Books with author George S. Schuyler

What would happen to the race problem in America if black people turned white? Would everybody be happy? These questions and more are answered in George Schuyler's satiric romp. This is the story of Max Disher, a black rogue of an insurance man who, through a scientific transformation process, becomes Mathew Fisher, a white man. Matt dreams up a scam that allows him to become the leader of the White Knights of Nordica, and marry the caucasian gal who rejected him before his change.

First published in 1931, “Black No More” is a clever and important satirical novel by George S. Schuyler which was written during the creative time of the Harlem Renaissance. This humorous and insightful work explores what would happen if blackness could be erased and black people could choose to become white. The novel begins with the central character Max Disher, a young, intelligent and ambitious black man, finding himself lonely and rejected on New Year’s Eve at a speakeasy in Harlem. He hears about a new scientific procedure called “Black-No-More” that can change black skin to white. Max decides to undergo the transformation and changes his name to Matthew Fisher. Life is not as easy as he has imagined it will be. He ends up joining a white supremacist organization and must continue to hide his true identity in a new and dangerous world. Schuyler’s novel was far ahead of its time and tackled racial issues that continue to plague the modern world. The novel’s cutting social commentary, disguised with humor and satire, criticizes both the politics of black empowerment, white nationalism, and bigotry. “Black No More” continues to be as entertaining and thought-provoking today as when it was first written. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.

According to Max Disher, an ambitious young black man in 1930s New York, someone of his race has only three alternatives: "Get out, get white, or get along." Incapable of getting out and unhappy with getting along, Max leaps at the remaining possibility. Thanks to a certain Dr. Junius Crookman and his mysterious process, Max and other eager clients develop bleached skin that permits them to enter previously forbidden territory. What they discover in white society, however, gives them second thoughts.This humorous work of speculative fiction was written by an unsung hero of African-American literature. George S. Schuyler (1895-1977) wrote for black America's most influential newspaper, the Pittsburgh Courier, in addition to H. L. Mencken's The American Mercury, The Nation, and other publications. His biting satire not only debunks the myths of white supremacy and racial purity but also lampoons prominent leaders of the NAACP and the Harlem Renaissance. More than a historical curiosity, Schuyler's 1931 novel offers a hilarious take on the hypocrisy and demagoguery surrounding America's obsession with skin color.

According to Max Disher, an ambitious young black man in 1930s New York, someone of his race has only three alternatives: "Get out, get white, or get along." Incapable of getting out and unhappy with getting along, Max leaps at the remaining possibility. Thanks to a certain Dr. Junius Crookman and his mysterious process, Max and other eager clients develop bleached skin that permits them to enter previously forbidden territory. What they discover in white society, however, gives them second thoughts.This humorous work of speculative fiction was written by an unsung hero of African-American literature. George S. Schuyler (1895-1977) wrote for black America's most influential newspaper, the Pittsburgh Courier, in addition to H. L. Mencken's The American Mercury, The Nation, and other publications. His biting satire not only debunks the myths of white supremacy and racial purity but also lampoons prominent leaders of the NAACP and the Harlem Renaissance. More than a historical curiosity, Schuyler's 1931 novel offers a hilarious take on the hypocrisy and demagoguery surrounding America's obsession with skin color.

What would happen to the race problem in America if black people turned white? Would everybody be happy? These questions and more are answered in George Schuyler's satiric romp. This is the story of Max Disher, a black rogue of an insurance man who, through a scientific transformation process, becomes Mathew Fisher, a white man. Matt dreams up a scam that allows him to become the leader of the White Knights of Nordica, and marry the caucasian gal who rejected him before his change.

What would happen to the race problem in America if black people turned white? Would everybody be happy? These questions and more are answered in George Schuyler's satiric romp. This is the story of Max Disher, a black rogue of an insurance man who, through a scientific transformation process, becomes Mathew Fisher, a white man. Matt dreams up a scam that allows him to become the leader of the White Knights of Nordica, and marry the caucasian gal who rejected him before his change.

The landmark comic satire that asks, “What would happen if all black people in America turned white?” It’s New Year’s Day 1933 in New York City, and Max Disher, a young black man, has just found out that a certain Dr. Junius Crookman has discovered a mysterious process that allows people to bleach their skin white—a new way to “solve the American race problem.” Max leaps at the opportunity, and after a brief stay at the Crookman Sanitarium, he becomes Matthew Fisher, a white man who is able to attain everything he has ever wanted: money, power, good liquor, and the white woman who rejected him when he was black. Lampooning myths of white supremacy and racial purity and caricaturing prominent African American leaders like W. E. B. Du Bois, Madam C. J. Walker, and Marcus Garvey, Black No More is a masterwork of speculative fiction and a hilarious satire of America’s obsession with race. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,800 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

It’s 1933, in a near-future Harlem on the verge of massive transformation: crowds are flocking to the new Black-No-More Sanitarium, brainchild of the mysterious Dr. Junius Crookman, eager to change the color of their skin and live free of the burdens of racism and prejudice. Black No More (1931), George S. Schuyler’s wildly inventive masterpiece, begins with a premise out of pulp-era speculative fiction. What would happen in America if race, by the “strange and wonderful workings of science,” were suddenly no longer a fixed or meaningful category? In the carnivalesque mayhem that ensues as millions undergo Crookman’s procedure and the old racial order is upended, Schuyler spares no one, mocking Klansmen and “race” men alike and reveling in the myriad absurdities of the nation’s racial obsession. By turns hilarious and (in an unforgettable lynching scene) utterly shocking, Black No More is Afrofuturist satire of the highest order––a sui generis Harlem Renaissance tour-de-force.

The landmark comic satire that asks, “What would happen if all black people in America turned white?” It’s New Year’s Day 1933 in New York City, and Max Disher, a young black man, has just found out that a certain Dr. Junius Crookman has discovered a mysterious process that allows people to bleach their skin white—a new way to “solve the American race problem.” Max leaps at the opportunity, and after a brief stay at the Crookman Sanitarium, he becomes Matthew Fisher, a white man who is able to attain everything he has ever wanted: money, power, good liquor, and the white woman who rejected him when he was black. Lampooning myths of white supremacy and racial purity and caricaturing prominent African American leaders like W. E. B. Du Bois, Madam C. J. Walker, and Marcus Garvey, Black No More is a masterwork of speculative fiction and a hilarious satire of America’s obsession with race. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,800 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Modern Library Harlem RenaissanceWhat would happen to the race problem in America if black people turned white? Would everybody be happy? These questions and more are answered hilariously in Black No More, George S. Schuyler's satiric romp. Black No More is the story of Max Disher, a dapper black rogue of an insurance man who, through a scientific transformation process, becomes Matthew Fisher, a white man. Matt dreams up a scam that allows him to become the leader of the Knights of Nordica, a white supremacist group, as well as to marry the white woman who rejected him when he was black. Black No More is a hysterical exploration of race and all its self-serving definitions. If you can't beat them, turn into them. Ishmael Reed, one of today's top black satirists and the author of Mumbo Jumbo and Japanese by Spring, provides a spirited Introduction.The fertile artistic period now known as the Harlem Renaissance (1920- 1930) gave birth to many of the world-renowned masters of black literature and is the model for today's renaissance of black writers.