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aka_dogmom's review against another edition
I only picked up this book only because I needed a Z book title to finish my ABC challenge.
thehappypoet's review against another edition
challenging
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
I completely understood the unfair pedestal I'd had these two on. Their humanity is every but on display and it does seem hard not to pick sides and feel my perceptions of Hughes' writing altered.
To be fairer a more comprehensive biography would be necessary beyond the sliver of this particular relationship, but to that end Yuval Taylor does bring his subjects to life. Like the best histories the rationales that drove them then are made completely relatable and understood. Pity has no place with such strong personalities, and yet they allow themselves to be taken advantage of while nonetheless riding the era for all it was worth. Unparalleled achievements.
To be fairer a more comprehensive biography would be necessary beyond the sliver of this particular relationship, but to that end Yuval Taylor does bring his subjects to life. Like the best histories the rationales that drove them then are made completely relatable and understood. Pity has no place with such strong personalities, and yet they allow themselves to be taken advantage of while nonetheless riding the era for all it was worth. Unparalleled achievements.
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
This should be called Charlotte & Zora & Langston as the book devotes roughly the same amount of pages to Hurston and Hughes’ relationship with their patron, Charlotte Mason.
catpdx's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting stories about the scene and some of their work, but it doesn't go into that much depth on their friendship, and the title's more than a little overblown for what was a pretty straight-forward falling out. Leaves out or skirts around some pretty major facts about Hughes in particular. You don't get much of a sense of either of them from this book.
jozefsyndicate's review against another edition
5.0
Wintry mix covers Louisiana February 16-20 the state. There’s no electricity in the office. Laptop battery depleted. Writing and editing were quickly done. With about three hours of sunlight left for the first night, ZORA AND LANGSTON brought chocolate-covered strawberries from Ponchatoula, La. We gave in, of course, and indulged by candlelight, and were glad we did. This non-fiction, historical account by Yuval Taylor of the relationship between Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes revealed layers of challenges the talented authors faced to create their “primitivist” writing during the birth of the Harlem Renaissance and the Niggerati. Their individual family relationships, childhood, love lives, conflict among other writers, and strife to stand up through their writing and identity as writers without the Negro label (for Langston) and with the boldness of the Negro label (Zora). Bonus historical facts are tucked into the book, especially about the literati, the fledging publishing opportunities, the short-arm reach of Black journals like the Urban League’s Opportunity and NAACP’s The Crisis that published Zora’s stories and Langston’s poetry, and the tensions around cultural/racial representation in their work and those of Alain Locke, Countee Cullen, Wallace Thurman, W.E.B. DuBois, and illustrators Aaron Douglas and Richard Bruce Nugent, Taylor isn’t a creative storyteller–rightfully so–but he is crafty in blending Zora’s and Langston’s lives independently and as friends. Sensual lovers of many, openly and secretively lovers of many including Locke and Thurman, but the Zora and Langston were not lovers of one another. This is a gem, one to keep on the shelves and share with students of literature and writers of the culture. 3.5 stars
thegrandduchy's review against another edition
3.0
this was a much dryer book that i thought it would be
lulureads365's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting telling of what caused the rift between Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes. Entertaining and informative.
sophronisba's review against another edition
3.0
I think I don't know enough about the Harlem Renaissance to truly appreciate this book -- I'm just not familiar enough with all the personalities discussed here. I do want to find full-length bios of both Hughes and Hurston in hopes of learning more. But the book is well-written and remains interesting, even if it feels a bit short.