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Black and White Tangled Threads (1920) is a novel by African American author Zara Wright. Published at the beginning of the Harlem Renaissance, Wright's novel earned nationwide praise as a "realistic portrayal of individuals and events [that] lifts one to the heights of earthly ambitions." Despite this critical success, Wright does not appear to have written more than Black and White Tangled Threads and its sequel, Kenneth, which were published together in 1920. Although recent scholars have made attempts to return her name to its rightful place on the pantheon of pioneering African American writers, mystery still clouds her life and career to this day. Like many of her contemporaries, Wright took interest in the sociopolitical realities of life as a Black or mixed-race person in the early twentieth century. In this novel, she explores the consequences of passing, interracial marriage, and class on the lives of individuals in the United States and Europe. Black and White Tangled Threads is a story of love, family, and faith from a forgotten writer of the Harlem Renaissance. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Zara Wright's Black White and Tangled Threads is a classic work of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.
About the author
Zara Wright was an African American writer from Chicago. Not much is known about her beyond her status as the author of two novels:
Black and White Tangled Threads and
Kenneth, both published in 1920. Praised for her representation of urban family life, racial identity, and romance, Wright was considered an important figure of the Harlem Renaissance. In the decades since, however, her reputation has largely faded, leaving her novels long overdue for reappraisal from readers and critics alike.
