Not Without Laughter

Langston Hughes

Summary

We rely on your support to help us keep producing beautiful, free, and unrestricted editions of literature for the digital age. Will you support our efforts with a donation ? The first prose novel published by Langston Hughes , Not Without Laughter is a coming-of-age novel that depicts the adolescent years of Sandy, an African-American boy growing up in a small town in Kansas. The novel is structured as a series of vignettes that depict Sandy's interactions with his family and the surrounding society, including experiences of racial discrimination. It explores how social structures of race, class, and religion shape the lives of African-American families. Hughes aimed to depict "a typical Negro family in the Middle West," drawing on his own experiences of growing up in Kansas alongside families similar to Sandy's family. Langston Hughes (died 1967) was a significant literary figure of the 20th century. Their work has endured across generations and continues to be read and studied worldwide. As a work of classic literary fiction, Not Without Laughter exemplifies the narrative craft and social insight that defined great storytelling of its era. Literary fiction of this period was characterized by careful attention to character psychology, social milieu, and the moral questions that animated public discourse.

Available since: 05/19/2026.

Print length: 263 pages.

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