Summary

“Book of Harlem,” written in 1925 and published posthumously, began with a summary of the story to follow. King Volstead had brought upon “a mighty drought,” and “restless” men traveled (159, 160). Toothsome returned from the North, the city of Babylon, to Standard Bottom, Georgia to tell the curious townspeople about the faraway land. Mandolin was inspired by Toothsome’s recount and begged his father for the money to journey there. His father agreed after a final plea for him to marry, and he took a train to Babylon and asked the way to Harlem. Mandolin lived with Toothsome and soon found women uninterested in him. Toothsome advised that he get a new wardrobe, slick down his hair, and use banana oil on his tongue for “the breath of love” (163). After achieving these things, Mandolin went to a jazz club where people “messed...