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The Best of Simple: Stories
Langston Hughes's stories about Jesse B. Semple--first composed for a weekly column in the Chicago Defender and then collected in Simple Speaks His Mind , Simple Takes a Wife , and Simple Stakes a Claim --have been read and loved by hundreds of thousands of readers. In The Best of Simple , the author picked his favorites from these earlier volumes, stories that not only have proved popular but are now part of a great and growing literary tradition.
Simple might be considered an Everyman for black Americans. Hughes himself wrote: "...these tales are about a great many people--although they are stories about no specific persons as such. But it is impossible to live in Harlem and not know at least a hundred Simples, fifty Joyces, twenty-five Zaritas, and several Cousin Minnies--or reasonable facsimiles thereof."
As Arnold Rampersad has written, Simple is "one of the most memorable and winning characters in the annals of American literature, justly regarded as one of Hughes's most inspired creations."
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri, went to Cleveland, Ohio, lived for a number of years in Chicago, and long resided in New York City's Harlem. He graduated form Lincoln University in 1929 and was awarded an honorary Litt. D. in 1943. He was perhaps best known as a poet and the creator of Simple, but he also wrote novels, biography, history, plays (several of them Broadway hits), and children's books, and he edited several anthologies. Mr. Hughes died in 1967.
Simple might be considered an Everyman for black Americans. Hughes himself wrote: "...these tales are about a great many people--although they are stories about no specific persons as such. But it is impossible to live in Harlem and not know at least a hundred Simples, fifty Joyces, twenty-five Zaritas, and several Cousin Minnies--or reasonable facsimiles thereof."
As Arnold Rampersad has written, Simple is "one of the most memorable and winning characters in the annals of American literature, justly regarded as one of Hughes's most inspired creations."
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri, went to Cleveland, Ohio, lived for a number of years in Chicago, and long resided in New York City's Harlem. He graduated form Lincoln University in 1929 and was awarded an honorary Litt. D. in 1943. He was perhaps best known as a poet and the creator of Simple, but he also wrote novels, biography, history, plays (several of them Broadway hits), and children's books, and he edited several anthologies. Mr. Hughes died in 1967.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1961
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About the author
Langston Hughes
616 books2,150 followersThrough poetry, prose, and drama, American writer James Langston Hughes made important contributions to the Harlem renaissance; his best-known works include
Weary Blues
(1926) and
The Ways of White Folks
(1934).
People best know this social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist James Mercer Langston Hughes, one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry, for his famous written work about the period, when "Harlem was in vogue."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langsto...
People best know this social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist James Mercer Langston Hughes, one of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form jazz poetry, for his famous written work about the period, when "Harlem was in vogue."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langsto...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews
December 4, 2008
This is an extraordinary book. I only knew Langston Hughes from his poetry and picked this up in a book exchange in Mozambique. The pages were yellowed and falling out, the cover was broken and bent with corners missing and I fully expected to have to throw it away when I finished reading it. I could never bring myself to do it. For a year I pressed, I taped, I rubber-banded and I wrapped it in a cloth handkerchief before passing it on to someone I though just might appreciate it as much.
That's how much I loved this book.
I think it would be easy to dismiss many of these stories as comedic vignettes or a quaint “slice of Americana.” And if that is all that you are looking for, you will not be disappointed. Hughes created a rich and textured neighborhood for his main character, Jesse B. Semple. It is fresh and vibrant and full of all of the little banal details that make it so real. Its inhabitants are multi-dimensional and as often petty as they are heroic. If you never go further than this portrait of 1920’s Harlem, it will still be a rewarding read. But the true story here is the imperfect evolution of “Simple” and his moments of perfect humane insight. Hughes is able, through Simple, to explore the changing role of black Americans in the 20’s and to connect the reader to Simple through the consequences of his choices.
I read some of these stories with my Mozambican students when I was teaching English and it never failed to spark important discussion and outright laughter. It helped us to relate to each other in a way that nothing else could have. Another reader may not have such a strong reaction but it is certainly worth the ride.
That's how much I loved this book.
