Wrapping up our McFadden project…
Glorious was the last on our McFadden list. We fell in love with her writing when we read Sugar last year, so much so that we unanimously decided to read through her backlist.
Summary - Glorious is set against the backdrops of the Jim Crow South, the Harlem Renaissance, and the civil rights era. Blending the truth of American history with the fruits of Bernice L. McFaddens rich imagination, this is the story of Easter Venetta Bartlett, a fictional Harlem Renaissance writer whose tumultuous path to success, ruin, and revival offers a candid portrait of the American experience in all its beauty and cruelty.
I found something to love in each and every one and was so happy to have a group of like-minded reads to read them with. I recommend reading any and all but if I had to choose a few I’d say:
Sugar (, no question, you have to read this book) Praise Song for the Butterflies This Bitter Earth
Even though we’ve finished our list I will revisit many of them throughout the years to come. Now having read most of McFadden’s books, I can say that the way she writes her characters is among the best of the best; they leap off the page and they are real and imperfect and I just love them.
Have you had backlist success this year? Anyone I should add to my list?
Find Glorious at the publisher →
Toni Rocchetti is a copy editor helping authors strengthen their narratives, deepen character arcs, and find the story that is already in the draft. She reads 80+ books a year across literary fiction, memoir, and nonfiction — and writes about what she is learning along the way. Work with Toni →
