Nigger Heaven

New York/London: Alfred A. Knopf. Very Good-. 1926. First Edition. Hardcover. (no dust jacket, but encased in a nice-looking facsimile reproduction of the original first edition jacket; see 2nd image posted with this listing) [good solid copy, modest wear and light bumping to extremities, boards slightly bowed, spine slightly turned, spine cloth just a bit faded, one-time owner's name written in teeny-tiny neat script on front endpaper, a few notes on the rear endpaper in the same handwriting]. Controversial novel by a controversial figure, a white critic/writer/photographer who was one of the major cultural (and sometimes financial) supporters/patrons of the Harlem Renaissance. Take issue if you must (and many have) with his portrayal of African-Americans -- it split the black literary community, even then -- but it can't be denied that Van Vechten was both "on the scene" and deeply involved in it, and so the book retains its historical/cultural interest, despite its oh-so-incorrect (for today's eyes) title -- itself a slang term for Harlem, reflecting how it was viewed by many African-Americans, at least until they actually got there. Includes a two-page "Glossary of Negro Words and Phrases." NOTE again that this book bears a FACSIMILE dust jacket, which has not been factored in to our pricing. . (Inventory #: 29331)