Originally published in 1955, I can only imagine its reception as a revelatory song on the Black Experience with Harlem as its radiant center. Almost sixty-five years later, and with a fidelity to the quality and light of DeCarava's masterful prints, the newly released Heritage Edition, 2018, is a living document of faith and inspiration. It is a clarion call to the transformative power of the African-American Experience, and community, at large. Today, The Sweet Flypaper of Life, remains a seminal contribution in all of its struggle and beauty, feeling and magnitude. Grateful to finally feel its power.
—Steve Rivera
12.28.19
