Manchild in the Promised Land (Masterplots II: African American Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Claude Brown
- First Published: 1965
- Type of Work: Autobiography/novel
- Type of Plot: Social criticism
- Time of Work: The 1940’s to 1960
- Setting: Harlem, New York
- Principal Characters: Sonny, Mr. Papenek, Sugar, Pimp, Danny
- Genres: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Social issues
- Subjects: 1950’s, African Americans, Family or family life, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Adolescence, Blacks, Teenagers, Music or musicians, New York City, 1940’s, Prostitution or prostitutes, Gangs, youth, Harlem, Alcoholism or alcoholics, Child abuse, Substance abuse, Inner cities or inner-city life, Robbery or robbers, Jazz music, Drug addiction or addicts, Drugs, Boxing, Reformatories
- Locales: Harlem, NY
The Novel
Manchild in the Promised Land is the odyssey of a young black man through the treacherous streets of Harlem and beyond. In the person of Sonny, the book’s narrator, Claude Brown tells his own story of growth and survival against all odds. Though some of the book is fiction, this autobiographical novel remains an authentic account of Brown’s evolution from tough, hardened streetfighter to a young man on the brink of becoming one of the most powerful writers of the urban African American experience.
By the time he is eleven, Sonny is already a member...
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