I think it would be easy to dismiss many of these stories as comedic vignettes or a quaint “slice of Americana.” And if that is all that you are looking for, you will not be disappointed. Hughes created a rich and textured neighborhood for his main character, Jesse B. Semple. It is fresh and vibrant and full of all of the little banal details that make it so real. Its inhabitants are multi-dimensional and as often petty as they are heroic. If you never go further than this portrait of 1920’s Harlem, it will still be a rewarding read. But the true story here is the imperfect evolution of “Simple” and his moments of perfect humane insight. Hughes is able, through Simple, to explore the changing role of black Americans in the 20’s and to connect the reader to Simple through the consequences of his choices.
I read some of these stories with my Mozambican students when I was teaching English and it never failed to spark important discussion and outright laughter. It helped us to relate to each other in a way that nothing else could have. Another reader may not have such a strong reaction but it is certainly worth the ride.
September 15, 2012
The Jesse B Semple stories collected here are some of Langston Hughes best. Hughes paints a vivid picture of life in the post-war Harlem of the late 1940's and early 50's. You can smell the smoke in the air of the seedy little bars,the sweaty bodies dancing to cool jazz on a summer night, and laughter in the air. Brilliant little portraits of the highs and lows of everyday life, told by a master of the language.
June 7, 2019
When I was 17 and just starting to attend college, a friend told me that Langston Hughes was going to speak one afternoon. I had no idea who Langston Hughes was (the ignorance of youth), but I went to hear him speak. I have no memory of that event, other than I recall him being very entertaining. (More youthful ignorance.) Four or five years later, Mr. Hughes was gone. Fortunately, we still have his books.
The Best of Simple is a collection of stories about
men
and women
and race
and race.
These stories were published during the 1950's. The language and expressions have changed, but the situations remain the same.
Plus ça change ….
The Best of Simple is a collection of stories about
men
and women
and race
and race.
These stories were published during the 1950's. The language and expressions have changed, but the situations remain the same.
Plus ça change ….
ongoing
April 7, 2020It's not often that one can read a book by a great African-American writer that was not intended for white eyes. These dialogues between an African-American intellectual and an acquaintance who's just getting by make a fine platform for Hughes to play with a lot of different things, from the wonders of spring to Jim Crow, from the treatment of women to the pretensions of African-American intellectuals like him. Simple is less an Everyman than a vehicle for Hughes’ views, humor, and imagination.
December 29, 2007
Simple is as Simple does. The twentieth century urban trickster. The Everyman white folks fear the most. He knows all from the inside, bottom, behind way and out. These stories are the classics of tomorrows American literature. The embody the most honest appraisal of the world during Jim Crow.
February 23, 2012
Langston Hughes is absolutely one of the best of black writers!! And I will not be able to say enough about The Best of Simple.
This collection of short stories are derived from a series of newspaper columns. From the columns, Hughes wrote three other books, but this particular one is what he considered the best of the columns. It is an anthology and chronicles his imagined conversations with Jesse B. Semple, called Simple.
Printed in 1961, this collection truly catalogs and provides an accounting of the black experience. The "I" of the book is an educated man, who truly believes that blacks can "better" themselves through education, etc. Simple, on the other hand, provides his perspective on race relations (extensively), love relationships, family relationships, and life in general, not only in his discussions, but a few times just in his thoughts.
The book is not only humorous, but encourages critical thinking. I would love to run a class where several of these short essays could be discussed within the historical context of the time. Simple, in his Southern vernacular, is profound and much more of a thinking man than some might realize. That is definitely why Hughes has had him talking to someone like himself. However, why the reviews focused on Simple, there also should be a discussion of what "Hughes" points of view are. He also expresses a certain viewpoint and certain prejudices.
I absolutely adored this book and recommend it to anyone who wants a humorous, short essay, and critical thinking essay about blacks in the 50s and 60s.
This collection of short stories are derived from a series of newspaper columns. From the columns, Hughes wrote three other books, but this particular one is what he considered the best of the columns. It is an anthology and chronicles his imagined conversations with Jesse B. Semple, called Simple.
Printed in 1961, this collection truly catalogs and provides an accounting of the black experience. The "I" of the book is an educated man, who truly believes that blacks can "better" themselves through education, etc. Simple, on the other hand, provides his perspective on race relations (extensively), love relationships, family relationships, and life in general, not only in his discussions, but a few times just in his thoughts.
