Simple Speaks His Mind.

HUGHES, Langston.

$1,500.00

Item Number: 147216

New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950; [1951].

First edition of the first book in Hughes’ “Simple” series. Octavo, original publisher’s cloth, gray top stain. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, “Inscribed especially for Rev. Charles Sumner Lee with the good wishes of Langston Hughes. Camden, 29 April 1951.” Very good in a very good dust jacket. Rare and desirable signed and inscribed.

Of all the fictional characters in modern African American literature, Simple is probably the most widely admired and beloved. From a humble beginning in a column for the Chicago Defender, he found his way into books, radio, television, and the musical comedy stage. He has been described as "a major figure in American literature" (Brooks Atkinson), as "far more than an uptown Mr. Dooley, a tart-tongued Will Rogers, or a very hipped Lenox Avenue Uncle Remus... probably the best combination of all three" (The New York Post), as as "the voice of the American Negro" (The New Republic).