Reviews

Cotton Comes to Harlem by Chester Himes

samaykay912's review against another edition

2.0

This wasn't great. I didn't like this. It was racist, and had a shoe string plot until the end. The ending wasn't even fully clear to me. I didn't love this.

roristutzman's review against another edition

adventurous funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

lraven13's review against another edition

4.0

What an ending!

The story moves right along from start to finish with action and one heck of a storyline. I didn't see the end coming as my mind had gone a different direction, and when I realized what had happened I laughed with delight. An excellent read from Chester Himes, this is noir that is truly meant to be enjoyed on a variety of levels.

whitneyborup's review against another edition

4.0

Trash. But the best kind of trash.

lucasmiller's review against another edition

4.0

At 160 pages Cotton Comes to Harlem is about as boiled down as any crime fiction I've ever read. Written in a noir meets blaxploitation cadence, the story of flim flam man Deke O'Hara, double double crosses, back to Africa campaigns, thinly veiled racial tension and glorious descriptions of barbecue all tumble across the page at a decidedly quick clip. The violence, sexuality, and attitude of the book finds an impressive balance between the classic hard boiled noir world of Chandler and Hammett and the bustling, exuberant, and dangerous perception of 1970s Harlem. Himes splices in social commentary in the tired, but determined voices of his two gnarled Black detectives Coffin Ed and Grave Digger Jones. It's over the top, but follows a consistent logic. Things seem to fall into place pretty effortlessly for the detectives. At times I felt that all and any exposition had been burned away leaving the book feeling excessively slim, but considering this is the seventh entry it the Harlem Cycle and the first and only one I have read, I cannot fault the book for expecting readers to know its characters and the lay of the land. The plot builds with several story lines converging on a climax that includes hiding in a closet and arresting the bad guys. While I was excited throughout the end, it seemed that the complexity flattened out substantially in the final twenty pages into a resolution that makes the whole plot seem a bit too straightforward for the amount of build up that forms the bulk of the story. Himes is deservedly regarded as the master of genre fiction among twentieth century African American authors and I will seek out and read more of these gritty little books for sure.

zeroiv's review against another edition

funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

jjsmoothdaddy's review against another edition

funny mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

jakewritesbooks's review against another edition

4.0

An interesting caper-style romp through Harlem where everyone is playing everyone and the cops are trying to keep up. You likely won't find a better description of 60s Harlem even though Himes is quite cynical. Doesn't always provide clarity when shifting perspectives which made it hard to keep track of at times but still a whip fast read with some Wire-esque social commentary masquerading as dark comedy.

emmkayt's review against another edition

3.0

I read [b:A Rage in Harlem|565816|A Rage in Harlem|Chester Himes|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1410733602s/565816.jpg|276413] a couple of years ago and enjoyed it, and this 7th book in the series featuring hard-boiled black police detectives Grave Digger and Coffin Ed is a good read too. Written a few years later in 1964, its Harlem setting has acquired a "Back-to-Africa" movement, a competing "Back to the Southland" movement led by a sinister white Southern colonel, and some Black Muslims who hold a tense rally. Kind of a cross of Raymond Chandler and blaxploitation films. The women characters all belong on the covers of lurid pulp fiction, the police dole out slaps and threats to suspects merrily, and it's very much of its time. Fun.

bdplume's review against another edition

3.0

I just don't like Himes's style for some reason. He's objectively good, but not my cup of tea in the mystery genre.