Mumbo Jumbo
Spanning a dizzying host of genres, from cinema to academia to mythology, Mumbo Jumbo is a lively ride through a key decade of American history the 1920's. In addition to ragtime, blues, and jazz, Reed's allegory draws on the Harlem Renaissance, the Back to Africa movement, and America's occupation of Haiti. His style throughout is as avant-garde and vibrant as the music at its center. From New Orleans to Chicago to New York, the "Jes Grew" epidemic makes people desperate to dance, overturning social norms in the process.
Themes & atmosphere
What you might want to know about Mumbo Jumbo
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
In the 1920s, a contagious dance and music called Jes Grew spreads from New Orleans through the country. Detective PaPa LaBas tries to find its lost text, while a centuries-old white-supremacist order tries to bury it.
Mumbo Jumbo was written by Ishmael Reed and published in 1972. Reed is a foundational figure in Black postmodern literature, and Mumbo Jumbo is widely considered his masterpiece.
Yes. Mumbo Jumbo blends multiple genres, including detective fiction, mythology, and academic-style footnotes, and includes images and historical documents within the text. It is widely studied as a postmodern landmark.
Mumbo Jumbo is 223 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Mumbo Jumbo takes most readers 3 to 5 hours to finish.
Mumbo Jumbo is a standalone novel by Ishmael Reed, not part of a series.
Mumbo Jumbo is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.