The book is not only humorous, but encourages critical thinking. I would love to run a class where several of these short essays could be discussed within the historical context of the time. Simple, in his Southern vernacular, is profound and much more of a thinking man than some might realize. That is definitely why Hughes has had him talking to someone like himself. However, why the reviews focused on Simple, there also should be a discussion of what "Hughes" points of view are. He also expresses a certain viewpoint and certain prejudices.
I absolutely adored this book and recommend it to anyone who wants a humorous, short essay, and critical thinking essay about blacks in the 50s and 60s.
May 27, 2023
Hughes was an excellent writer, but I'm not that keen on short stories or protagonists who get drunk a lot and have more than one person they are dallying with if one is serious. I realize that people are divided on that idea, naturally, or there wouldn't be so many people who do that; I did respect that he and I found myself liking things about Simple in spite of that. All of the stories are told in dialogue between Semple and someone called "I" which I thought was well done.
There are other stories about Simple (Semple is his surname) but this is a collection that I am guessing spans a number of years that was first published together in 1961.
However, there are some brilliant bits in this and I can see why it has such a high average rating; I didn't dislike it and could never rate it less than a like which I have freely done with a number of big name classic writers (loathe Steinbeck's writing, for one.)
There are other stories about Simple (Semple is his surname) but this is a collection that I am guessing spans a number of years that was first published together in 1961.
However, there are some brilliant bits in this and I can see why it has such a high average rating; I didn't dislike it and could never rate it less than a like which I have freely done with a number of big name classic writers (loathe Steinbeck's writing, for one.)
April 11, 2007
The Simple stories are pure comedy!
I wish I could have met Langston Hughes but he died before my time =(.
I wish I could have met Langston Hughes but he died before my time =(.
March 8, 2010
Langston Hughes is a trip....and i mean that in a good way.
January 10, 2015
SIX WORD REVIEW: Eerily relevant black power bedtime stories.
November 15, 2009
Today, I finished Langston Hughes The Best of Simple, which is the author's pick of his favorite Simple stories as published in the Chicago Defender. It's quite good.
I had never read any Hughes before, although his name was familiar. The basic structure of the stories is the author's conversations with a black man in Harlem named Jesse B. Semple. Simple himself is a fascinating character - full of both raging self-defeat and justified complaints at the world of the day (these stories were published through the 50s and this volume was published in 1961). His interactions with Joyce, Isabel, and Zarita are a rich textural snapshot of gender relations in the 50s, and the period resembles neither the fantasies of conservatives nor the feminist dystopia it is often portrayed to be.
Simple's relationship with his relatives F.D. and Minnie provide some insight into how much one can help someone else when one doesn't have anything oneself.
Simple is often upset about racial issues. One striking element is how mundane these complaints are - I never lived through the Jim Crow era, but that is the biggest target by far. Another notable desire was to see a black General pin a medal on a white Private, as there were a whole lot of white Generals pinning medals on black Privates. I think that had Hughes lived past 1967, he would have been pleased to see the difference between then and now.
It's a great book, and the poetic interludes are a nice touch. Highly recommended.
I had never read any Hughes before, although his name was familiar. The basic structure of the stories is the author's conversations with a black man in Harlem named Jesse B. Semple. Simple himself is a fascinating character - full of both raging self-defeat and justified complaints at the world of the day (these stories were published through the 50s and this volume was published in 1961). His interactions with Joyce, Isabel, and Zarita are a rich textural snapshot of gender relations in the 50s, and the period resembles neither the fantasies of conservatives nor the feminist dystopia it is often portrayed to be.
Simple's relationship with his relatives F.D. and Minnie provide some insight into how much one can help someone else when one doesn't have anything oneself.
Simple is often upset about racial issues. One striking element is how mundane these complaints are - I never lived through the Jim Crow era, but that is the biggest target by far. Another notable desire was to see a black General pin a medal on a white Private, as there were a whole lot of white Generals pinning medals on black Privates. I think that had Hughes lived past 1967, he would have been pleased to see the difference between then and now.
It's a great book, and the poetic interludes are a nice touch. Highly recommended.
February 7, 2017
"The Best of Simple" was comedy at its best!
August 18, 2014
Loved the stories of Jessie B. Now as an adult I truly understand the stories and this character.
