Chester Himes is one of the curiosities of American literature, a fiercely independent black writer whose many faults have alienated both white and black critics, save for a few who have insisted that he is as important as Richard Wright, Ralph Ellison and James Baldwin. Only now, as he approaches his seventieth birthday, has he received serious scholarly attention: two full-length studies have recently appeared, James Lundquist's monograph, Chester Himes (1976) and Stephen Milliken's more complete Chester Himes: A Critical Appraisal (1976).

From his first novel, If He Hollers Let Him Go (1945), to his latest, Blind Man With a Pistol (1969), Himes has stressed the damage done to the black psyche as much as the viciousness of white hatred for blacks. Drawing directly upon his own experiences, Himes has portrayed a series of wounded or emotionally crippled protagonists struggling to keep from lashing back violently against a hateful environment. Several of...