A quietly influential force in African American literature and art Clarence Major makes his
Penguin Classics debut with the twenty-fifth-anniversary edition of Dirty Bird Blues Set in
post-World War II Chicago and Omaha the novel features Manfred Banks a young
harmonica-blowing blues singer who is always writing music in his head. Torn between his
friendships with fellow musicians and nightclub life and his responsibilities to his wife and
child along with the pressures of dealing with a racist America that assaults him at every
turn Manfred seeks easy answers in Dirty Bird (Old Crow whiskey) and in moving on. He moves to
Omaha with hopes of better opportunities as a blue-collar worker but the blues in his soul and
the dreams in his mind keep bringing him back to face himself. After a nightmarish descent into
his own depths Manfred emerges with fresh awareness and possibility. Through Manfred we
witness and experience the process by which modern American English has been vitalized and
strengthened by the poetry and the poignancy of the African-American experience. As Manfred
struggles with the oppressive constraints of society and his private turmoil his rich inner
voice resonates with the blues.
