Jesse McCarthy

Jesse McCarthy is an American essayist, cultural critic, and assistant professor in English and African-American studies at Harvard University.

Non-fiction
He is the author of Who Will Pay Reparations on My Soul?, an essay collection addressing questions such as: “What do people owe each other when debts accrued can never be repaid?”

Fiction
His debut novel, The Fugitivities, was released June 2021. It's the story of Jonah Winters, a young black man forming his identity, with parts of the story in Brooklyn, Brazil, Montevideo and Paris. He cites Gustave Flaubert's Sentimental Education as an important source of inspiration.

Editor
Jesse McCarthy is the key editor of many works. These include:
 * Minor Notes Volume 1 (Penguin, 2023), with an introduction by Tracy K Smith
 * The Souls of Black Folk (Norton Library, 2022)

Awards
McCarthy was recipient of a literary Whiting Award 2022 (50.000 US Dollar) in the category non-fiction for his essay collection Who Will Pay Reparations on My Soul? granted by the Whiting Foundation in Brooklyn, New York City.