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47th Street Black
The prize-winning debut of an incendiary new voice in contemporary American fiction, 47th Street Black is the story of JC and Mookie, whose rise in the gangster-driven ghettos of Chicago is as swift as it is brutal.
In the early sixties, 47th street is the heart of black Chicago, where recent migrants from the South come to move up in the world. JC and Mookie are high school dropouts, playing stickball in the street when they stumble upon the dead body of the area's black liaison to the mafia. Where others would run, Mookie sees opportunity, and in no time he and JC are working for Salvie, the local boss. Within a year, they are the most infamous figures on 47th Street, best friends and partners with flashy cars, clothes, and women.
As they alternate telling their stories, the balance of power smooth, charismatic Mookie becomes the de facto leader and small, violent JC the enforcer—roles that send JC to jail for a murder they commit together. In the 15 years he's away, JC gains an education and a resentment he can't control, while Mookie gains power over the entire South Side. By the time JC is paroled, both the neighborhood and the two men's lives are on an inexorable path to an explosive confrontation with simmering injustice.
In the early sixties, 47th street is the heart of black Chicago, where recent migrants from the South come to move up in the world. JC and Mookie are high school dropouts, playing stickball in the street when they stumble upon the dead body of the area's black liaison to the mafia. Where others would run, Mookie sees opportunity, and in no time he and JC are working for Salvie, the local boss. Within a year, they are the most infamous figures on 47th Street, best friends and partners with flashy cars, clothes, and women.
As they alternate telling their stories, the balance of power smooth, charismatic Mookie becomes the de facto leader and small, violent JC the enforcer—roles that send JC to jail for a murder they commit together. In the 15 years he's away, JC gains an education and a resentment he can't control, while Mookie gains power over the entire South Side. By the time JC is paroled, both the neighborhood and the two men's lives are on an inexorable path to an explosive confrontation with simmering injustice.
- GenresFiction
432 pages, Paperback
First published January 7, 2003
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108 people want to read
About the author
Bayo Ojikutu
9 books8 followersBayo Ojikutu is a Nigerian-American creative writer, novelist and university lecturer. His first novel, 47th Street Black, received the Washington Prize for Fiction and the Great American Book Award.
(wikipedia)
(wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 9, 2015
growing up in the hard streets of chicago. this one sets next to hillmann's hood The Old Neighborhood: A Novel
December 3, 2009
thus far i am geeked. great beginning, two strong characters, great plot. not sure waht to make of the jesus/john the baptist stuff yet but fuck it. should finish this by monday, at current pace.
July 12, 2007
A good read about a black man's struggle to live in poverty. Story takes place in Chicago's south side neighborhood of Hyde Park. The language used in the book, jive if you will, added to the books character that helped turn this easy read to a page turner. Not high on my recommendation list, but worth reading if you are in to gangs, drugs, and books following lives of individuals.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews