with her feeling for the folk idiom, it would probably be a quite wonderful book. Baldwin over-writes and over-poeticizes in images way over the heads of the folks supposedly thinking them--although it might be as the people would think if they could think that way..."

Whether or not you agree with Hughes' or Bontemps' assessments in such instances, the thrill comes from getting their uncensored straight-from-the-gut responses. This is the case whether they are dealing with literature, politics, race relations, mutual acquaintances, the development of various cultural movements, or their everyday struggles to survive and thrive as literary artists. Their voices as presented through these letters are beautifully undiluted but powerfully informed, and therefore an invaluable treasure for anyone who appreciates the idea of literary camaraderie, loves the Harlem Renaissance, or simply enjoys checking out writers at their unscripted best.

by Aberjhani… (meer)

An adequate look at the 100 years after the American Civil War. Written in 1961 this work is a little dated. Bontemps was somewhat dismissive of MLK but laudatory of Ralph Bunche. The last 50 years have reversed that.

He spent a great deal of time on the DuBois-Washington controversy. He gets beyond the surface of the controversy between the two. He also notes how the views of each changed over the years, especially noting BTW's realization that segregation was unacceptable near the end of his life. Bontemps had previously criticized BTW for giving the SCOTUS the notion about separate-but-equal doctrine that found expression in the 1896 Plessy decision. BTW had ostensibly endorse separate-but-equal the previous year with his so-call Atlanta Compromise.

Bontemps also explored (much more briefly) the Harlem Renaissance (of which he was a part). It would have been nice to see a more lengthy examination of the renaissance. Also missing from the discussion on the 1920s was a discussion (or even mention) of Marcus Garvey. Granted, Garvey was not an American, but he was a profound figure.

Bontemps seems somewhat contemptuous MLK and Thurgood Marshall. Written on the eve of the explosion of the civil rights movement (after Brown, Montgomery, and Little Rock, but before sit-ins, freedom rides, the March on Washington, and freedom summer), the modern reader gains an insight into the thinking of African Americans in the early 1960s.

While Bontemps is a good writer, he is not (nor did he claim to be) a historian, he had no footnotes. The extensive use of quotes would have been enhanced with sourcing. The bibliography is nice, but a bit dated.… (meer)