''Crook Manifesto'' is a 2023 novel by

Colson Whitehead Arch Colson Chipp Whitehead (born November 6, 1969) is an American novelist. He is the author of eight novels, including his 1999 debut work '' The Intuitionist''; '' The Underground Railroad'' (2016), for which he won the 2016 National Book Awa ...

. It returns to the fictional world of his previous book, ''

Harlem Shuffle "Harlem Shuffle" is an R&B song written and originally recorded by the duo Bob & Earl in 1963. In 1986, it was covered by the British rock band The Rolling Stones on their album '' Dirty Work''. Bob & Earl The original single, arranged by Ge ...

''. It is a work of

crime fiction Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

and a family saga that takes place in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

during three periods: 1971, 1973, and 1976, the year of the

United States Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States of America as an independent republic. It was a central event ...

celebration.

Plot

Ray Carney is a successful furniture salesman. He is older than in ''Harlem Shuffle'' and he has retreated from small time crime. As his daughter has become more distant to him, he sees a chance to reconnect when she wants Jackson 5 tickets. However, the show was sold out long ago. To score the tickets he rekindles former sketchy relationships and is forced into small time criminal moves once again. He has to reacquaint himself with a corrupt white cop whose goal is to escape the heat that is on him in New York City. Carney transports stolen jewels, robs a poker game, and rummages through criminals' apartments. According to the New York Times, "Carney is resigned and observant, a participant and a hostage, as he embarks on a nightmarish shotgun ride across New York City."

Analysis

According to Evan Kindley, writing for ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...

'', in recent decades, there has been a meaningful rebirth in the

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

genre. He says that it has become the most respected genre in

contemporary literature Contemporary literature is literature which is generally set after World War II in the English-speaking world. Subgenres of contemporary literature include contemporary romance. History Literary movements are always contemporary to the writer dis ...

. Kindley, citing a literary scholar, also points out that most of the novels nominated for major American awards since 2000 are historical fiction. In Kindley's view,

has been impactful as an author advancing the rise of

during the 21st century. Although Whitehead has written many kinds of stories, historical fiction is shown to be his forte. Whitehead's career shows that he has interest in writing elaborate historical settings. These settings can be unusual. For instance, there is the unclear time period of New York City in his first book, '' The Intuitionist''. Then there is the bizarre, such as the alternate reality of the South in '' The Underground Railroad''. Only Whitehead's 2006 novel, '' Apex Hides the Hurt'', approximates the present, yet it is surreal.

Reception

On the review aggregator website Book Marks, the novel received mostly "rave" and "positive" reviews from critics. In a

starred review A starred review is a book review __NOTOC__ A book review is a form of literary criticism in which a book is merely described (summary review) or analyzed based on content, style, and merit. A book review may be a primary source, opinion piece ...

, ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' said of the novel, "It’s not just crime fiction at its craftiest, but shrewdly rendered social history." Writing for ''

The New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...

'', Walter Mosley described the novel as a "dazzling treatise, a glorious and intricate anatomy of the heist, the con and the slow game. There’s an element of crime here, certainly, but as in Whitehead’s previous books, genre isn’t the point. Here he uses the crime novel as a lens to investigate the mechanics of a singular neighborhood at a particular tipping point in time."

References

External links

* {{Official, https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/608670/crook-manifesto-by-colson-whitehead/
Colson Whitehead 'Crook Manifesto' author interview
Terry Gross. NPR. Audio only. July 24, 2023. 2023 American novels American crime novels Historical crime novels Novels by Colson Whitehead Doubleday (publisher) books Novels set in Manhattan Novels set in Harlem Harlem in fiction Novels about theft Sequel novels

Plot

Analysis

Reception

See also

References

External links