Daylight Come

“This admiring biography of Harry Belafonte captures the epic sweep of the long life of the entertainer and activist, who died in 2023 … Jelly-Schapiro demonstrates that the charismatic star, who shared a deep friendship with Martin Luther King Jr., was most interested in using his fame and wealth to advance the Civil Rights Movement.” —The Christian Science Monitor

“In this masterful biography, Jelly-Schapiro demonstrates Belafonte’s transformative influence on the Black freedom struggle … Ever relevant, ever challenging, ever passionate, Belafonte never stopped singing out for justice.” —Booklist, starred review

“Jelly-Schapiro portrays Belafonte as following his own political compass rather than appeasing the powerful or playing the inoffensive celebrity. Still, the author is clear-eyed … The book stresses how Belafonte inspired generations of Black artists and thinkers. But it’s what he did outside the spotlight that, conversely, makes his star shine brighter—and makes Daylight Come a memorable biography.” —BookPage

“A welcome biography of an artist and activist who left an enduring legacy.” —Kirkus

“Joshua Jelly-Schapiro’s Daylight Come takes us to places no biography in recent memory has. Through the discipline of research, and through love, Jelly-Schapiro’s far-reaching portrait of Harry Belafonte, one of the twentieth century’s greatest stars, is also the story of the bitter effects of colonialism and segregation, and the human desire and need to transcend both, the better to become a self. This book fills the heart and mind, and is essential reading for our times.” —Hilton Als

“Joshua Jelly-Schapiro is one of those rare writers who bridges worlds—between deep scholarship and gorgeous prose, between islands and mainlands, between big ideas and precise details, between history and possibility.” —Rebecca Solnit

“As graceful and arresting as its legendary subject, Joshua Jelly-Schapiro’s Daylight Come captures the sweep, majesty, barrier-breaking artistry and radical, grassroots dynamism of a pop culture icon who was also a Civil Rights change-maker and American visionary. Jelly-Schapiro’s deft ability to weave together large-scale history with an intimate and richly complex portrait of Harry Belafonte is a dazzling achievement. Reading Daylight Come is a reminder of just how singular and essential Belafonte was to both the making of our modern era and our ever-present dreams for a liberated Black world.” —Daphne A. Brooks

Joshua Jelly-Schapiro is a geographer and writer whose books include Names of New York: Discovering the City’s Past, Present, and Future Through Its Place-Names; Island People: The Caribbean and the World; and, with Rebecca Solnit, Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas. His work appears regularly in publications including The New Yorker, The New York Times, and The New York Review of Books. Jelly-Schapiro teaches journalism at New York University and is director of publishing at Pioneer Works in Brooklyn, where he hosts the popular Author Talks series and is coeditor in chief of Pioneer Works Broadcast.

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