Harlem on Her Mind: Prose, Poems & Plays by Women of the Harlem Renaissance

This is a collection of the rare, diverse, and powerful prose, poetry, and plays that capture Harlem through the eyes of the African American women who experienced it. Harlem on Her Mind is the first anthology to gather these historically significant and exceptional pieces in a single collection.Social standards and expectations of the 1920s made it difficult for women, particularly African American women, to travel and live independently. It was considered “unseemly” or even offensive for a woman to address the grittier aspects of the Roaring Twenties. Women were also less likely to be published beyond newspapers and magazines. But African American women were there, observing and participating, each with a different sense of decency and level of immersion. Despite these imposed restrictions, they were able to carve a small niche of writing depicting Harlem life from their unique perspectives.Breaking Through by Eunice Hunton CarterThe Hunch by Eulalie SpenceThe Starter by Eulalie SpenceUndertow by Eulalie SpenceSonnet to a Negro in Harlem by Helene JohnsonBottled by Helene JohnsonMuttsy by Zora Neale HurstonThe Book of Harlem by Zora Neale HurstonThe Corner by Eunice Hunton CarterHostess by Edythe Mae Gordon