"With vivid imagery, with lavish attention to details, Mr. Baldwin has told his feverish story." –
The New York Times "Brutal, objective and compassionate." –
San Francisco Chronicle "It is written with poetic intensity and great narrative skill." –
Harper's "Strong and powerful." –
Commonweal "A sense of reality and vitality that is truly extraordinary. . . . He knows Harlem, his people, and the language they use." –
Chicago Sun-Times "This is a distinctive book, both realistic and brutal, but a novel of extraordinary sensitivity and poetry." –
Chicago Sunday Tribune