Maya Binyam profiles the author of “Erasure,” “I Am Not Sidney Poitier,” and “James,” a retelling of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.”
While they speak, their professor, the novelist Percival Everett, sits quietly at the head of a too-large table, one palm steadied against it, his body swivelling almost imperceptibly from side to side. His head, decorated with errant coils of dark gray hair, is framed by a gargantuan television that hangs behind him, its screen a black expanse. He wears the uniform of a professional Everyman: slacks, button-down, glasses.
During our conversations, he sometimes seemed as though he was laboring to forget my task, or else to divert it. “Are you sure you aren’t my kid?” he asked during our second meeting, over breakfast at Hollywood’s Soho House. We finished eating, and Everett squinted in my direction. “Do you play tennis?” he asked. “I’m looking for a tennis partner.” We began to say goodbye. “You don’t have to write the profile,” he said as we walked toward our cars. “We could just be friends.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Percival Everett’s sly take on ‘Huck Finn’ upends Mark Twain’s worldIn “James,” the author who inspired “American Fiction” tells a familiar story from a fresh perspective.
Read more »
Percival Everett's 'James' isn't the ‘Huckleberry Finn’ you read for AP EnglishJarvis DeBerry is an opinion editor for MSNBC Daily.
Read more »
‘Cant say thank you enough:' Justin Fields post farewell message to Chicago following tradeJustin Fields issued a heartfelt goodbye message to Chicagoans on Saturday shortly after the quarterback was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Read more »
What to say—and what not to say.Do you know someone who suffers from anxiety and don't know how to help them? Try one or all of these to support them.
Read more »
10 books to add to your reading list in MarchBooks to read in March include 'James' by Percival Everett, 'Wandering Stars' by Tommy Orange and 'Age of Revolutions' by Fareed Zakaria.
Read more »
22 Hilarious Black Twitter Tweets'Black people: 'I say that, to say this...''
Read more »