Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man

Random House, New York 1952.
First edition. Jacket Design by E. McKnight Kauffer.

Written in the aftermath of the Harlem riots, Ralph Ellison’s debut novel is a startling and unforgettable vision of racial tension and inequality in 1950s America. The novel discusses the isolation felt by its narrator, a young, nameless black man, whose existence and value is ignored by society. Ellison writes of things that should be devastating to hear of, but in such a way that it is not devastating, but uplifting.