July 14, 2020
Langston Hughes plays the part of the educated friend to Mr Jesse B Semple. As an everyday black man in Harlem, Simple, shares his loves, his woes, and all of his thoughts on Jim Crow with Langston — usually over a beer he’s managed to get Langston to buy. Simple touches upon serious subject matter from disenfranchisement to blockbusting but does so through the use of humor-filled vignettes. An enjoyable read that left me a little bit sad.
July 6, 2020
My only exposure to Langston Hughes up to now was his beautiful poetry, sad and soulful like the best blues records, so it was a pleasant surprise to read The Best of Simple, one of the funniest books I've ever read. Jess B. Semple aka Simple is a Fifties-era black dude from Harlem sounding off on every topic under the sun, whether it's bossy landladies, expensive dates with women, or post-war radiation. Everything's humorous until his meditations on race in America broach a poignancy that's unfortunately as relevant today as it was seventy years ago. Hughes has the ability to hit every emotion in your soul, a great American writer.
P.S. There's an utterly bizarre story about a racist woman's dog that has to be read to be believed, and I'd even go so far as to say it's worth the price of the book alone.
P.S. There's an utterly bizarre story about a racist woman's dog that has to be read to be believed, and I'd even go so far as to say it's worth the price of the book alone.
September 17, 2013
Jess Semple, his new wife Joyce, cousin Minnie, and a woman who reminds me of Eulelie Giles (see Passing) populate this wonderful book of essays that were a part of Hughes's column in the Chicago Defender.
The Simple stories describe life in Harlem over time up to the era of MLK. I found my favorite essay near the end of the book. In it, Simple speaks of being Jim Crowed and how, if white folks love colored folks so much, they ought to prove it and live Jim Crow. Simple's unnamed friend says he doesn't believe anyone is that good, including himself and Simple. Simple concurs, but concludes if he were white, if not good, he would at least be white and no longer subject to the backwardness of segregation.
I took my time reading this book, savoring it instead of speeding through. While it didn't make me yearn for the good ol' days (Moms Mabley: I was there. Where were they at?), the Simple statements did make me wish for the days when folks were just plain and real, struggling to make it, taking pleasure where it could be found, and loving one another, else leaving one another in peace.
The Simple stories describe life in Harlem over time up to the era of MLK. I found my favorite essay near the end of the book. In it, Simple speaks of being Jim Crowed and how, if white folks love colored folks so much, they ought to prove it and live Jim Crow. Simple's unnamed friend says he doesn't believe anyone is that good, including himself and Simple. Simple concurs, but concludes if he were white, if not good, he would at least be white and no longer subject to the backwardness of segregation.
I took my time reading this book, savoring it instead of speeding through. While it didn't make me yearn for the good ol' days (Moms Mabley: I was there. Where were they at?), the Simple statements did make me wish for the days when folks were just plain and real, struggling to make it, taking pleasure where it could be found, and loving one another, else leaving one another in peace.
November 10, 2016
While teaching American Lit, we use a lot of Langston Hughes' poetry but none of his fiction, which now see is an oversight. This book, part of my comedy grad class, is a collection of short shorts, largely a dialogue between the author and his bar mate Jess B. Semple. Jess usually does most of the talking, going on and on about his sorry state of affairs and across the several dozen pieces in this collection, we see his hiughs and lows, including his divorce from his first wife and ongoing romance and ultimate marriage to Joyce, who is always trying to "improve" him.
His observations no doubt spoke for many African-Americans throughout the 1950s so there are some topical references that went over my head, but his complaints about Jim Crow laws and how he perceived everything through his black-skinned lens makes for contemporary narrative.
The writing is breezy and a good model for characterization and point of view through dialogue. Easily the best thing I've read for the course so far.
His observations no doubt spoke for many African-Americans throughout the 1950s so there are some topical references that went over my head, but his complaints about Jim Crow laws and how he perceived everything through his black-skinned lens makes for contemporary narrative.
The writing is breezy and a good model for characterization and point of view through dialogue. Easily the best thing I've read for the course so far.
Read
April 11, 2019I read a few of the other Semple/Simple collections that these stories were selected from. It was a long time ago when I read them. I remember enjoying them, but I also wonder whether I'd be embarrassed reading them now, or whether I'd find new value in them. They did strike me as rather crude in stereotyping. Heck, I probably owe Hughes a reappraisal sometime soon, but somehow my appreciation for Hughes has faded with time and with exposure to other the authors along the way, and having read some of his poetry hasn't helped.
