A Rage in Harlem

A Grave Digger & Coffin Ed Novel

By: Chester Himes

Narrated by: Samuel L. Jackson

Audie Award Nominee, Fiction, 2013

Academy Award nominee Samuel L. Jackson (Pulp Fiction, Star Wars films), fresh off the success of his uproarious, Audie-nominated performance of the mock children’s book Go the F**k to Sleep, delivers a swaggering, darkly-humored rendering of Chester Himes’ classic first novel.

Himes, described by The Sunday Times as “the greatest find in American crime fiction since Raymond Chandler”, was no stranger to the world of crime: in his late teens and early 20s, he served seven years in the Ohio State Penitentiary for armed robbery, the confession to which was beaten out of him by the police. He delivers the tale of his hopelessly naïve hero suddenly finding himself on the run from a hypocritical and far-from-heroic police force with lurid violence and brutal humor. There is no voice better than Mr. Jackson’s to narrate this hardboiled story of love and crime, set in a richly imagined, mid-20th-century Harlem.

Explore more titles performed by some of the most celebrated actors in the business in Audible’s Star-Powered Listens collection.©1957 Chester Himes (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

No rage while listening to this one

What made the experience of listening to A Rage in Harlem the most enjoyable?

Samuel L. Jackson is superb as the narrator. I laughed from start to finish. He is convincing in every role and makes each character come alive. This is one I will listen to again and again.

"Whachu talkin' 'bout Bruzzz..." WOW!!

What did you love best about A Rage in Harlem?

Samuel L. Jackson. Period. Sam brought these characters to visceral, warm-blooded life. The best narration I have ever heard.

What did you like best about this story?

The strength and development of the characters.

What does Samuel L. Jackson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The imagery of the characters. Through Sam's voice alone, each and every character has a soul. Each character has an identity that materializes from Sam's voice. It's almost like he is reading a screen play!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

"A tale of hustlers, con-men, pimps and thieves during the Harlem Renaissance."

Any additional comments?

By far the best performance from a narrator in the history of audio literature. The bar has been set by Sam Jackson and it may never be reset.

Great Narrator- humorous story.

Where does A Rage in Harlem rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

One of the top

What other book might you compare A Rage in Harlem to and why?

None

What about Samuel L. Jackson’s performance did you like?

Engaging..kept you entertained

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I made me laugh

Any additional comments?

Liked the story.samuel made me feel like I knew the characters.

Enjoyable but the narration got in the way

I generally love Samuel L. Jackson as a narrator but for some reason I found this performance to be below par and a bit unclear in spots. The material was good and I'd still recommend the book.

Fast and Furious

The action starts literally immediately and never lets up. Sam Jackson is great and an absolute stunning narrator of audio books. I have not read others in the series so cannot say how this stacks up. I may or may not. It was a good book on the whole, but more entertainment than substance. More sizzle than steak, as they say. The characters the series is named for were rather cheesy, but I think meant to be? This is all done with a fan's kind of smirking, let's not get too serious kind of fun attitude.