The Chinaberry Tree

Jessie Redmon Fauset's searing novel of “respectability” among the 20th century African-American middle class, newly reissued for Union Square & Co.’s Herald Classics line.

Set in a small, suburban town in early 1900s New Jersey, The Chinaberry Tree follows Laurentine, a young woman struggling to overcome her “bad blood” inherited from her mother's illicit interracial union. Proud and independent, she feels the only way to gain respectability is through marriage with a decent man. Her plans are uprooted by the arrival of her tenacious, overly-confident cousin Melissa, who also aspires to “marry up” in life. However, as family secrets and new revelations come to light with explosive consequences, both women must redefine "respectable"  for themselves, as they find their own sense of identity.

Featuring a new introduction, this reissue of a marginalized author's masterpiece is an essential but overlooked classic.