Crook Manifesto: A Novel

by Colson Whitehead

Hardcover, 2023

Status

Available

Series

Harlem Saga (2)

Ray Carney (2)

Genres

Publication

Doubleday (2023), 336 pages

Description

Fiction. African American Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:One of the Most Anticipated Books of the Summer by The Washington Post �?� TIME Magazine �?� NPR �?� The Los Angeles Times �?� USA Today �?� Vulture �?� Lit Hub �?� Kirkus Reviews �?� CrimeReads The two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of Harlem Shuffle continues his Harlem saga in a powerful and hugely-entertaining novel that summons 1970s New York in all its seedy glory. It�??s 1971. Trash piles up on the streets, crime is at an all-time high, the city is careening towards bankruptcy, and a shooting war has broken out between the NYPD and the Black Liberation Army. Amidst this collective nervous breakdown furniture store owner and ex-fence Ray Carney tries to keep his head down and his business thriving. His days moving stolen goods around the city are over. It�??s strictly the straight-and-narrow for him �?? until he needs Jackson 5 tickets for his daughter May and he decides to hit up his old police contact Munson, fixer extraordinaire. But Munson has his own favors to ask of Carney and staying out of the game gets a lot more complicated �?? and deadly. 1973. The counter-culture has created a new generation, the old ways are being overthrown, but there is one constant, Pepper, Carney�??s endearingly violent partner in crime. It�??s getting harder to put together a reliable crew for hijackings, heists, and assorted felonies, so Pepper takes on a side gig doing security on a Blaxploitation shoot in Harlem. He finds himself in a freaky world of Hollywood stars, up-and-coming comedians, and celebrity drug dealers, in addition to the usual cast of hustlers, mobsters, and hit men. These adversaries underestimate the seasoned crook �?? to their regret. 1976. Harlem is burning, block by block, while the whole country is gearing up for Bicentennial celebrations. Carney is trying to come up with a July 4th ad he can live with. ("Two Hundred Years of Getting Away with It!"), while his wife Elizabeth is campaigning for her childhood friend, the former assistant D.A and rising politician Alexander Oakes. When a fire severely injures one of Carney�??s tenants, he enlists Pepper to look into who may be behind it. Our crooked duo have to battle their way through a crumbling metropolis run by the shady, the violent, and the utterly corrupted. CROOK MANIFESTO is a darkly funny tale of a city under siege, but also a sneakily searching portrait of the meaning of family. Colson Whitehead�??s kaleidoscopic portrait of Harlem is sure to stand as one of t… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Romonko

I love Colson Whitehead's writing and I especially loved Harlem Shuffle, and it's anti-hero Ray Carney. When I saw that Colson has written a sequel, I had to have it. I was lucky to get an early review copy from NetGalley, and I would like to thank the author and the publisher for giving me a

chance to read and review this book.
Right off the bat, I suggest that if you are new to Ray Carney, that you read Harlem Shuffle first, as that is where we get to know and love (with some reservations) Ray Carney. This book is actually three separate stories.The book revolves around 1970's New York City right in the middle of Harlem. New York is heating up with gang wars, fire bombings, and lots of dead bodies piling up.. The Black Liberation Army is in the news every day. The first story is in 1971, and Ray is trying to scoop Jackson 5 tickets for his daughter, May. Of course he gets into trouble right away and has to call on his old friend Pepper to help him get out of it. If you are a new reader, you will love Pepper. He's an older generation, New York City hoodlum who seems to take everything in his side, but keeps a running tally of who he owes and how severe that beating should be. The second story is 1973, and it's all Pepper, He's making a few bucks working as security for a Hollywood B-movie in his old hood. When the star goes missing Pepper sets out to find her, and stirs up trouble everywhere. Next we jump into 1976, and Pepper and Carney are teamed up again trying to stop a corrupt politician, and they both get into a whole pile of trouble. This is noir crime at it's best. And you will be introduced to two of the most loveable crooks out there. Highly recommend for lovers of noir-crime which is loaded with black-humour.

