James Davis on the Life and Work of Harlem Renaissance Writer Eric Walrond

The always worthwhile New Books Network recently posted a fascinating interview with James Davis about his new book Eric Walrond: A Life in the Harlem Renaissance and the Transatlantic Caribbean.

In the interview with Alejandra Bronfman, Davis discusses the mystery of Eric Walrond as a writer who was very much in the thick of the Harlem Renaissance but had been somewhat forgotten by history. In addition to reinstating Walrond as a pivotal figure in the development of the Harlem Renaissance, Davis also discusses the transnational nature of his life and work as he worked and lived in Guyana, Barbados, Panama, Harlem, Paris, and London. Davis and Bronfman also consider the exceptional and distinctive nature of Walrond’s writing and its mixture of modernist techniques with Caribbean dialogue and locales.

Their discussion also provided a compelling look at the challenges of writing a biography and transforming an archive into a gripping narrative. Davis also considers the ways in which Walrond’s writing reveals aspects of his life.

You can listen to the full interview here and for more on the book, here is an excerpt from the book: