Posted on April 14, 2021 at 12:00 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

We’re less than a week away from a new novel from Richard Wright — yes, the Native Son writer who died in 1960.

The Man Who Lived Underground was rejected for publication as a novel, though pieces of it appeared in various publications during the 1940s.

But, the New York Times reports, Wright’s daughter, Julia, discovered the full version in her father’s papers in 2010 and knew it should be published.

The novel, which comes out Tuesday, also includes an essay from Wright and an afterword by his grandson, Malcolm Wright — who notes that “it’s not by accident” that editors in the 1940s rejected the novel, with its lengthy description of police brutalizing the protagonist.

The NY Times has plenty more about The Man Who Lived Underground and how it resurfaced, as well images of pages from a draft of it.

Related posts 

Categories: Today in Books

Comments
There are no comments yet.
Add Comment

* Indicates a required field