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LibraryThing member bragan

This sequel to Harlem Shuffle is a novel in three parts. In the first, set in 1971, Ray Carney, self-made furniture salesmen and sometime fence, has been on the straight and narrow for four years... until his daughter wants impossible-to-get Jackson 5 tickets, and he looks for help from a crooked

cop and gets drawn into a night of unexpected violence. The second, set in '73, sees a high-minded Blaxploitation film shooting a scene in the furniture store... until the leading lady goes missing. There is, you guessed it, more violence, although this time mostly involving Pepper, the muscle hired as security for the film set. The third, in '76, features a political campaign, Carney attempting to find who set a fire that injured his tenant's kid, and one hell of a lot of arson.

Really, though, I found the crime-laden plots only moderately interesting. The real draw here is in the way Whitehead brings to life the New York City of the 1970s, with all its seediness, depression, and intractably corrupt systems. That, and Whitehead's fantastic writing skills. The man can absolutely turn a phrase, evoke a scene, and draw you into a time and a place, not to mention being full of dark and unhappy insight. I'm also impressed by the way he plays with structure, especially within a scene. He can jump around in time in strange ways or leave out things you'd expect him to include, and while that seems like it should be distracting or confusing, he pulls it off so well most of the time that it's easy to not even notice that he's doing it.

Rating: 4/5, although the writing really is good enough that I feel a bit stingy not throwing it another half-star, however I felt about the plot.

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LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo

I find myself once again playing the dubious role of literary outlier. “Crook Manifesto” has generally received rave reviews. I had high expectations and nudged it up my “to read” list. Candidly, I was disappointed. Make no mistake, Whitehead’s wordsmith talents are exceptional. His

latest work paints a vivid portrait of New York City’s crime underbelly in the 1970s. My problem involves the storyline and structure. A critique in the Atlantic summarized my issue with precision, noting that after the first crime escapade, the book “begins to read less like a novel and more like an anthology of glancingly related anecdotes. This development draws more attention to the third-person narrator, who assumes an outsize presence.” I concur. Also, there were so many characters introduced that few felt fully developed. Add to the mix the fact that crime fiction isn’t among my favorite genres and it all equates to a mediocre star tally.

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LibraryThing member Narshkite

It is hard to be the second book in a trilogy. On the one hand, book 2 is the center, the part that holds the story together, on the other hand, it has no beginning or end that is not dependent on another book. Though the first book, Harlem Shuffle, ended on a bit of a cliffhanger it still stood on

its own as a complete story. This, IMO does not. That said, it sets us up for what appears to be a rollicking book 3 and I am here for that. We have ridden in the sidecar as Ray has gone from rags to riches to rags to riches in all manner of ways, legal and illegal. I don't think it is a spoiler to say we leave Ray in a moment of transition for him and for the city at large. (Harlem remains the co-lead of the story, as much a character as any human here.) I like where Whitehead took the story (or really stories, there is more than one), but the book just does not stand on its own. Also, most of the side characters in this one were a little less colorful than those in the first book. That volume was for me a high 4, and this is a lower 4, but still a 4 and I am feeling pretty sure that the third book is going to be a barnburner.

One note: While reading this I kept thinking of the Don Winslow Danny Ryan trilogy which is on the same publishing timetable as this one - book 2 of that series, City of Dreams, came out a few months ago. That series starts with a traditional crime family, but in book 2 it turns into something less formal and very close to the loose confederation of conmen who show up in Whitehead's books. Ray Carney and Danny Ryan live in different cities, but in many ways they are similar. Criminals trying to be good men, and good men trying to be criminals. Also, in the second volume in both trilogies, there is a subplot where the MCs get involved in making a film. Honestly, the books in both series have been some of my favorite reads over the last few years so this is not a complaint, it is just really interesting that these two very different writers are treading on similar ground, though the resulting products are very different. When the final volumes of both come out I will be looking to see if they end up in different places.

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LibraryThing member decaturmamaof2

Damn, he just keeps getting better!

In this sequel to Harlem Shuffle, we find the characters a bit older, a bit wiser and more jaded. Fantastic sneak peek into the 70s era in Harlem, with forays into Blaxploitation films, and politics and corruption in NYC.

