1
of
1
Passing
Series: Brief Encounters
Brief Description
Experience a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Nella Larsen and her devastating masterpiece of two women navigating a friendship in a racially divided world. The classic 1920s story of a friendship torn apart, Passing is Nella Larsen's devastating masterpiece. Irene Redfield is living a life of careful balance...
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2400
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Passing
$2400
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Latest News
The Team's Long Weekend Reading
With the long weekend upon us, the team is hopefully getting some time in the...
What Actually Makes a Jigsaw Puzzle Difficult?
Does more pieces always mean a harder puzzle? Not necessarily! After Dylan surprised me by...
A Court of Splintered Harmony: How to Get Your Copy on Release Day
A Court of Splintered Harmony is almost here, and we have some exciting news for...
The ACOTAR Countdown Is On, But We Need to Talk…
Last week, things started taking a dark turn. The excitement surrounding the release was suddenly...
Pick up a Graphic Novel for Halloween
Wanting something different for spooky season? Try a horror themed graphic novel! Lizzy has rounded...
See more
Experience a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Nella Larsen and her devastating masterpiece of two women navigating a friendship in a racially divided world.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
Experience a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Nella Larsen and her devastating masterpiece of two women navigating a friendship in a racially divided world.
The classic 1920s story of a friendship torn apart, Passing is Nella Larsen's devastating masterpiece.
Irene Redfield is living a life of careful balance in Harlem when a chance encounter draws her back into the orbit of Clare Kendry, a childhood friend. Passing as white, Clare moves effortlessly through a world that Irene has chosen to reject. Their renewed intimacy is charged with fascination and envy.
BRIEF ENCOUNTERS: classic novellas and captivating stories, to be read in a single sitting or savoured over days.
Series: Brief Encounters
View all-
A Gentle Spirit & A Faint Heart
Experience a brief encounter with Fyodor Dostoevsky, titan of Russian literature, in these two searing novellas of love, despair, and the weight of the human soul. Two of Dostoevsky's most powerful novellas of obsession, cruelty, and the fragility of the heart. A pawnbroker paces beside his young wife's body, attempting to piece together the circumstances that led to her suicide....Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
An Undesirable Friend
Enjoy a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Natsume Soseki, Japan's greatest modern novelist, in this sly, comic tale of cats, humans, and the absurdities of friendship. From Japan's most famous, classic novelist comes a remarkable gem of wit, irony, and feline observation. A stray kitten, catapulted to literary fame, loudly observes the world of Meiji Japan in all its absurdity. But he's...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
A Parish Chronicle
Experience a brief encounter with Halldór Laxness, the Nobel Prize-winning Icelandic author, in this rich, rustic and charming novel. An intimate, magical novel about one enduring church in a rural Icelandic valley—an ode to a quiet way of life now lost to time forever. The resting place of the legendary Viking warrior Egil Skallagrimsson's skull, Mosfell Church is a lonely,...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Ape and Essence
Relish a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Aldous Huxley, the visionary author, in his dystopian satire. Huxley's dystopian classic is a nightmare vision of the fate of humanity in a post-nuclear world. After a devastating global catastrophe, a group of scientists arrives in a ruined future shaped by fear, ritual, and violence. Humanity has survived—but at a terrible cost, and not in...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
A Souvenir of Japan
Embark on a brief encounter with Angela Carter, weird fiction's most influential pioneer, and her transformative stories of finding oneself in the face of another world. Five stories of desire and discovery set in 1970s Japan, from weird fiction's most influential pioneer - Angela Carter. An Englishwoman muses on her affair with a younger Japanese man. A spurned lover seeks...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Bartleby, The Scrivener
Enjoy a brief encounter with Herman Melville, the great, epic storyteller of Modern America, and his enduring tale of a man who takes refusing to conform to its extreme limits. Herman Melville's enduringly comic and affecting tale of a man who takes quiet quitting to its extreme. A new clerk in a Wall Street lawyer's office causes dismay and confusion...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Behind a Mask
Experience a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Louisa May Alcott, beloved chronicler of girlhood, in this surprisingly dark, subversive novella of deception and desire. This is Alcott as you have never seen her before – gothic, and gloriously unsettling. A young governess arrives at a grand country house and quickly wins the confidence of its family. Humble and modest, Jean Muir seems...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Bewitched
