A Little Devil in America by Hanif Abdurraqib review â a celebration of black performance From Josephine Baker to Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson to Dave Chapelle ⦠a freewheeling collection of essays explores black culture in the US Aretha Franklin on The Andy Williams Show in 1969. Photograph: NBC/NBC via Getty Images Aretha Franklin on The Andy Williams Show in 1969. Photograph: NBC/NBC via Getty Images Thu 22 Apr 2021 02.30 EDT Hanif Abdurraqib got into writing through the poetry slam circuit in Columbus, Ohio, which might explain why reading A Little Devil in America, his book of essays on black culture, feels like hearing him speak. He addresses the reader and skates between subjects. He might consider astrology, Michael Jackson,