I still love Carney, but in this book,

Pepper is my favorite character!

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LibraryThing member lostinalibrary

Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead is the the second in the Ray Carney Harlem Saga.it is divided into three loosely interconnected novellas all set in Harlem a few years apart in the ‘70s.

1971 - Ray Carney owns a furniture store and has given up his life of crime…mostly. But when his daughter

wants to see the Jackson 5, he gets in touch with an old contact in search of tickets and soon finds himself caught up in a whole world of trouble.

1973 - Times have changed and crime just ain’t what it used to be so Pepper, Carney’s dad’s old partner, has taken a security job on the set of a Blaxploitation film. When the leading lady goes missing, it is up to Pepper to find her.

1976 - As the country gets set for the Bicentennial celebration, someone is setting Harlem on fire. When the son of one of his tenants is injured in one of these fires, Carney hires Pepper to find the arsonist responsible.

I have to admit I have not read Harlem Shuffle, the first book in the series but it didn’t interfere with my enjoyment of Crooked Manifesto. And I did enjoy it a lot. By dividing the book into three parts, Whitehead shows the changes that affected New York and specifically Harlem during the ‘70s culturally as well as economically, politically, and generationally. The book is well-written and as always, Whitehead infuses the stories with a sly sense of black humour while never glossing over the hardships and struggles of his main characters making the reader root for them regardless of their actions. Overall, a very compelling read and one of my favourites so far this year.

I received an arc of this book from Netgalley and the publishers in exchange for an honest review

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LibraryThing member froxgirl

It's 1974, the Bicentennial, and Ray Carney, star of Whitehead’s prior novel Harlem Shuffle, is struggling with avoiding the abundance of July 4th’s red, white, and blue schlock while promoting his furniture store's sofas and ottomans. In this three act play, his daughter Mae MUST go to see the

Jackson 5 at Madison Square Garden, but there are no tickets to be had - unless you know what criming rock to find them under. Ray is flattered when Izzy, a child of the neighborhood, pays to use Carney’s Furniture as the backdrop for a Blacksploitation movie. When lead actress Lola goes missing, Ray calls on Pepper, his partner in shifty business, a surprisingly endearing, solitary curmudgeon, to help track her down. These two light-hearted tales act as a table-setter for the much more serious issue of the deterioration of Ray’s city and his neighborhood, caused by arson for profit. Ray, now a landlord, is stricken when a young boy is hospitalized for smoke inhalation in a building he owns, adjacent to one that has been torched. He suspects the involvement of wife Elizabeth’s former beau, who is running for borough president, and worries about her avid support for him. The overwhelming stench of political corruption and the gun violence go hand-in-hand, and once again we see Ray tested as he wobbles between being a successful businessman and being his crooked father's son. In this audio version, narrator Dion Graham once again uses his brilliant skills to make Ray and Pepper alive, if not well. And as in the previous novel, we anxiously await their return.

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LibraryThing member nivramkoorb

Crook Manifesto is Whitehead's follow up to Harlem Shuffle. Ultimately there will be a 3rd book to complete the trilogy.You do not need to read Harlem Shuffle to enjoy this book. It is New York in the 1970's and it is divided into 3 sections: 1971, 1973, and 1976. Ray Carney, Harlem furniture store

owner, and small time crook has gone straight since Harlem Shuffle but in the 1971 section turns to his crime connections to try and snag tickers for his teenage daughter to attend a sold-out Jackson 5 concert. To say that Whitehead is a master of language and in creating great characters is an understatement. The man has 2 Putlitzer Prizes and a National Book Award. He creates a roller coaster of events that capture Harlem with the historical backdrop of New York City in the 70's. In the 1973 section Ray is a minor character with the furniture store a setting for a black exploitation film that was big int he 70s. The main character here is Pepper a crook who has strong connection to Ray through Ray's criminal father Mike(he is dead) and Whitehead by interweaving all the characters and their stories creates a very detailed examination of Harlem, New York and events of the times. The final 1976 section combines the elements of the first 2 sections against the backdrop of the 200 year anniversary of the our country and the increase in arson in the city.All in all this is a great book with wonderful language and a great insight into race issues that continue into the present. If you have never read Whitehead this book is him at the hight of his great skills.

