The blacker the berry : $b a novel of negro life

The Blacker the Berry: A Novel of Negro Life (1929) is a novel by American author Wallace Thurman that tells the story of Emma Lou Morgan, a young black woman with dark skin. It begins in Boise, Idaho and follows Emma Lou in her journey to college at USC and a move to Harlem, New York City for work. Set during the Harlem Renaissance, the novel explores Emma Lou's experiences with colorism, discrimination by lighter-skinned African Americans due to her dark skin. She learns to come to terms with her skin color in order to find satisfaction in her life. (This summary is from Wikipedia.)