Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead

THE 100 MUST-READ BOOKS OF 2023 by Time Magazine #20

In the sequel to his 2021 best seller Harlem Shuffle, two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Colson Whitehead revisits the world of Ray Carney, a full-time furniture salesman and part-time criminal. Crook Manifesto picks up in 1971, when Ray’s attempt to stick to his store—and to stay away from all that crime he got caught up in before—is disrupted by his daughter’s desperate plea to see the Jackson 5 live. Ray decides he’ll do whatever it takes to make his kid happy, even if the risks he has to take to obtain the money for tickets turn deadly. Through brilliantly constructed twists and turns, set in a vibrantly detailed 1970s New York City, Whitehead once again demonstrates his prowess as an author whose work can stand out in any genre. His latest crime novel is simultaneously sharp, funny, and full of heart—and an elegant portrait of Harlem and its residents. —Annabel Gutterman