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More like 3.5 stars but until such time (if ever) as the wizards at Goodreads give us a half-star option...

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I admit I have not read Mr. Whitehead’s previous works but the subject matter of Harlem Shuffle appealed to me, so I leapt at it.

On the positive side, the descriptions of late 50s/early 60s Harlem and New York City were indelible and palpable. You could feel the oppressive summer humidity and hear the rattling subway trains and feel the city’s grit. As I read the narrative I felt as if I had been transported to this particular place at this particular moment in history. I also grew to like and care for Ray Carney and his family and employees, while I gave begrudging respect to Freddie and Pepper, avatars of innumerable men in their place and era doing what they could to survive.

Where the writing bogged down, for me, was the near-constant reliance on backstory. There were times when Mr. Whitehead unnecessarily interrupted the momentum and flow he'd been building by delving deep in the weeds of a particular character’s background. A few unexpected POV switches also caught me off guard.

The interconnected plots of the three stories in the novel worked to a point. Yes, crimes are involved, but this is not a traditional page-turning, crime fiction thriller. There are slow-burn moments and a resoundingly violent “climax” of sorts, but they mere serve as a conduit. Where Harlem Shuffle shines is as time machine that transports you back 60-plus years—only for you to realize, in the end, not much has changed in our society since then.