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LibraryThing member browner56

It is the early 1970s and Harlem has become a microcosm for the crime, corruption, racism, and decay that besets all of New York City. Ray Carney, prominent owner of a local furniture store and reformed small-time criminal, is trying his best to keep his path straight and narrow. That proves

difficult, however, as his financial needs and circumstances change. In Crook Manifesto, author Colson Whitehead continues his exploration of Ray’s shady and legitimate exploits from about a decade earlier as chronicled in Harlem Shuffle. In this sequel, we see Ray involved in three different capers, each separated in time by a few years and told in the form of three distinct novellas. In the first, Ray gets deeply involved with a crooked cop to obtain tickets to a Jackson 5 concert. In the second, Ray enlists his friend and criminal colleague Pepper to help track down a movie starlet missing from the set of a blaxploitation film. The final event then sees Ray and Pepper bending the law to uncover the source of a politically connected arson ring that is ravaging the area and threatening a lot of lives.

I enjoyed reading this book, perhaps even more than its predecessor. The two volumes are similar in a lot of ways—the crimes committed never really rise to the “thriller” level as the author chooses to spend more time building the portraits of his main characters and reconstructing what life was like in Harlem half a century ago—and both are centered on Ray. In Crook Manifesto, though, Pepper’s character is developed to a far greater extent than in the earlier book; here, he is the main focus of the second novella and get equal billing in the third. That is a refreshing change because, as compelling as Ray’s backstory is (including his shaky upbringing and present-day family life), I found Pepper to be a much more interesting personality. Whitehead’s language often sparkles throughout the novel, particularly in the third section which comes close to page-turner status. If I had a complaint—and I am not sure I do—it would be that the scores of minor characters that the author injects become a distraction as very few are integral parts of Ray’s or Pepper’s (or Harlem’s) story. Still, this is engaging fiction from a talented writer and I am already looking forward to the next volume in the trilogy.

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LibraryThing member Gwendydd

This is really three novellas in one, all set in Harlem in the 1970s. The first story picks up a few years after the previous book, Harlem Shuffle, left off. Ray Carney is prospering: his furniture store is doing well, his wife and kids are thriving, and his profitable criminal enterprises stay

under the radar. His daughter wants tickets to see The Jackson Five when they come to town, so Carney asks Munsen, a corrupt cop, if he has any. Munsen asks Carney to join him for what at first seems to be simple errand, but turns into a wild night. The second story is about Zippo, a minor character from the first novel who is now a filmmaker, making Blackspoitation flicks in Harlem, including scenes shot in Carney's furniture store. In the third story, Carney is upset to learn that the child of one of his tenants was injured when an abandoned building was burned down. He knows that abandoned buildings are often torched for insurance money, and is determined to track down the arsonist.

What holds these three novellas loosely together is that several characters reappear in all of them - mostly Carney - and they all portray the culture, crime, and politics of Harlem in the 1970s. Whitehead's writing is excellent, the characters are vivid, and the portrayal of Harlem feels very real. I'm looking forward to the third book in the trilogy, and would love to see these made into a TV series.

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LibraryThing member kcshankd

Took me a bit to get through, more world-weary, less sharp then I expected.

I ended up not liking Carney very much - a good way to avoid criminal violence is to, you know, not be a criminal.

LibraryThing member lauralkeet

Ray Carney owns a furniture store in Harlem, occasionally supplementing his income by dealing in stolen goods. Some of these capers were the subject of Colson Whitehead’s previous novel, Harlem Shuffle. Following those events, Carney retired from the stolen goods trade; when Crook Manifesto opens

in the 1970s, Carney has spent four years building the furniture business into a local success story. But when his daughter begs for tickets to see the Jackson 5 in Madison Square Garden, Carney sees only one way to make that happen.

