In this engaging, full-scale biography of the author of Black Boy and Native Son, Rowley chronicles Wright's extraordinary journey from a sharecropper's shack in Mississippi to international renown as a writer, fiercely independent thinker and outspoken critic of racism. Skilfully interweaving quotations from Wright's writings, Rowley draws on recently discovered material to shed new light on Wright's relationship with Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison and others, as well as his self-imposed exile in France. A vibrant, finely crafted narrative.