Not Without Laughter

by Langston Hughes, Jasmine Mans (Introduction)

Overview

Langston Hughes was one of the best-known poets in modern America and his first novel, Not Without Laughter, is undoubtedly his finest prose. A classic of African-American literature, it is the poignant story of a young black boy's awakening to the sad and the beautiful realities of black life in a small Kansas town. Published in 1930, Not Without Laughter is a pioneering work of fiction, and has been in print ever since. This work is now available in trade paperback with a new introduction by bestselling author and poet Maya Anagelou and a foreword by writer Arna Bontemps.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781454964803
Publisher:	Union Square & Co.
Publication date:	02/03/2026
Series:	Herald Classics
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	248

About the Author

Langston Hughes (1902-1967), one of the great poets of the Harlem Renaissance, was born in Joplin, Missouri, and spent much of his childhood in Kansas before moving to Harlem. He wrote poetry, short stories, novels, an autobiography, songs, essays, and plays. Among his numerous awards and honors were a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1935, a Rosenwald Fellowship in 1940, and an American Academy of Arts and Letters Grant in 1947.

Bryan Washington is the author of Palaver, Family Meal, Memorial, and Lot. He’s also a National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 winner, a New York Public Library Young Lions Award recipient, an Ernest J. Gaines Award recipient, an International Dylan Thomas Prize recipient, a two-time Lambda Literary Award recipient, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Fiction award, the James Tait Black Prize, the Joyce Carol Oates Prize, a PEN/Robert W. Bingham prize finalist, a National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize finalist, the Goodreads Choice Awards, and the recipient of an O. Henry Award, and was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30. The New York Times referred to his writing as among the 25 Most Influential Works of Postwar Queer Literature, and he was a columnist for the New York Times Magazine.

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Excerpted from "Not Without Laughter"
by .
Copyright © 2018 Langston Hughes.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Publishing Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

I. Storm
II. Conversation
III. Jimboy's Letter
IV. Thursday Afternoon
V. Guitar
VI. Work
VII. White Folks
VIII. Dance
IX. Carnival
X. Punishment
XI. School
XII. Hard Winter
XIII. Christmas
XIV. Return
XV. One by One
XVI. Nothing but Love
XVII. Barber-Shop
XVIII. Children's Day
XIX. Ten Dollars and Costs
XX. Hey, Boy!
XXI. Note to Harriett
XXII. Beyond the Jordan
XXIII. Tempy's House
XXIV. A Shelf of Books
XXV. Pool Hall
XXVI. The Doors of Life
XXVII. Beware of Women
XXVIII. Chicago
XXIX. Elevator
XXX. Princess of the Blues

Editorial Reviews

Langston Hughes is a titanic figure in 20th-century American literature . . . A powerful interpreter of the American experience.”
—The Philadelphia Inquirer

“[Hughes] is sumptuous and sharp, playful and sparse, grounded in an earthy music.”
—The Boston Globe

“[Hughes’s] poetry has a pulse, a beauty and familiar kindness. . . . Much of it delights, even dazzles. His best work sticks with you—forever.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer

"A lyrical, charming, and moving story of a black Midwestern boy."
—Arnold Rampersad on Not Without Laughter

From the Publisher

The audiobook provides an outstanding rendition of an important Harlem Renaissance novel.

AudioFile