Tambourines to Glory
Langston Hughes
Crown Publishing Group
<p><b>Finally available in trade paperback, Langston Hughes's breezy parable of good and evil, friendship and betrayal, is an unforgettable portrait of 1950s Harlem and two women called to the pulpit for very different reasons.</b><br><br>For every bustling jazz joint that opened in Korean War--era Harlem, a new church seemed to spring up. <i>Tambourines to Glory </i>introduces you to an unlikely team behind a church whose rock was the curb at 126th and Lenox.<br><br>Essie Belle Johnson and Laura Reed live in adjoining tenement flats, adrift on public relief. Essie wants to somehow earn enough money to reunite with her daughter and provide her with a nice home; Laura loves young men, mink coats, and fine Scotch. On a day of inspiration, the friends decide to use a thrift-store tambourine and a layaway Bible to start a church.<br><br>Their sidewalk services are a hit: Laura's a natural street performer who loves the limelight, while Essie is a charismatic singer with a quiet...</p>