Nettie Jones, Once Overlooked Author, Now Getting Her Due with Reissue of ‘Fish Tales’

Nettie Jones, a fiercely original voice in Black literature, is receiving long-overdue recognition with the reissue of her once-controversial 1984 novel Fish Tales. The shockingly erotic, semi-autobiographical story—originally published by Toni Morrison during her time as an editor at Random House—centers on a restless woman navigating sex, drugs, and emotional volatility in 1970s Detroit and New York. Though it made a splash upon release, the book fell out of print, and Jones’s career dimmed amid personal struggles, including addiction and housing instability. Now 84 and sober, Jones is experiencing a literary resurgence, with Fish Tales drawing praise from contemporary writers and gaining international publication. Jones, who continues working on her long-shelved third novel Puma, says the timing of this recognition feels just right: “I knew it would happen.”

Advertisements

Source: NYTimes