The Garies and Their Friends (1857) is a novel by Frank J. Webb.
Published at the height of the abolitionist movement, Webb's novel was
only the second in history by an African American writer. Although it is
his only novel, The Garies and Their Friends is a testament to Webb's
skills as a writer and political thinker, a man who explored themes of
racial passing and Northern racism decades before such topics were
common in African American literature. Although his novel was relatively
unpopular--perhaps due to his refusal to sentimentalize both Northern
white and free Black communities--it gained scholarly attention and
critical acclaim in the latter half of the twentieth century, and has
since been recognized as a significant work of African American fiction.
Clarence Garie, a white planter from Georgia, and his common-law wife
Emily, raise their two children together with the acceptance of a
Southern community accustomed to such relationships between masters and
slaves. Fearing what should happen to her and her children if Clarence
were to die, Emily persuades her husband to move their family to
Philadelphia, where they hope to be accepted by the city's
well-established community of free African Americans. When they get
there, however, they encounter prejudice from their neighbors as well as
the growing Irish immigrant population. Together with their friends the
Ellises, the Garie family becomes the target of vicious attacks by
George Stevens, a bigoted attorney looking to incite a race riot in the
city. Soon, tragedy strikes, exposing the deep-rooted divides of a
nation only a few years away from civil war. With a beautifully designed
cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Frank J.
Webb's The Garies and Their Friends is a classic work of African
American literature reimagined for modern readers.
