Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick

Stories from the Harlem Renaissance

By: Zora Neale Hurston

Narrated by: Aunjanue Ellis

From “one of the greatest writers of our time” (Toni Morrison)—the author of Barracoon and Their Eyes Were Watching God—a collection of remarkable stories, including eight “lost” Harlem Renaissance tales now available to a wide audience for the first time.

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In 1925, Barnard student Zora Neale Hurston—the sole black student at the college—was living in New York, “desperately striving for a toe-hold on the world.” During this period, she began writing short works that captured the zeitgeist of African American life and transformed her into one of the central figures of the Harlem Renaissance. Nearly a century later, this singular talent is recognized as one of the most influential and revered American artists of the modern period.

Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick is an outstanding collection of stories about love and migration, gender and class, racism and sexism that proudly reflect African American folk culture. Brought together for the first time in one volume, they include eight of Hurston’s “lost” Harlem stories, which were found in forgotten periodicals and archives. These stories challenge conceptions of Hurston as an author of rural fiction and include gems that flash with her biting, satiric humor, as well as more serious tales reflective of the cultural currents of Hurston’s world. All are timeless classics that enrich our understanding and appreciation of this exceptional writer’s voice and her contributions to America’s literary traditions.

Great storytelling.

Some of the stories are hard to digest but enjoyed overall. I laughed a lot.

Wonderfully Performed

Aunjanue Ellis brought these words to life! Excellent performance of this collection of witty short stories. Kudos to Ms. Hurston. Each character and storyline were phenomenal! Great listen…

Real Life Situations!!

We did this as a small group book review. We laughed & related this to personal , family & friends situations. It was also written as it was related to biblical times. overall, a very good read.

Beautiful Stories

The stories were beautiful and the narrator was amazing! Some stories were so thought provoking, I had to go back and listen again.

Very entertaining...

The narrator was excellent. I really enjoyed this book. Some of the short stories were very funny.