Description
Set in the 1890s on a Louisiana Red River plantation, this novel follows Little Augie, a frail, diminutive Black jockey whose gift for horses becomes his ticket out of confinement and into a wider, harsher world. After escaping to New Orleans and chasing a life beyond the limits imposed on him, Augie’s hopes for love and dignity collide with the realities of power, exploitation, and racial hierarchy. When he travels to St. Louis seeking a woman like Florence Desseau, he is drawn into a dangerous orbit of gamblers, prostitutes, and predatory “patrons,” where survival demands moral compromise. With lyrical storytelling and a keen eye for the social forces shaping ambition, Arna Bontemps crafts a sweeping, character-driven exploration of freedom, desire, and the cost of chasing the American dream.
Available Editions
paperback
AMS Press
Published Jan 1, 1972
199 pages
ISBN: 0404001378
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Details
First Published
1931
Language
eng
Content Warnings
No content warnings identified.