“Droning a drowsy syncopated tune, / Rocking back and forth to a mellow croon, / I heard a Negro play. / Down on Lenox Avenue the other night / By the pale dull pallor of an old gas light / He did a lazy sway…” with these first lines, Hughes invites the reader to an experimental playground that tells the story of a Black man’s life in America. Featuring such poems as, “Dream Variations,” “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” and “Our Land,” he weaves in and out of verse, highlighting the lows of struggle in the face of segregation and racism but also the highs of creation from the time when, “the Negroes were in vogue.” A celebration of music from beginning to end, The Weary Blues is the debut poetry collection published by leading Harlem Renaissance poet, Langston Hughes. Now considered to be an American classic, The Weary Blues embodied the feel of the rhythm, improvisation and soul that informed Black classical music, pioneering the genre of “jazz poetry,” and leaving an irreplaceable mark in the African-American literary canon. Professionally typeset with a beautifully designed cover, this edition of The Weary Blues is a sensational reimagining of a Harlem Renaissance staple for the modern reader.

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With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.