Nigger Heaven (1926) is a book by Carl Van Vechten (1880-1964) set during the Harlem Renaissance in the United States in the 1920s. The book and its title have been controversial since its publication. The title, however, refers to the balconies of movie theaters. During the Jim Crow years, the balconies were reserved for African Americans, while the white audience sat below. One term for the balcony, therefore, was "nigger heaven." 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Photographic self-portrait by Carl Van Vechten, 1934 Carl Van Vechten (June 17, 1880 – December 21, 1964) was an American writer and photographer who was a patron of the Harlem Renaissance and the literary executor of Gertrude Stein. ... The Harlem Renaissance was a flowering of art, literature and music in the United States in the 1920s and early 1930s led by the African American community based in Harlem, New York City. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Social issues of the 1920s. ... Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enacted in the Southern and border states of the United States and in force between 1876 and 1964 that required racial segregation, especially of African-Americans, in all public facilities. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ...

The novel, on the other hand, is a portrayal of life in the "great black walled city" of Harlem. It describes the interactions of intellectuals, political activists, bacchanalian workers, and other Harlem characters. The plot of the novel concerns two people, a quiet librarian and an aspiring writer, who try to keep their love alive as racism denies them every opportunity. An African-American man drinks out of the colored only water cooler at a racially segregated street car terminal in the United States in 1939. ...

Although being a regular dime novel, this roman a clef became an instant bestseller and served as an informal pocket guide to Harlem. It also split the black literary community, as some, e.g. Langston Hughes, Nella Larsen, and Wallace Thurman, appreciated it, while others like Countee Cullen, W.E.B. DuBois, and Alain Locke regarded it as an "affront to the hospitality of black folks". The book fueled a period of "Harlemania", during which the area of Harlem became en vogue among white people, who then frequented its cabarets, bars, and so on. A roman clef or roman (French for novel with a key) is a novel describing real-life events behind a fa ade of fiction. ... Langston Hughes, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1936 Langston Hughes (February 1, 1902 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, and newspaper columnist. ... Nella Larsen in 1928 Nella Larsen (April 13, 1891 – March 30, 1964) was an African-American novelist of the Harlem Renaissance who wrote two novels and a few short stories. ... Wallace Thurman (1902-1934) was an African American novelist during the Harlem Renaissance. ... Countee Cullen, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1941 Countee Cullen (May 30, 1903 - January 9, 1946) was an American poet, one of the finest of the Harlem Renaissance. ... W. E. B. Du Bois William Edward Burghardt Du Bois (pronounced ) (February 23, 1868 – August 27, 1963) was a civil rights activist, sociologist, educator, historian, writer, editor, poet, and scholar, and socialist. ... Alain LeRoy Locke (1886-1954) was born on September 13, 1886, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania He was an American educator, writer, and philosopher, and is best remembered as a leader and chief interpreter of the Harlem Renaissance. ...

External links

• Bookseller's Review
• The PAL Holdings and Commentary on Carl Van Vechten