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You Don’t Know Us Negroes and Other Essays
Introduction by New York Times bestselling author Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Spanning more than 35 years of work, the first comprehensive collection of essays, criticism, and articles by the legendary author of the Harlem Renaissance, Zora Neale Hurston, showcasing the evolution of her distinctive style as an archivist and author.

“One of the greatest writers of our time.”—Toni Morrison

You Don’t Know Us Negroes is the quintessential gathering of provocative essays from one of the world’s most celebrated writers, Zora Neale Hurston. Spanning more than three decades and penned during the backdrop of the birth of the Harlem Renaissance, Montgomery bus boycott, desegregation of the military, and school integration, Hurston’s writing articulates the beauty and authenticity of Black life as only she could. Collectively, these essays showcase the roles enslavement and Jim Crow have played in intensifying Black people’s inner lives and culture rather than destroying it. She argues that in the process of surviving, Black people re-interpreted every aspect of American culture—"modif[ying] the language, mode of food preparation, practice of medicine, and most certainly religion.” White supremacy prevents the world from seeing or completely recognizing Black people in their full humanity and Hurston made it her job to lift the veil and reveal the heart and soul of the race. These pages reflect Hurston as the controversial figure she was—someone who stated that feminism is a mirage and that the integration of schools did not necessarily improve the education of Black students. Also covered is the sensational trial of Ruby McCollum, a wealthy Black woman convicted in 1952 for killing her lover, a white doctor.

Demonstrating the breadth of this revered and influential writer’s work, You Don’t Know Us Negroes and Other Essays is an invaluable chronicle of a writer’s development and a window into her world and mind.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
The Last Slave Ship

The Last Slave Ship

Zora Neale Hurston

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Spunk & Sweat - Two Short Stories

Spunk & Sweat - Two Short Stories

Zora Neale Hurston

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Spunk - A Short Story

Spunk - A Short Story

Zora Neale Hurston

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Spunk & Sweat - Two Short Stories

Spunk & Sweat - Two Short Stories

Zora Neale Hurston

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Sweat - A Short Story

Sweat - A Short Story

Zora Neale Hurston

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Magnolia Flower

Magnolia Flower

Zora Neale Hurston, Ibram X. Kendi

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Their eyes were watching god

Their eyes were watching god

Zora Neale Hurston

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You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays

You Don't Know Us Negroes and Other Essays

Zora Neale Hurston, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Genevieve West

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Miami Noir: The Classics

Miami Noir: The Classics

Unknown

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Their Eyes Were Watching God

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston

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Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick

Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick

Zora Neale Hurston

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Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick

Hitting a Straight Lick with a Crooked Stick

Zora Neale Hurston

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I Love Myself When I Am Laughing... And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive

I Love Myself When I Am Laughing... And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive

Zora Neale Hurston

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I Love Myself When I Am Laughing... And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive

I Love Myself When I Am Laughing... And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive

Zora Neale Hurston

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High John de Conquer

High John de Conquer

Zora Neale Hurston

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Barracoon

Barracoon

Zora Neale Hurston

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Dust Tracks on a Road

Dust Tracks on a Road

Zora Neale Hurston

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A Teacher's Guide to Their Eyes Were Watching God

A Teacher's Guide to Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston, Amy Jurskis

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12 Common Core Essentials: Literature

12 Common Core Essentials: Literature

Harper Academic, Paulo Coelho, Neil Gaiman, Agatha Christie, Barbara Kingsolver, Richard Wright, Thomas C. Foster, Richmond Lattimore, Ray Bradbury, Zora Neale Hurston, Betty Smith

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Dust Tracks on a Road

Dust Tracks on a Road

Zora Neale Hurston

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Moses, Man of the Mountain

Moses, Man of the Mountain

Zora Neale Hurston

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Every Tongue Got to Confess

Every Tongue Got to Confess

Zora Neale Hurston

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Every Tongue Got to Confess

Every Tongue Got to Confess

Zora Neale Hurston

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Mules and Men

Mules and Men

Zora Neale Hurston

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Their Eyes Were Watching God

Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston

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