Mules and men

by
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Zora Neale Hurston: Mules and men (1978, Indiana University Press)

291 pages

English language

Published Jan. 1, 1978 by Indiana University Press.

ISBN:
978-0-253-33932-4
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4 stars (1 review)

Mules and Men is a treasury of black America's folklore as collected by a famous storyteller and anthropologist who grew up hearing the songs and sermons, sayings and tall tales that have formed an oral history of the South since the time of slavery. Returning to her hometown of Eatonville, Florida, to gather material, Zora Neale Hurston recalls "a hilarious night with a pinch of everything social mixed with the storytelling." Set intimately within the social context of black life, the stories, "big old lies," songs, Vodou customs, and superstitions recorded in these pages capture the imagination and bring back to life the humor and wisdom that is the unique heritage of African Americans.

14 editions

reviewed Mules and men by Zora Neale Hurston

Stepped on a pin

4 stars

"de pin bent And dat's de way de story went."

A beautiful and loving collection of folk tales and hoodoo lore. I'm not really enough of a scholar to tell you whether Hurston is an 'important' writer, but I can tell you that she was full of love, and that she was a damn good one. I will have to revisit some of her fiction. The experience of reading the dialect that she captures, and following the story, feels like reading Shakespeare. I found this beautiful and comforting and insightful, like a good myth.

Subjects

  • African Americans -- Louisiana -- Folklore.
  • African Americans -- Florida -- Folklore.
  • Tales -- Louisiana.
  • Tales -- Florida.
  • Voodooism -- Louisiana.
  • African Americans -- Florida.
  • African Americans -- Louisiana.
  • African Americans -- Florida -- Music.
  • African Americans -- Louisiana -- Music.