Episode 1: The Fence
Set in 1960s Harlem, the award-winning author of The Underground Railroad spins a sizzling tale of heists, hoods and shakedowns. Today: plans for an audacious robbery are afoot.
From the Pulitzer-winning author of The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys, a sizzling tale of heists and shakedowns, kickbacks and hoods, set in 1960s Harlem.
βRay Carney was only slightly bent when it came to being crooked...β
To his customers on 125th street, Ray Carney is an upstanding salesman of reasonably-priced furniture, making a life for himself and his family. Not many people know he descends from a line of uptown crooks, and that his façade of normalcy has more than a few cracks in it. Cracks that are getting bigger and bigger all the time.
When his cousin Freddie falls in with a crew who pull off one of Harlemβs most outrageous heists, Ray is sucked into the big time - a world of shady cops, hoods and Harlem lowlifes. Can Ray navigate this double life, and protect his feckless cousin, as he starts to see the truth about who actually pulls the strings in the city?
A love letter to Harlem, inspired by sixties heist movies, this is a hilarious, electrifying and moving portrait of a man trying to lead a good life in a bad world.
Today: furniture salesman Ray Carney finds himself out of his depth, when his cousin brings him in on an audacious heist...
Read by Rhashan Stone
Writer: Colson Whitehead is the acclaimed US author of eight novels, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys.
Abridger: Richard Hamilton
Producer: Justine Willett
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- Mon 11 Oct 2021 12:04ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
- Mon 11 Oct 2021 22:45ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
Open Book Special: Colson Whitehead
Elizabeth Day talks to Colson Whitehead in a feature length interview about Harlem Shuffle