Wagner Books

The majority of the novel orbits Wagner Books, the publishing house where Nella and Hazel are employed. The building itself is a relatively inauspicious New York skyscraper, but the culture within the building functions as an important backdrop for the novel's exploration of race and discrimination. Since the company is predominantly run by white people, Nella often finds herself either dismissed or tokenized as a result of her Blackness. Furthermore, as the novel goes on, it becomes increasingly clear that the company has a long history of exploitation of its workers of color. The company itself stands in for the mainstream literary industry at large.

New York City

The novel takes place almost entirely within New York City, whose rich Black history and diversity play an enormous role in creating the landscape against which the novel unfolds. Of particular interest is Nella's feeling about the fact that...