A Zora Neale Hurston Reading List

August 28, 2024

Literature

Nesha Ruther

Writer at Bond & Grace

Zora Neale Hurston’s impact on American letters is far too vast to articulate in a single opening sentence and we couldn’t possibly list all of the many, many modern writers who pull from her legacy. But for those who finished Their Eyes Were Watching God and are wondering what to read next, here are 8 books by Hurston’s peers, friends, and literary descendants, that she would surely approve of.

Quicksand by Nella Larson

Like Hurston, Nella Larson is an essential Harlem Renaissance writer. While Passing is the more famous of her two novels, Quicksand is the more autobiographical of the two and takes a clearer look at Larson’s own lived experiences.

The Ways of White Folks by Langston Hughes

Zora Neale Hurston was known as the “Queen of the Harlem Renaissance”, so Langston Hughes was naturally its Poet Laureate. The Queen and the Poet Laureate were dear friends and collaborators and Hurston would no doubt endorse this gorgeous short story collection.

The Blacker the Berry by Wallace Thurman

A co-founder of Fire!! Literary magazine alongside Hurston and Hughes, Thurman’s classic novel The Blacker the Berry follows Emma Lou Morgan in her journey from Idaho to USC, and finally Harlem as she navigates and experiences colorism.

Home to Harlem by Claude McKay

While Home to Harlem embodied the lifestyle of a generation of Black writers who lived in urban cities in America and Europe rather than the more rural perspective Hurston favored, the two were peers and shared a strong commitment to documenting Black life.

The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Considering Walker was the one who single-handedly revived Hurston’s legacy after it very nearly went up in flames (literally), her spot on this list is well-earned. Her seminal novel The Color Purple won Walker the Pulitzer Prize and is an incredible literary descendant of Hurston’s.

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Bennett’s modern-day masterpiece is a re-telling of Nella Larson’s iconic novel Passing, which makes it a valuable descendant of Harlem Renaissance literature, of which Hurston was of course the queen!

Push by Sapphire

Push is a tough book to read, both due to its deeply painful subject matter, and the fact that Sapphire drew on Hurston’s legacy of anthropological writing to capture the voice of the illiterate 16-year-old, Precious. The challenge is well worth it though, as Precious is a powerful, resilient, and beautifully written character you can’t help but love.

Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo

Elizabeth Acevedo’s first adult novel follows the Marta sisters, a group of Afro-Latina women with magical powers. Acevedo interweaves Spanish and English dialogue as well as transcripts from one of the Marta daughters, Ona, who is an anthropologist interviewing her family. This very Hurston-esque read is as magical as its main characters.

Zora Neale Hurston may never have seen the impact her writing would have on millions of readers, but it is surely visible in the books it inspired and paved the way for.