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Not Without Laughter
A leading figure of the Harlem Renaissance, poet Hughes wrote only one novel — but it is an incredibly powerful and moving work. This 1930s coming-of-age tale, which unfolds amid an African-American family in rural Kansas, explores the dilemmas of life in a racially divided society.
Paperback, 224 pages
Published
April 4th 2008
by Dover Publications
(first published 1930)
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Langston Hughes is one of my all-time favorite writers, mostly for his poetry, but I love his autobiographies (The Big Sea and I Wonder as I Wander) and this autobiographical novel.
There is so much heartbreak in the story, but the two recurring themes -- that there ain't no room in this world for nothing but love, and that whatever else life is, it is not without laughter -- are so incredibly uplifting. A great story of keeping one's chin up when there seems no reason to do so.
...more
There is so much heartbreak in the story, but the two recurring themes -- that there ain't no room in this world for nothing but love, and that whatever else life is, it is not without laughter -- are so incredibly uplifting. A great story of keeping one's chin up when there seems no reason to do so.
...more
NOT WITHOUT LAUGHTER. (1931), Langston Hughes. **.
Hughes is best known as a black poet from the 1930s and 1940s, and was a key member of the writers from the Harlem Renaissance. He was born in Joplin, MO, in 1902, and died in 1967. This was his only novel, and is part of the collection issued by The Library of America in a two-volume set titled The Harlemn Renaissance. I’m afraid that Mr. Hughes was a better poet than he was a novelist, this effort being a coming of age novel ...more
I read this book when I was living in Lawrence, Kansas. I haven't read his poetry, which I hear is great, but I don't know... seems I'm am easily disappointed.
While I thought the writing style was a little weak, I found most of the story to be interesting.
However, I was put off by one thing in particular- his treatment of the one (?) queer character in the book. Sure, even though I am queer, I am just as annoyed by sleazy predators just as much as any one else. But I didn't unders...more
While I thought the writing style was a little weak, I found most of the story to be interesting.
However, I was put off by one thing in particular- his treatment of the one (?) queer character in the book. Sure, even though I am queer, I am just as annoyed by sleazy predators just as much as any one else. But I didn't unders...more
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It's just so beautifully written. Hughes is my favorite poet for many reasons - one of them being the way he infuses jazz into his poetry (for example, check "Juke Box Love Song"). This aspect of his poetry shows up strong in this novel. And the story is so compelling and the protagonist is so endearing. I just didn't want the story to end. Go read this book! Now!
Best known as a poet,of course, Langston Hughes also published 15 novels and collections of short stories. This is his first novel, from 1930, a bildungsroman of an African-American boy growing up in Kansas in the second decade of the 20th century. Many of the details of black life that are now Cultural Studies 101 (slide guitar blues played with the dull side of a pocket knife blade, "playing the dozens", the evolution of ragtime into jazz, and so on) may have been news to the literar...more
Langston's Hughes only novel starts out slowly but grows on you until you realize how incredible it is. The story is simple enough: we follow Sandy from a ten-year-old boy through his mid-teens in the small town of Stanton, Kansas in 1912. While relations with whites are somewhat cordial and he doesn't experience the brutal racism of the south, blacks lack opportunity and are looked down upon. Sandy lives with his grandmother, a washerwoman; his mother, a maid; his teenage aunt; and sometimes hi...more
It actually took my quite some time to finish this book. I partially attribute this to the fact that I was having a really hard time getting into that vernacular. It made the first chapters a real drag because you constantly had to guess around what the hell this meant. At some point my head was just swimming with all the "gwine" and "sho" and "chillens" and "de lawd" and what not. Thankfully, the language massively improves as the characters development a...more
Heartbreaking and touching account of an African American growing up.
"When you starts hatin' people, you gets uglier than they is - an I ain't never had no time for ugliness, 'cause that's where de devil comes in - in ugliness!"
