GDT Book Club: Harlem Shuffle

[ccToast]

Thanks for coming in to talk about Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead. I’m looking forward to reading your insights!

It looks as though many of us are in the process of finishing Harlem Shuffle. This thread can be a placeholder for the discussion. Please join in whenever you can.

Edited to add: I'll hold off on posting a new question until there's more response in this thread. That's the beauty of an online discussion.

Day 1


The blurb on the cover says, “Harlem Shuffle is a family saga masquerading as a crime novel, a hilarious morality play, a social novel about race and power, and ultimately a love letter to Harlem.”

• Did one of these seem more prominent in your mind while reading it? Did you see it in another way?

• What are your impressions of the book? Did you enjoy it? Were you immediately engaged with it, or did it take you a while?

• Did it remind you of other books or other authors?

[sal]

Bookmarking for when I actually finish!

[juliajones54]

I have the book on hold at two different libraries. The audio version is available but I space/tune out audio books so have to wait for the written words!

[sal]

Mar 18, 2024 20:04:34 GMT -5 juliajones54 said:

I have the book on hold at two different libraries. The audio version is available but I space/tune out audio books so have to wait for the written words!

The reader has a really nice but soothing voice, so yeah.  I'm doing better now, but was having a terrible time keeping focus yesterday.  Given what you've said, you'll be better off with print or ebook.

[sal]

Finally done, and I do not think I was served well by listening to this one versus print. I kept zoning out, so had to read a plot summary when done just to be sure I followed everything. It for sure was a lot of genres mashed together, and I liked it, but I think I would have liked it more if I read it instead of listened.

Nothing against the reader, who was great, but it might just have been a bad time for me for mental focus as I'm getting ready to leave town for a conference and had a lot to get done first. Might try this one again in a few months, before reading the sequel.

[corgi]

I finally finished the book late Tuesday night. sal, I read it old-school as a paperback and I had a tough time staying focused. I thought maybe it was because I was in the middle of a book I dropped for this one and my brain kept wondering what was going on in the other book while I was away but maybe this is just that kind of book. The book I dropped started with two pages listing each major character, a bit about them, and how they related to the other characters. I really wish every book did that! The downside of reading a paperback vs Kindle, I guess, you can't search on the first place a character appeared to refresh your memory (that and no instant dictionary).

I did enjoy this book, though I think I was most immersed in the third heist, maybe because Ray was most at the center of it, or maybe because it wasn't Ray trying to gain something, it was more altruistic than that.

As an aside, Amazon had this book listed as "Ray Carney #1." I don't see a #2 book anywhere, but I wonder if there were plans at some point for a second book? I'm guessing it would be Ray in his later years, but I'd love to read a book with his wife and her travel agency as the center and how it evolved as times changed, with maybe a few side comments that make it obvious she knew what Ray was up to way more than he thought she did.

[Byrd]

I’m 76% done and my opinion keeps changing.

[sal]

Mar 21, 2024 11:13:20 GMT -5 corgi said:

I finally finished the book late Tuesday night. sal, I read it old-school as a paperback and I had a tough time staying focused. I thought maybe it was because I was in the middle of a book I dropped for this one and my brain kept wondering what was going on in the other book while I was away but maybe this is just that kind of book. The book I dropped started with two pages listing each major character, a bit about them, and how they related to the other characters. I really wish every book did that! The downside of reading a paperback vs Kindle, I guess, you can't search on the first place a character appeared to refresh your memory (that and no instant dictionary).

I did enjoy this book, though I think I was most immersed in the third heist, maybe because Ray was most at the center of it, or maybe because it wasn't Ray trying to gain something, it was more altruistic than that.

As an aside, Amazon had this book listed as "Ray Carney #1." I don't see a #2 book anywhere, but I wonder if there were plans at some point for a second book? I'm guessing it would be Ray in his later years, but I'd love to read a book with his wife and her travel agency as the center and how it evolved as times changed, with maybe a few side comments that make it obvious she knew what Ray was up to way more than he thought she did.

Crook Manifesto is the next one, apparently, from what some good reads reviews said.

[ccToast]

Mar 21, 2024 11:13:20 GMT -5 corgi said:

I had a tough time staying focused. I thought maybe it was because I was in the middle of a book I dropped for this one and my brain kept wondering what was going on in the other book while I was away but maybe this is just that kind of book. The book I dropped started with two pages listing each major character, a bit about them, and how they related to the other characters. I really wish every book did that!

I relate to so much of this–wondering what the characters in the other book are doing when I'm not there to keep an eye on them, as though they are living in real time in parallel to my life. This is why I want to read Crook Manifesto after we finish this discussion; I need to see what Ray is up to now, while I'm not paying attention to him.


I would LOVE to have a list of characters in more books! I experience most books as audiobooks, which does make it harder for me to keep track. When reading Agatha Christie books, I have to keep a list of characters with short notes because there are always so many!

I also would like maps and timelines added to more books too.

[ccToast]

Day 2

One question on my mind even before I started the book was “What does ‘shuffle’ in the title refer to?”

What do you think this means?


ETA: I'll post new questions/topics next week too to give more people a chance to join in.

[corgi]

I didn't really think of it as a separate word but the song the Harlem Shuffle. Though, I'm doing Goodreads' reading challenge and one of the categories is a book title that is song lyrics, so I said "Yay! That'll fit" and didn't give it much more thought beyond that.

I guess it may be a nod to Ray straddling the line between a proper business owner and his not so proper pursuits. It also could pertain to the rules in society we supposedly march along to, when in actuality, we're shuffling along, bobbing and weaving like we're in a dance, to get ahead.

[sal]

They were shuffling goods and bodies around, too.

[Byrd]

I’m finished and I’m glad. I have a lot of opinions but I’ll wait to be asked!


ETA: The sequel is on the always available list on Libby at my library - Fairfax County Public Library.

[ccToast]

Byrd, Don't wait. Let's hear it!

I was not aware of the song The Harlem Shuffle until this book. (I live under a rock as far as music goes.) The word "shuffle" made me think of the way that goods move around in the story, both legally and illegally.

I also thought a lot about how Carney worked to move himself and his family into a better life. Rather than climbing up the ladder, it seems more like a shuffle: two steps forward, one step back. Other characters like Elizabeth's father move backward during the book.

[ccToast]

Day 3

“Carney was only slightly bent when it came to being crooked…”

What does this novel want us to think about the illegal acts Carney, Freddie, and Pepper commit? Are there good guys and bad guys in Harlem Shuffle?

Throughout the book, Ray Carney navigates a complex web of criminal activity while trying to maintain his reputation as an upstanding businessman. What does the novel have to say about the relationship between morality and success in American society?

[Byrd]

Ok, so. To be perfectly clear, I read a lot but have never been in a book group so never really analyze anything too deeply.
The title: never thought about it. The song: never heard of it.
My general impression: I like CW but liked The Underground Railroad better and The Nickel Boys a lot better. I forget the other..
I grew up in Queens during this time period and was very aware of Harlem and what a scary and dangerous place it was. I was so happy in the beginning when here was a guy who put on a suit in the morning and went to his store. A nice middle class guy like my dad. And that he escaped his dad. Until he didn’t. Then the book just became depressing for me.

I liked that Carney was only slightly crooked but annoyed he sought revenge over $500. The bleeding heart liberal in me thinks they’re all good guys, circumstances, yanno? Except maybe Duke who hurt his own.

In terms of success and businessmen in America, I’m more than 50% sure my dad paid off the Mob when he had a store in Jamaica. I’ll ask mom!