Hachette India

Bailey's Cafe

Gloria Naylor

Irenosen Okojie

WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION BY IRENOSEN OKOJIE

'Gloria Naylor is gifted with timeless wisdom, bottomless empathy, and limitless language. Her novels will shine a light for readers and writers for generations to come' TAYARI JONES

'A virtuoso orchestration of survival, suffering, courage and humour' New York Times Book Review

In postwar Brooklyn, on a quiet backstreet, there's a little place that draws people from all over - not for the food, and definitely not for the coffee. An in-between place that's only there when you need it, Bailey's Cafe is a crossroads where patrons stay for a while before making a choice: Move on or check out?

There's Sadie, the ladylike alcoholic with a mania for cleanliness; Sweet Esther, who caters to unspeakable appetites in a nearby 'boarding house', taking payment only in white roses; and Mariam, the Ethiopian child who may be the bearer of a miracle. Naylor's breath-taking novel is an enthralling fusion of lives whose courage, mystery and humour suggest nothing less than a blues tapestry of America.

'Gloria Naylor was one of the greatest novelists who ever lived. She holds a hallowed place in the canon, and also in hearts, minds, bodies, and spirits' ROBERT JONES, Jr., author of The New York Times bestselling novel, The Prophets

Classification : General & Literary Fiction
Pub Date : MAY 14, 2026
Imprint : Virago
Page Extent : 272
Binding : PB
ISBN : 9780349016191
Price : INR 999

Gloria Naylor

Gloria Naylor (1950-2016) was born in New York City. She received her B.A. in English from Brooklyn College and her M.A. in Afro-American studies from Yale. Her books include The Women of Brewster Place, which won both the American Book Award and the National Book Award for first novel and was also adapted into a film by Oprah Winfrey; Linden Hills; Mama Day; Bailey's Cafe and The Men of Brewster Place. She taught writing and literature at George Washington University, New York University, Boston University, and Cornell University.

Irenosen Okojie

Irenosen Okojie is a Nigerian British author whose work pushes the boundaries of form, language and ideas. Her novels, Butterfly Fish and Curandera, and short story collections, Speak Gigantular and Nudibranch, have won and been nominated for multiple awards. She won the 2020 AKO Caine Prize for her short story 'Grace Jones'. Her journalism has been featured in the New York Times, the Observer, the Guardian and the Huffington Post. She was a contributing editor for And Other Stories. She co-presented the BBC's Turn Up for The Books podcast alongside Bastille frontman Dan Smith and Simon Savidge. Her work has been optioned for the screen. She has also judged various literary prizes including being chair of judges for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the RSL Fellowship election panel. She was a judge for the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction. Formerly the vice chair of the Royal Society of Literature, she was named a visionary artist in Red magazine's 'The next 25 visionaries to watch' and awarded an MBE for services to Literature. She is the founder and director of Black to the Future Festival.

Bailey's Cafe

Gloria Naylor

Irenosen Okojie

Gloria Naylor

Irenosen Okojie

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