Courtside

Abstract

In 1973, following the publication of his first three novels, John Edgar Wideman informed interviewer John O’Brien that he was working on a book about basketball. It seemed a natural direction given Wideman’s background. As a former star on the University of Pennsylvania’s basketball team, Wideman balanced his athletic talents with his scholarly and creative pursuits. His university academic record culminated with a Rhodes scholarship. A stellar achievement by anyone’s measure, Wideman’s success was even more exceptional given his family’s economic status. Growing up on the troubled streets of the Homewood section of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, informed his skills both as a player and as a storyteller. A two-time winner of the PEN/Faulkner award for fiction, Wideman has established a career noted for its unflinching portraits of the often violent realities associated with the African American community. Many of Wideman’s novels and autobiographical pieces consider both the triumph and tragedy of urban African American families and the racism that continues to impact their daily lives. His first novel, A Glance Away, was published in 1967 at the height of the civil rights movement. Hurry Home and The Lynchers followed in 1970 and 1973, respectively.