“McFadden’s lively and loving rendering of New York hews closely to the jazz-inflected city of myth. . . . McFadden has a wonderful ear for dialogue, and her entertaining prose equally accommodates humor and pathos.”
—New York Times Book Review

“Bernice L. McFadden’s novel Glorious, which starts with a bang-up prologue, has a strong main character (based in part on Zora Neale Hurston), hard-driving prose, and historic sweep of several decades, including the years of the Harlem Renaissance, which has always fascinated me.”
—Jane Ciabattari, National Book Critics Circle President

“The book is sweeping in scope and brings to life the tenuous existence of an African-American artist in the early 20th century.”
—Vogue (Italian edition)

“I hadn’t read a word of hers before [Glorious], but I will follow her from now on.”
—Alan Cheuse, NPR

“The novel is so intense and sweeping at the same time. Some of the scenes were terrifying, and some were very comic in the irony of what the narrator was experiencing and what she was actually thinking. The word for a journey like this is picaresque, but the ever-impending tragedy makes that word not quite right for this book.”
—Susan Straight, author of A Million Nightingales

“A wonderful, rich read full of passion, history, wonder, and women you will recognize: Glorious is just that.”
—Jill Nelson, author of Volunteer Slavery and Let’s Get It On

“The seeming inevitability of cruel fate juxtaposes the triumph of the spirit in this remarkably rich and powerful novel. Bernice McFadden’s fully realized characters are complicated, imperfect beings, but if ever a character were worthy of love and honor, it is her Easter Bartlett. This very American story is fascinating; it is also heartbreaking, thought-provoking, and beautifully written.”
—Binnie Kirshenbaum, author of The Scenic Route

Glorious was a finalist for the 2011 NAACP Image Award for Fiction