The Walls of Jericho is the first novel written by Rudolph Fisher and it was a standout work when it was published in 1928. Black lawyer Fred Merrit buys a house in the white neighborhood near Harlem and must contend with the racism of his new neighbors, which is highlighted when he hires movers Jinx Jenkins and Bubber Brown to help him get into his new place. What ensues is a satire of jazz-age Harlem, exploring concepts of race and class that are still relevant today. Our edition includes four short stories originally published in The Atlantic: City of Refuge, The Promised Land, Ringtail, and Blades of Steel.

The Walls of Jericho was one of the most successful novels of the 1920s Harlem Renaissance. Rudolph Fisher's outstanding debut recounts the satirical journey of Black lawyer Fred Merrit, who buys a home in a white neighborhood bordering Harlem and encounters the racism of his new white neighbors as well as racism and classism among the residents of Black Harlem. This edition includes four of Fisher's short stories that capture the Jazz Age urban experience, initially published in the iconic magazine The Atlantic Monthly: "The City of Refuge," "Ringtail," "The Promised Land," and "Blades of Steel."
Fisher had a dual major in biology and English at Brown University, and he graduated from Howard University Medical School. He was one of the most gifted short story writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Langston Hughes called him the "wittiest of these New Negroes of Harlem."