As Carney reconnects with some of his old cronies, readers are reunited with colorful characters from Carney’s past, and taken on a wild ride through various illicit and illegal dealings. Like Harlem Shuffle, the story is told in three parts, each set a few years apart. While Carney is the thread tying it all together, in Crook Manifesto other key figures are given center stage. We see more of Carney’s wife Elizabeth, who has a career of her own and is largely unaware of Carney’s side hustle. And then there’s Pepper, who once worked for Carney’s father, and can be counted on when muscle is most needed.

At first glance, Crook Manifesto appears to be a novel about alliances, betrayals, and car chases, But Colson Whitehead uses these stories to demonstrate the challenges Harlem residents face every single day. People are just trying to get by, but are often held back by poor living conditions, low educational attainment, and limited job prospects. The city fails them at nearly every opportunity, as both government and law enforcement are seduced by corruption that lines their pockets. Occasionally these individuals pay a price for their misdeeds, but there’s always someone right behind them to keep the system running.

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LibraryThing member FormerEnglishTeacher

Colson Whitehead’s sequel to the highly acclaimed “Harlem Shuffle” continues the story of Harlem furniture store owner Ray Carney and his attempt to give up, once and for all, the crime in the streets. Never having been a Walter Mosley novel fan, I wasn’t in love with this book either,

although I did like “Harlem Shuffle.” I listened to the audio version, and at times I felt like I was listening to the sound track of a Blacksploitation film. The kudos “Crook Manifesto” has received since it came out probably speaks to my being the exception rather than the rule, although I sometimes think Colson Whitehead could publish his grocery shopping list and win a Pulitzer.

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LibraryThing member Doondeck

Whitehead writes so well. Ray Carney's character is believable, tragic and resilient.

LibraryThing member alexrichman

Perfectly diverting and enjoyable but straddles the pulpy and the political without ever really committing to either.

LibraryThing member stevesmits

A really great follow along to "Harlem Shuffle" telling the semi-crooked adventures of Ray Carney and his shady associates. The evocation of NYC in the 1970's is vivid. The three story lines separated by five years are compellingly told. The colorful characters among the criminal crowd in Harlem

would border on caricatures if not for Whitehead's brilliant depictions.

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LibraryThing member rmarcin

A continuation of the story and characters in Harlem Shuffle. Ray Carney had gone straight, but now he is back in the con game. This story set in NYC is at times funny, but also an interesting look at NYC in the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I loved the Jackson 5 reference and the comments about Teen Beat. It

brought back memories! I also loved the humor in the story.
Ray is a flawed character, but you still find yourself rooting for him. When a fire rages through Harlem, your hope for Ray is that he comes out ok.
Another gem from Whitehead.

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LibraryThing member maryreinert

Actually three separate stories set in 1971, 1973, and 1976 in Harlem centering around furniture store owner and fence for stolen items, Ray Carney. Ray has been living the straight life for several years, but now his teen age daughter wants tickets to Michael Jackson. In order to get them for her

he reconnects with corrupt cop, Munson. From their the plot tangles into more thief and eventually murder. Ray survives.

The second story focuses more on Ray's old friend, Pepper, who works "security" for a film crew filming a Blaxpotation movie. The main star disappears and Pepper sets out to find her. Once again, it leads to murder. But Ray survives.

The third story involves a Black candidate for City Hall whom Ray's wife, Elizabeth, is support. Oakes was a childhood friend of Elizabeth's - but like what seems to be every policeman, government official, business owner, etc. he is corrupt. This story involves arson and Ray's furniture store as well as his "exclusive club" is burned. It too ends on a positive note as Ray is rebuilding and planning how the furniture will be arranged.

Ray is likeable, gullible, but always on the shady side. The cultural history of New York is interesing; it was a time of high crime, run down buildings, etc. The thing that I don't like is the many uses of slang and references that I simply don't yet - don't have the same vernacular as Ray. Still read in almost one day.

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LibraryThing member dano35ie

What an amazing follow up to Harlem Shuffle.
Hopefully there will be a third outing for Ray Carney and Pepper. Fantastic Book and set in the Early Seventies. This is a top class performance from a fantastic writer at the top of his game.

LibraryThing member shazjhb

Too many people

LibraryThing member maryroberta

A little more piecemeal and not as great as the first one, but enjoyed the attention to historical detail.

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