‘The Night’s For Cryin” by Chester Himes

The Night’s For Cryin’ by Chester Himes, 1937

The magic trick:

Setting the tone with rich sentences before the action kicks in

We’ve got a weekend double for you from one of the 20^th century’s more underappreciated story writers.

Stunningly vivid writing in this one. It might take you a few paragraphs to adjust to the temperature. These are rich sentences that bring the scene to life one adjective at a time.

The rhythm of the story works perfectly, though, with the reader’s adjustment period. The first page or so simply sets the scene. By the time, the reader is attuned to this writing style, the action begins and doesn’t let up until its terrible, tragic end.

And that’s quite a trick on Himes’s part.

The selection:

Wall lights behind him spilled soft stain on the elite at the tables. Cigarette smoke cut thin blue streamers ceilingward through the muted light, mingled with whiskey fumes and perfume scents and Negro smell. Bodies squirmed, inching riotous-colored dresses up from yellow, shapely legs. Red-lacquered nails gleamed like bright blood drops on the stems of whiskey glasses, and the women’s yellow faces looked like powdered masks beneath sleek hair, bruised with red mouths.

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