Libertin
Daddy was a Number Runner is not sugar-coated or show. It is truth lived in the vernacular -- a black girl's humor and empathy as she comes to understand Harlem's dreams and tragedy...from inside out. Louise Meriwether's voice is the black feminist novel's equivalent of the blues. If you like the modern classics like Mailer, Morrison, Marshall, you will love this...you will not be able to put it down or forget Francie, one of my all-time favorite characters.
--Belles Lettres
Paule Marshall
The novel's greatest achievement lies in the sense of black life that it conveys: vitality and force behind the despair. It celebrates the positive values behind the black experience: the tenderness and love that often lie underneath the abrasive surfaces of relationships...the humor that has long been an important part of the black survival kit, and the heroism of ordinary folk...a most important novel.
-- The New York Times Book Review
From the Publisher
"The novel’s greatest achievement lies in the strong sense of black life that it conveys: the vitality and force behind the despair. It celebrates the positive values of the black experience: the tenderness and love that often underlie the abrasive surface of relationships . . . the humor that has long been an important part of the black survival kit, and the heroism of ordinary folk. . . . A most important novel."
—Paule Marshall, The New York Times Book Review
"Daddy Was a Number Runner is not sugar-coated or show. It is truth lived in the vernacular—a Black girl's humor and empathy as she comes to understand Harlem's dreams and tragedies . . . from inside out. Louise Meriwether's voice is the Black feminist novelist's equivalent of the Blues. If you like modern classics by Naylor, Morrison, and Marshall, you will love this. . . . You will not be able to put it down or forget Francie, one of my all-time favorite characters."
—Mary Libertin, Belles Lettres
"A tough, tender, bitter novel of a black girl struggling towards womanhood and survival."
—Publishers Weekly
