In celebration of International Women’s Day, in March we will be reading and discussing Ann Petry’s ‘The Street’. First published in 1946 and marketed as a tale of vice and violence in Harlem, ‘The Street’ was the first novel by an African American woman to sell more than a million copies.

‘The Street’ focuses on Lutie Johnson, a single Black mother living in World War II-era Harlem with her 8-year-old son, Bub. Lutie and her husband Jim are separated but not divorced. Their marriage destroyed by infidelity and financial strain, Lutie and Bub move to the best place she can afford in Harlem; a shabby walk-up apartment. On arrival she takes an immediate dislike to the building’s superintendent, Jones. 

However Jones, a disillusioned Navy veteran, becomes sexually obsessed with Lutie, even using Bub as a means to get closer to his mother. To complicate matters, Jones lives with his girlfriend Min, who he resents for her lack of physical attractiveness. But Jones is not the only man interested in Lutie; Boots Smith, a bandleader also has an interest in Lutie, and attempts to lure her with false promises to help her singing career.

Told through multiple points of view, though primarily Lutie’s, sexual competition, deception, and murder intertwine to heighten the tension in the storyline of ‘The Street’. But ‘The Street’ is also about the realities of racism and poverty. As ‘The Evening Independent’, Ohio, wrote in March 1946: ‘‘The Street’ by Ann Petry is primarily the story of a struggle. …. Not a beautiful story but rather a living, violent one presenting another side of life for us to think about.’ 

As an African-American author writing in the 1940s, the work of Ann Petry has only recently begun to receive the recognition she deserves. By focusing on her bestseller, ‘The Street’, this KURG reading group seeks to address that oversight and give voice and recognition to a novelist who uses her fiction to challenge gender, social and racial stereotypes and convey the diverse experiences of African-Americans, in the first half of the 20th century.

Kingston University Reading Group welcomes all staff and students. It was created in 2016 as a means of facilitating discussion and encouraging new perspectives on race and identity. The project falls under the umbrella of the University's Race Equality Charter Mark and helps to promote racial equality as well as excellence in teaching and learning.

The Kingston University Reading Group runs regular sessions for various Kingston University staff and student groups, community organisations and local schools and colleges. We would like to thank KU’s SA Directorate team for their generous support, and the KU Big Read, for the collaboration opportunities.

We aim to:

•    Offer a platform for all staff and students to raise and engage on equality, diversity, and inclusion issues.

•    Facilitate discussion on challenging subjects and encourage new perspectives. 

•    Foster collaboration across the whole of the University as well as with the wider community. 

Discussions are led by an Associate Professor (Dr. Karen Lipsedge). To join a session, please contact Dr Karen Lipsedge (K.Lipsedge@Kingston.ac.uk)