Angel of Harlem: A Novel (Strivers Row) - Hardcover

Haulsey, Kuwana

3.96

159 ratings by Goodreads

9780375508707: Angel of Harlem: A Novel (Strivers Row)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0375508708 ISBN 13: 9780375508707

Publisher: One World/Ballantine, 2004

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Inspired by the extraordinary events of Dr. May Chinn’s life, Angel of Harlem is a deeply affecting story of love and transcendence. Weaving seamlessly scenes from the battlefields of the Civil War, during which her father escaped from slavery, to the Harlem living rooms and kitchen tables where May is sometimes forced to operate on her patients, this fascinating novel lays bare the heart of a woman who changed the face of medicine.

A gifted, beautiful young woman in the 1920s, May Edward Chinn dreams only of music. For years she accompanies the famed singer Paul Robeson. However, a racist professor ends her hopes of becoming a concert pianist. But from one dashed dream blooms another: May would become a doctor instead–-the first black female physician in all of New York.

Giddy with the wonder of the Harlem Renaissance and fueled by firebrand friends like Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston, May doggedly pursues her ambitions while striving to overcome the pains of her past: the death of a fianc�, a lost child, and a distant father ravished by the legacy of slavery. With every grief she encounters, a resilient piece of herself locks into place. At times risking her life–attending to men stabbed in their homes and women left to die in filthy alleys–May struggles to carve out a place for herself within a medical world that still teaches that a “Negro” brain is not anatomically wired for higher thinking. Yet against the odds, she achieves her goal, starts her own practice, and becomes one of the first cancer specialists in the city.

Alive with the pulse of black unrest in 1920s New York, this beautifully textured novel moves with fearlessness and grace through a history that is by turns ugly and sublime. With Angel of Harlem, critically acclaimed author Kuwana Haulsey gives poetic voice to the story of a remarkable woman who had the courage to dream and live beyond her era’s limitations.

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From the Back Cover:

"With keen vision, careful research and nuanced sensibility, Kuwana Haulsey captures in this novel the triumphant spirit and amazing accomplishments of Dr. May Chinn, an early twentieth century heroine whose story has been too long forgotten. From the humble and hopeful strivers of the Harlem Renaissance to the glamorous glitterati, Haulsey's characters faithfully evoke the era's immense promise and stark contradictions." -- A'Lelia Bundles, author of On Her Own Ground: The Life and Times of Madam C. J. Walker

"Forget that its setting is early 20th century Harlem. The vivid sense of place, a cast of characters which includes many of the Harlem Renaissance's most luminous artists, and, most of all, its exquisite language make this powerful inspirational story -- based on the remarkable life of Dr. May Chinn, the first Black woman to graduate from New York University medical school -- as riveting as today's headlines.

At one point, Haulsey describes the heroine's remembrance of a tale that her father related to her mother as "a lively dancing thing, draped in green and gold, and scented with almonds." That is also an apt description of Angel of Harlem. This is a lyrical, intoxicating, and timeless novel." -- Mel Watkins, author of Dancing With Strangers: A Memoir and On the Real Side: A History of African American Humor

"Kuwana Haulsey is an awe-inspiring artist with a rare willingness to high-dive into the abyss, not troubled by such mere trifles as where she'll land. This beautiful, expressive novel displays her unique gift for delving straight to the heart of the human condition. With Angel of Harlem, Haulsey has once again managed to take my breath away." -- Nick Chiles, author of Love Don't Live Here Anymore

Praise for Kuwana Haulsey and The Red Moon

"Haulsey deftly plays tangled personal and cultural differences against one another [in her] smoothly written, engrossing novel."
- The Washington Post Book World

"The Red Moon is an impressive first novel [that is] moving, shocking, and unforgettable."
- Essence

"This is a novel that should be read by everyone who wants insight into modern Africa and the women who mother and daughter it."
- NIKKI GIOVANNI

"This unflinching tale marks Haulsey as a promising young writer."
- Publishers Weekly

About the Author:

Kuwana Haulsey is the author of The Red Moon, which was a 2002 finalist for the Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Legacy Award for Debut Fiction. Born and raised in New York City, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Rutgers University magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. Kuwana has led seminars for the PEN/Faulkner Foundation in Washington, D.C., and at Rutgers University. She’s taught writing at UCLA and Agape International. She is an actress and currently lives in North Hollywood.

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