The Roots of Cane, by John K Young, is a fascinating and quite enlightening look at Jean Toomer, Cane, and the various parts of Cane prior to coming together in the book. This is academic but not dry, which means it is accessible, but you probably need to have an interest to enjoy the book as compared to making this your introduction.

I never had the opportunity to teach Cane, though I did include parts of it in survey courses (taken from anthologies that Toomer would likely have not been pleased about). I do remember, as a student in the early 90s, my professors seemingly not being sure how to teach the book. Not so much from a lack of understanding but because there are several ways to approach it. This volume takes a look at the parts that make up the book and place them in the context of the periodicals within which they were first published.

Context can be as multi-layered as one cares to make it. In surveys and just for a basic understanding, a broad outline of a time period and of the society into which it is published suffices. What we have here is far more nuanced. We of course have the dark cloud of Jim Crow but we also have the interplay within the Black community, the various readerships (and editorial policies) of the periodicals, and how to even consider these texts called journals and magazines.

Viewing the works as they were published in periodicals and how they were changed for the book makes for some considerations looking at one or the other wouldn't bring up. It also, coupled with comments from Toomer about race and race relations, offers more insight into just how Toomer can or should be considered within the literary tradition.

I am several years removed from academia and while I try to read works like this fairly often, I have to admit they take longer than they once did. Since I am now reading largely for the big, and maybe the midrange, picture I sometimes get bogged down in the details. That isn't a negative about the book, in fact, it is essential in making the argument. But for non-academics just be prepared for more detail than you may want. I would recommend reading through it all, however, as it does all come together.

As a bit of an aside, this book has motivated me to explore older journals and magazines with an eye toward placing what I find in a better context. Between the archives of still active publications usually being available to subscribers, the various online sources widely available (especially the Internet Archive), and your public or university library there is a lot to explore. This doesn't have to be limited to literary works either. I started going through the Scientific American archived issues I can access with my subscription and am finding interesting articles that have led me back to political texts, literary texts, and even some novels and short stories where you can see the influence of new scientific ideas on creative minds outside science. Whatever interests you, explore the archives.

I would recommend this to those interested in the Harlem Renaissance (since Toomer is often included), modernism, periodical studies, even social history in the US during the 1920s.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

This is a really interesting look into an early twentieth-century novel by Jean Toomer. It's also an investigation into magazines and short stories and race and a lot of things. It's well written and well researched.