Nella Larsen, Novelist of the Harlem Renaissance: A Woman's Life Unveiled

by Thadious M. Davis

Nella Larsen (1891–1964) is recognized as one of the most influential, and certainly one of the most enigmatic, writers of the Harlem Renaissance. With the instant success of her two novels, Quicksand (1928) and Passing (1929), she became a bright light in New York’s literary firmament. But her meteoric rise was followed by a surprising In 1930 she was accused of plagiarizing a short story, and after 1933 she disappeared from both the literary and African-American worlds of New York. She lived the rest of her life―more than three decades―out of the public eye, working primarily as a nurse. In a remarkable achievement, Thadious Davis has penetrated the fog of mystery that has surrounded Larsen to present a detailed and fascinating account of the life and work of this gifted, determined, yet vulnerable artist.

In addition to unraveling the details of Larsen’s personal life, Davis deftly situates the writer within the broader politics and aesthetics of the Harlem Renaissance and analyzes her life and work in terms of the current literature on race and gender. This book, with the prodigious amount of new material and insights that Davis provides, is a landmark in African-American literary history and criticism.

Genres: Biography, History, Race, Psychology, Nonfiction, African American, Female Authors

496 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1994

About the author

Her poetry has been published in various journals and anthologies in the USA, including Obsidian, Pushcart Prize IV: Best of the Small Presses (ed. Bill Henderson, 1979) and Black Sister: Poetry by Black American Women, 1746-1980 (ed. Erlene Stetson, 1981) and is collected in Emergence. In the 1980s she co-edited (with Trudier Harris) several volumes of the Dictionary of Literary Biography dealing with African-American writers.

(from Daughters of Africa, edited by Margaret Busby)

Reviews

[Nascha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another well noted biography on Nella Larsen, an intriguing novelist from the Harlem Renaissance period. Larson, the biographer, does a great job of detailing Larsen's life and giving tidbits and details not found in most other biographies. Very good read for those interested in learning more about Nella Larsen.