The Queen Of Harlem by Brian Keith Jackson
By Keith Boykin, in books
Wednesday, May 15 2002, 6:00AM
What do you get when you combine a gifted author, a great story, well-crafted technique, and beautiful, almost lyrical prose? You get The Queen of Harlem, Brian Keith Jackson's new book, his third, and the first in our book club series.
Mason Randolph has arrived in New York to spend the summer before Stanford Law School but finds himself questioning his identity and making a series of choices that create drama in his young life. He quickly befriends Carmen England, a Harlem socialite who takes him on as a tenant in her Mount Morris townhouse and introduces him to a New York jetset world. But Mason has a secret, and it's not what you think it is. As he struggles to maintain his dual identities, Mason plunges deeper and deeper into a dramatic abyss that climaxes when he's so far submerged that the truth floats to the surface.
Pardon me while I gush. This has to be the most engaging book I've read in years and one of the best crafted stories I've read in my lifetime. I can't say enough positive things about The Queen of Harlem. The story literally kept me involved from the beginning until the very last page. I have to admit my bias here. If I were a writer of Jackson's talent, this is the book I would have written. At parts, I felt as though I were reading about my own life in Harlem because he has captured the Harlem experience so beautifully and articulately. His is a realistic vision of Harlem, sans cynicism or rose-colored revisionism. But even for non-Harlemites, the book is a thrill. From the quotation at the beginning to the passage at the end, the book delivers an inspiring message, without all the sappy melodrama of too many novels.
Jackson explores multiple elements of identity -- including class and race -- with wisdom and sophistication beyond the tired cliches of race politics. "What do you think is more difficult," Jackson asks, "being on the inside looking out or the outside looking in?" It's a telling question, both about identity and the story line. Perhaps the character Carmen put it best: "People like to walk around basking in their difference, then get upset when someone reminds them of that difference." It's the riddle of identity. But later she asks "why in the world would you try being something that most of society already thinks you are?" Finally, Mason spots a black plastic bag as a metaphor for his own life.
"The most engaging book I've read in years and one of the best crafted stories I've read in my lifetime"
The book functions well on so many different levels that it's hard not to appreciate it for its art, its mechanics, its sense of history, its complexity, and its simplicity. Although Queen is deep and intelligent, it's also funny and light. The characters are richly developed as they morph into reality. Jackson doesn't waste time with one-dimensional character descriptions. Instead, he lets you see the characters in action, in conflict, in love with one another, and allows you to experience the rush of emotions that they feel.
Brian Keith Jackson is a brilliant writer with an ear for dialect, an eye for imagery, and a voice for poetry. Those of you who have read his earlier works may already know that. But in The Queen of Harlem, his words don't just speak, they sing off the pages of this book. If you read no other novel this year, read this book. It's that good. Trust.
Your E-mails
Antonio Gaskin writes: "I just finished reading Brian Keith Jackson's The Queen Of Harlem, and it was a very interesting read. The story held my attention from beginning to end ... The ending of the book really had me laughing and trying to figure out how Mason/Malik didn't know . . . Even though the book was about Mason and how he tried to escape who he was ... Carmen played her role well also. I laughed so hard after finding out [the ending]."
From Elmo Terry-Morgan of Providence, Rhode Island: I read The Queen of Harlem. I picked it up from the bookstore last night. I couldn't put it down. I read from 9:00 pm until 2:00 am. Then, I finished it this morning with only about 30 pages to read. The only thing that bothered me was the ending. After such a wonderful journey I was let down. The ending felt rushed and abrupt, like a lot of the modern independent films that seem to just stop because the budget ran out. However, I would definitely recommend it. Coming of age stories about young, Black, upper-middle class, folks searching for their "Black" identities seem to be quite popular. There is something else (not bad): The book had a definite "Gay" feel to it, because the Gay references were not sensational but simply a part of the tapestry.