Description
A rediscovered classic from the Harlem Renaissance about a young Black womans journey passing as white in 1920s New York City and her quest for self-acceptancewith an introduction by Glory Edim, founder and author of Well-Read Black Girl.
Jessie Redmon Fauset is one of the literary titans and foremost tastemakers of the Harlem Renaissancehired by W. E. B. Du Bois to edit The Crisis, she helped popularize writers like Nella Larsen, Claude McKay, Langston Hughes, amongst countless others. And yet, her own work has been largely underread in the twenty-first century. Written in 1929, at the height of the Harlem renaissance, Fausets celebrated second novel tells the story of Angela Murray.
Growing up in a Black middle-class Philadelphia neighborhood, Angela has always dreamed of becoming a painter. But the profession is largely reserved for white society. So when Angelas parents prematurely pass away, she moves to roaring New York City, where she befriends elite artists and presents herself as a white woman. While her sister Virginias complexion resembles that of their fathers, Angelas is lighter, like her mothers, and passing, she believes, is the only way shell ever achieve success. Virginia, meanwhile, refuses to bow to racist pressures, and stays in Philadelphia to embrace her heritage with pride.
Each time Angela thinks shes found artistic, professional, and romantic fulfillment, her ethnicity gets exposed and she finds herself stripped of everything she cares about. As she navigates a world of seduction, betrayal, lust, and heartbreak, shes forced to consider: What does it mean to find genuine success in a society marred by injustice? Fausets novel without morals never passes judgement and stays teeming with tenderness. Full of moments that underline the joy of every day Black life, Plum Bun is a pertinent meditation on art, identity, and what it means to find communityas relevant today as ever before.
Author: Jessie Redmon Fauset
Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 08/26/2025
Series: Modern Library Torchbearers
Pages: 320
Weight: 0.81lbs
ISBN: 9780593731956
Language: English
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