September 26, 2017
Hughes is a powerful writer. His characters are lifelike and vivid and his imagery of post-war Harlem is full of rich beauty. A favorite passage:
"Sweep, rain, over the Harlem rooftops. Sweep into the windows of folks at work, not at home to close the windows. Wet the beds in side bedrooms almost as narrow as the bed against the window. Sweep, rain! Have fun with the brownstone fronts of rooming houses full of people boxed in this room, that room, seven rings, two rings, five, nine."
The page becomes the canvas and Hughes paints his characters into a colorful world. There are moments of hilarity as well as deep poignancy. This is an American portrait, a look at how we as a people saw one another and reacted to one another.
The stories in this collection first appeared as newspaper columns. Although strung together in a cohesive narrative that works well and flows freely, read as a collection they can often be repetitive - hence the three star rating. I liked the book, but I had trouble getting through it.
"Sweep, rain, over the Harlem rooftops. Sweep into the windows of folks at work, not at home to close the windows. Wet the beds in side bedrooms almost as narrow as the bed against the window. Sweep, rain! Have fun with the brownstone fronts of rooming houses full of people boxed in this room, that room, seven rings, two rings, five, nine."
The page becomes the canvas and Hughes paints his characters into a colorful world. There are moments of hilarity as well as deep poignancy. This is an American portrait, a look at how we as a people saw one another and reacted to one another.
The stories in this collection first appeared as newspaper columns. Although strung together in a cohesive narrative that works well and flows freely, read as a collection they can often be repetitive - hence the three star rating. I liked the book, but I had trouble getting through it.
September 28, 2011
A lot of these stories about Simple read like Mike Royko's column. For Royko, it was his Polish buddy at the bar, and for Hughes, it's his friend Simple who opines about life. Some of the observations are quite funny. I was a bit bothered, at times, by Hughes' own lines as he interlocuted with Simple -- he used a lot of big words, which Simple, of course, misunderstands. It seemed a lot like Bud Abbott using big words so that Costello could mistake the word and make a joke of it. IT works sometimes, but not every time.
February 14, 2015
I really enjoyed this collection of short stories by Langston Hughes. You get a real feel for what it was like in Harlem in the 40s and 50s. The writing is very witty and Jesse B. Simple is a character. Hughes is very good at distinguishing speaking patterns of the individuals in the book and just reading the very distinct way Simple speaks instantly brought to mind someone that I met just a few months ago who speaks in the very same manner. Great read all around.
April 22, 2009
This was a required reading for a Black American lit course I took a few years ago. I was pleasantly surprised as I read this book. Even though Hughes contributed to the Harlem Renaissance, I wondered if the creators of All in the Family used Semple's character as a model for Archie Bunker. I know, that's a radical and wild stretch.
April 27, 2009
I love Mr. Hughes... His Simple stories are laced with humor and amazing wit. The Best of Simple gives a wonderful view of Harlem in the 1950's & 1960's.
Read it!!! It's a quick read and very poignant.
Read it!!! It's a quick read and very poignant.
September 17, 2011
Written by the brilliant poet,playwright and novelist, Langston Hughes','The Best of Simple' contains vivid insights into the life of post World War II African-Americans. Even more stunning is how relevant those insights remain almost fifty years after they were first published.
May 1, 2012
I've had this book for years in my collection. I started reading it several years ago but never finished it. I recently started reading it again. As a writer, I feel a special affinity to Langston Hughes -- as a black man, a gay man and a short story writer.
January 20, 2008
Funny! A wonderful glimpse into Harlem during the 20's. We hear all the time about the "Roaring 20s" and never enough about the common man.
Read
July 20, 2011The character "Simple" is well developed and hilarious!
October 5, 2010
What can you say about a genius. This book was great, I was introduced to the character of Jess Semple and he is as familar to me as he was to all those who read these stories in the 50's and 60's.
February 26, 2011
This is a fun collection of stories. A little repetitive but lots of color and life.
March 13, 2014
Funny, funny,funny. Another side of the great writer. read American messiah
Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews