Saturday, February 2, 2008

Joe Morton reads from ‘Invisible Man’

My Black History Month festivities here in the House of Love will include a long-overdue focus on African-American literature.

I posted on Arnold Rampersad’s biography of Ralph Ellison back in August. Now, I’m pleased to present another cool audio bite for you literate folks.

The 1999 Random House audiobook edition of Ellison’s great novel, “Invisible Man,” features actor Joe Morton reading the complete text.

I’m streaming a 4-minute excerpt on my Vox blog.

In this excerpt, the narrator boards a bus in South Carolina, bound for New York City. He is surprised to see “the vet” – a trash-talking, “shellshocked” war veteran he’d met in a seedy black bar called the Golden Day. That earlier encounter had ended with the narrator witnessing a violent beating.

Click here to enjoy Joe Morton’s lively reading.

5 comments:

DeAngelo Starnes said...

Dave, you's a muthafucka! Invisible Man is a multi-layered piece of brilliance! Can't be read fast. You can pore over sections for weeks to get it.

Baad baad piece.

Undercover Black Man said...

^ Thanks, DeAngelo. I'm dropping bombs this month!

Invisible Woman said...

Nice.

Undercover Black Man said...

^ We need more Joe Morton in our lives, IW.

Sonja Perdue said...

I came across you blog -- thank goodness -- while searching for information on Ralph Ellison and Joe Morton. As Mr. Ellison has set the standards for novels, Mr. Morton has set the standard for the reading/interpretation of such novels. BRAVO BROTHERS! BRAVO!