Divided into three parts — spanning from 1981 to 1986 — Cool Machine traces the journey of the now more respectable and elderly Ray Carney, whose earlier business of dealing with stolen goods has been replaced — almost — by his furniture store
Chandrima Das Published 23.10.26, 10:01 AM
Sourced by the Telegraph
Book: COOL MACHINE
Author: Colson Whitehead
Published by: Fleet
Price: ₹799
The third instalment of Colson Whitehead’s Harlem Trilogy works both as a stand-alone novel and as a sequel (to Harlem Shuffle and Crook Manifesto). The trilogy takes the saga of the New York criminal underworld from the 1960s into the 1980s. Divided into three parts — spanning from 1981 to 1986 — Cool Machine traces the journey of the now more respectable and elderly Ray Carney, whose earlier business of dealing with stolen goods has been replaced — almost — by his furniture store. However, circumstances and the echoes of the past bring him back into the loop of criminal activities, and Carney embarks upon a journey in which we meet some of the well-known characters from the previous two novels and some new ones.
The Harlem Trilogy is as much about these characters as about New York City, primarily Manhattan and Brooklyn, and its changing face. From the graffiti painted on every possible surface to the demolition of old buildings to the construction of giant skyscrapers, it’s a city in the grip of an economic, political, and racial flux. As Carney contemplates, “Ethnic tribes arrived, struggled. Moved on. Were replaced by the next wave of strivers.” Carney refers to this force that moves everything as the “churn”. To his utter surprise, he discovers the City has a secret underground railroad, which was used by the high and mighty to reach places where they did not want to go by the more conventional routes. It’s a City under the City, ruled over by “Mayor Crotch”, and has now become a haunt for the likes of Uncle Rich, who uses it to pull off one last great heist before disappearing from the crime scene altogether,
Despite its portrayal of the underbelly of New York City, Cool Machine not only manages to evoke humour but also speculates on the emergence of the then-new art forms like Hip-hop and Rap. Neither is it sentimental or apologetic in its portrayal of crime, racial animosity, and the Mob. It paints a ruthless image of the criminal underworld, yet manages to foreground the players as believable human beings with real emotions.
Cool Machine is a page-turner. The action takes place, accompanied by sudden twists and turns, at a dizzying pace. With Whitehead’s characteristic blend of dark humour and vivid evocation of the past, it is a more-than-worthy conclusion to his trilogy.
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