When Washington Was in Vogue by Edward Christopher Williams

I'm a sucker for lost manuscript stories whether it's a brilliant piece of literature such as Suite Française by Irene Nemirovsky or the fun read of a Red Leather Diary by Lily Koppel. The back story of When Washington Was in Vogue grabbed me: lost manuscript with initmate, first-hand details about Washington DC's black high society in the jazz age. I couldn't put it down.

Told entirely through letters from Captain Davy Carr to his old army buddy, the exquisite details capture the social mores of black and white Washington. The manuscript found in a microfiche vault by Adam McKible who was doing research for his Ph.D. The story of upper-middle class mores, well-written and charming wasn't of interest to publishers until McKible put the pieces together: published in 1926 and 1927 as a serial in The Messenger, a literary magazine from the Harlem Renaissance, it was written by Edward Christopher Williams, the country's first professionally trained black librarian.

The captain, a World War I vet visiting Washington DC to research the history of the slave trade, writes of his experiences among the African American elite. Color is not mentioned as a black/white issue, but as a matter of shades of brown, mostly by and about the women. Light-skinned women were a much sought after prize and dark ones tragically overlooked, so it's especially intriguing that Caroline Rhodes, the daughter of Davy Carr's host, is dark, vivacious, and utterly compelling--to the reader and to the captain. She's the jazz baby--funny, fast, and frivilous. He's sober, serious, and intent on instructing Caroline on proper behavior for young ladies.

While political commentary is thrown in, When Washington Was in Vogue is at heart a love story. Fascinating people, interesting conversations, conventions among the Rhodes family elite social circle, and a mysterious trip to the seamy gangsters' world in Baltimore make this an engaging, enlightening read.