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Critical Praise for Amiri Baraka’s Tales of The ouT & The Gone (2007) • Winner of a PEN/Beyond Margins Award • A New York Times Editors’ Choice • An Essence Magazine Best Seller “As this new collection of short fiction (most of it previously unpublished) makes clear, the writer formerly known as LeRoi Jones possesses an outtelligence of a high order. Baraka is such a provocateur, so skilled at prodding his perceived enemies (who are legion) in their tender under- bellies, that it becomes easy to overlook that he is first and foremost a writer . . . He writes crisp, punchy sentences and has a fine ear for dialogue . . . In his prose as in his poetry, Baraka is at his best a lyrical prophet of despair who transfigures his contentious racial and political views into a transcendent, ‘outtelligent’ clarity.” —New York Times Book review “A marvelously vital and creative mind at work.” —LiBrarY JourNaL “Baraka remains a prodigiously skilled writer. Tales of the Out & the Gone is an apt reminder of Baraka’s unique ability to touch on politics, race, and identity in a biting vernacular style.” —Time ouT New York “In his signature politically piercing and poetic staccato style, Baraka offers a perspective on social and political changes and a fresh view of the possibilities that language presents in exploring human passions . . . Fans and newcomers alike will appreciate Baraka’s breadth of political perspective and passion for storytelling.” —BookLisT “Baraka’s ability to load his words with so much artillery results from his understanding of storytelling . . . Though the resolutions are often delivered like gut-shot punch lines, the circumstances behind the varied plots are complex, and are something too few people take the time to confront.” —saN FraNcisco chroNicLe “Baraka makes his prose jump with word coining—‘out- telligent,’ ‘overstand’—and one-liners . . . The humor and off-the-wall jaunts tackle real issues of race, otherness, and power with pointed irony.” —New York Press “This literary elder’s work, no matter what genre, has never failed to excite, never failed to elucidate and examine the human condition with scathing insight . . . The book’s charm lies in its tautness. No words wasted here. Tales commands you to pay close attention, lest you miss a great joke or a heartbreaking truth.” —BLack issues Book review “Baraka unabashedly steps on toes, but does it in such a way that you close the book thanking him for it. He bends the English language to his liking without stopping to explain himself, which is refreshing from both ideological and technical perspectives.” —idaho sTaTesmaN “The short fiction here shows controversy is nothing new for the last poet laureate of New Jersey . . . Baraka certainly hasn’t gone soft.” —Time ouT chicago “Tales of the Out & the Gone displays Baraka’s increasing literary playfulness, intellectual exploration, and passion for intuitive abstract language. The book introduces new readers to Baraka’s groundbreaking and ever-changing style.” —eBoNY h olis o K a d n y L Amiri BArAkA (previously known as LeRoi Jones) is the author of numerous books of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. He was named Poet Laureate of New Jersey by the New Jersey Commission on Humanities, from 2002–2004. His most recent book, Tales of the Out & the Gone (Akashic, 2007), was a New York Times Editors’ Choice and a winner of the 2008 PEN/Beyond Margins Award. He lives in Newark, New Jersey. hom e hom e Social Essays by LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka) AkAshiClAssiCs New York Published by Akashic Books Originally published in 1966 by William Morrow and Company, Inc. Copyright © 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1971, 2009 by LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka ISBN-13: 978-1-933354-67-5 Library of Congress Control Number: 2008925938 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Publisher. First Akashic Books printing Some of the essays in this volume originally appeared in an earlier form in the following publications: Cavalier, “American Sexual Reference: Black Male” Evergreen Review, “Cuba Libre” Kulchur, “Brief Reflections on Two Hot Shots,” “Tokenism,” and “Expressive Language” Liberator, “The Revolutionary Theatre” Midstream, “What Does Non-Violence Mean?” The Nation, “In the Ring” (reprinted in this volume under the title “The Dempsey-Liston Fight”) Poetry, “A Dark Bag” (a review) The Saturday Review, “The Myth of a ‘Negro Literature’” New York: The Sunday Herald Tribune Magazine, “LeRoi Jones Talking” AkashiClassics: Renegade Reprint Series c/o Akashic Books PO Box 1456 New York, NY 10009 [email protected] www.akashicbooks.com Also from AkAshiClAssiCs: renegAde reprint series Black Music by LeRoi Jones (Amiri Baraka) (forthcoming in fall 2009) The Hungered One short stories by Ed Bullins
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