Cora James, a 35-year-old Black librarian in Harlem, dreams of being a writer. Torn between her secret passion and the duties of a working wife and mother in 1928, Cora strikes up correspondence with renowned poet Langston Hughes, who encourages her to pursue her dream. Duty frustrates Cora again, this time when she’s called upon to fill in for her cousin Agnes while she recovers from a brutal beating by her husband Bud.
Working as a cook for a white woman, Cora discovers both time to write and an unlikely ally in Mrs. Eleanor Fitzgerald, who becomes friend, confidante, and patron, encouraging Cora to rise above what’s commonly thought of as “a woman’s lot.” Yet, through a series of startling developments in her dealings with the white family, Cora’s journey to becoming a writer takes her to the brink of losing everything, including her life.
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- Pages
- 176
- Published in
- Toronto, CA
Table of Contents
- Cover 1
- Half Title 2
- Title 4
- Copyright 5
- March 29, 1928 8
- New York, New York, April 2, 1928 10
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, April 5, 1928 15
- New York, New York, April 17, 1928 19
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, April 20, 1928 22
- New York, New York, April 29, 1928 29
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, May 1, 1928 33
- New York, New York, May 3, 1928 36
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, May 7, 1928 48
- New York, New York, May 13, 1928 59
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, May 16, 1928 77
- New York, New York, May 23, 1928 80
- New York, New York, May 30, 1928 96
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, June 3, 1928 106
- New York, New York, June 15, 1928 115
- June 23, 1928, Chesterfield County, New York 129
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, June 30, 1928 136
- Chesterfield County, New York, July 21, 1928 142
- Lincoln University, Pennsylvania, July 28, 1928 151
- New York, New York, October 20, 1928 167
- Cora’s Reading List 171
- Acknowledgments 172
- About the Author 173