"...I knows there ain't no room in de world fo' nothin' mo'n love. I knows, chile! Ever'thing there is but lovin' leaves a rust on yo' soul. An' to love sho 'nough, you got to have a spot in yo' heart fo' ever'body - great an' small, white an' black, an' them what's good an' them what's evil - 'cause love ain't ...more
"...I knows there ain't no room in de world fo' nothin' mo'n love. I knows, chile! Ever'thing there is but lovin' leaves a rust on yo' soul. An' to love sho 'nough, you got to have a spot in yo' heart fo' ever'body - great an' small, white an' black, an' them what's good an' them what's evil - 'cause love ain't ...more
I bought this amazing book from Dover having never heard of the author but needing another item to qualify for their "free shipping" deal. What a lucky choice! I read the first chapter and commented to my husband how the writer pulls you right in to the scene and he said, "oh yeah, Langston Hughes is a good author and poet." Of course, my husband is big on poetry, being a poet himself. But this is one of the finest books I've read depicting a boy growing up in a poor black f...more
This is a blues novel par excellence, along with some of the works of Zora Neale Hurston. Even though it is set in Kansas(!), it gives a great feel for African-American life in the 1910s, the era when blues was developing and still a black thing, way before it would take over the world's music. Great dialogue, great characters, great story. I have read it more than once and get more out of it each time
I read this one for school. I usually don't like asigned books but this one was good. The characters are well developed and the themes are inspiring. This books shows a lot of the racial problems in 1910's.
Hmmm, very interesting book. I liked it enough to finish, but to this day do not understand the title at all--there was no laughter in the book that I can remember. The ending left much to be desired and I had a hard time getting use to the spelling/language type ussed throught the entire book.
My first Langston Hughes. I really loved it. Evocative. I felt like I was studying history in a fully sensual way.
<3 I felt I was there... opened my eyes to a time when few eyes were open .. Loved it
I understand that this was the first novel written by Langston Hughes. It stands the test of time as I'm reading it 80 years after it was first written ... and I enjoyed it very much. It shares a story about a Black family living in a small Kansas town. The timeframe is before the second world war and the characters are not much different than those we know today in 2011.
Anyhow, I highly recommend that this book be part of the library of any African American family with young pre...more
Anyhow, I highly recommend that this book be part of the library of any African American family with young pre...more
Beautifully written. Really observe Black life from a Black perspective.
i couldnt put it down i read itduring all my free time a few years back.
Langston Hughes's first novel is a masterpiece.
I just remember loving this book in high school.
Just OK, but did inspire me to read his poetry.
Everyone focuses on his poetry, which is terrific, but this novel is really great, too.
Clearly written and insightful.
An ABSOLUTE MUST READ!!!!
Wow. Just read it.
I think this is a very under-rated novel by Langston Hughes, perhaps because most teachers and scholars focus on Hughes' poetry. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel! It is a insightful and engaging story of a young boy named Sandy growing up in Kansas. It would be great book for high school students to read because it ends with Sandy's determination to finish high school and move forward in his education in spite of the odds against him.
Since I'm such a big fan of Langston Hughes' poetry, I was expecting more from this novel, but the grace and impeccable timing of his poems don't seem to have translated into the novel form. There's definitely a sense of joy here, and there are some compelling descriptions of what life was like for African Americans in the 1920s, but overall, it felt clunky--like someone's first novel (which it was). I wanted to like it more.
The thing that captures me so much about this novel is that everything I was ever taught by my family is in this book. The lessons in life are timeless. The world has changed so much, but the same basic truths remain. I love this book because the characters became family, and I could understand what they were going through. I looked forward to seeing them through their trials and tribulations.
Teaches one the meanings of Faith, Hope, Love, AND Laughter! Inspiring!
What makes this book unique is the way it hits racism in the midwest right on the spot. What attracted me to the book was the stories of slavery times it exposed.
This book exceeds any expectations barriers with its rich details and realistic characters. it can almost be a biography.
THe authors wrighting style was exquisite. he wrote the way they
This book exceeds any expectations barriers with its rich details and realistic characters. it can almost be a biography.
THe authors wrighting style was exquisite. he wrote the way they
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Langston Hughes was an American poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, and columnist. Hughes is known for his work during the Harlem Renaissance.
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“I’s been livin’ a long time in yesterday, Sandy chile, an’ I knows there ain’t no room in de world fo’ nothin’ mo’n love. I know, chile! Ever’thing there is but lovin’ leaves a rust on yo’ soul. An’ to love sho ‘nough, you got to have a spot in yo’ heart fo’ ever’body – great an’ small, white an’ black, an’ them what’s good an’ them what’s evil – ‘cause love ain’t got no crowded-out places where de good ones stay an’ de bad ones can’t come in. When it gets that way, then it ain’t love.”
—
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