Experience a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Edith Wharton, grande dame of American letters, in these spectral tales of longing, loss, and the uncanny. Edith Wharton's ghost stories whisper of passion, exile, and the things we cannot forget. In an old Dorset house, a couple settle into a life of quiet comfort — until a presence makes itself felt. At a country...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Cain
Experience a brief encounter with José Saramago, the Nobel Prize-winning author, in his provocative and philosophical retelling of the biblical story of Cain. Written in the last years of Saramago's life, Cain is a controversial and witty story of a wilful, authoritarian God. After killing his brother, Cain is condemned to wander the earth. As he moves through time, he...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Dancing Lessons for the Advanced in Age
A trail-blazing, transportive novella that contains all the energy, history and charm of one man's lifetime, this is Bohumil Hrabal's most unique masterpiece. This ebullient, gallivanting novella encapsulates the world vision of the Czech Republic's best-loved author in one tumbling, breathtaking sentence. An ageing man holds court, spinning a single, unbroken stream of stories about his life—loves won and lost,...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Distant Star
Enjoy a brief encounter with Roberto Bolaño, the 21st century's first, great classic author, and his novella Distant Star—a dark, haunting, yet delightfully magical story of two poets outplaying one another in a sinister endgame of cat-and-mouse. A dazzling, daring tale of poets at the end of the world, Distant Star is Roberto Bolaño's miniature dystopian masterpiece. Alberto Ruiz-Tagle was...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Down by the Riverside
Relish a BRIEF ENCOUNTER with Richard Wright, trailblazing voice of African American literature, in this devastating story of survival, love and betrayal during a Southern flood. A flood brings not only rising waters but the full force of a brutal, racist world. With the Mississippi flooding, a Black farmer struggles to get his pregnant wife to safety. In the chaos,...Paperback$2400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781529981308
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 02 July 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Vintage Classics
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 13.0mm
Width: 129.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 126g
Pages: 160
About the Author
Nella Larsen (1891-1964) was an American novelist and major figure in the Harlem Renaissance. Born in Chicago, she attended university in Nashville and subsequently lived in Denmark and New York, where she worked as a nurse and librarian. Her two novels, Quicksand (1928) and Passing (1929), established her as one of the most important black female novelists in American history.
Also by Nella Larsen
View all-
Quicksand & Passing
A beautifully designed series that pays homage to the essential books of the most important and revolutionary Black arts movements in modern history. VINTAGE CLASSICS' HARLEM RENAISSANCE SERIES Celebrating the finest works of the Harlem Renaissance, one of the most important Black arts movements in modern history. 'She could neither conform nor be happy in her unconformity.' Nella Larsen wrote...Paperback$2400Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
Passing
Introducing Little Clothbound Classics - irresistible, mini editions of short stories, novellas and essays from the world's greatest writers, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. Clare Kendry, elegant, fair-skinned and ambitious, is married to a white man who is unaware of her African-American heritage. When she reunites with childhood friend Irene, who has not hidden her origins, both women are...Hardback$2400Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
Quicksand
Quicksand by Nella Larsen is a powerful first novel that evocatively portrays the racial and gender restrictions that can mark a life. Born to a white mother and an absent black father, and despised for her dark skin, Helga Crane has long had to fend for herself. As a young woman, Helga teaches at an all-black school in the South,...Paperback$2400Elsewhere:$2600Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Passing
As heard on Radio 4 and seen on Netflix, Nella Larsen's Passing is a distinctive and revealing novel about racial identity. Part of the Macmillan Collector's Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition of Passing features an...HardbackSold Out -
Quicksand & Passing
A writer of the Harlem Renaissance, Nella Larsen wrote just two novels, published here, and a handful of short stories. Critically acclaimed, both speak powerfully of the contradictions and restrictions experienced by black women at that time. Quicksand, written in 1928, is an autobiographical novel about Helga Crane, a mixed race woman caught between fulfilling her desires and gaining respectability...PaperbackSold Out
More from General Fiction
View all-
Yesteryear
A BOLD AND BITING SATIRE. WILL HAVE YOU GASPING TO THE FINAL PAGE — Nita Prose WICKEDLY FUNNY, BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AND FRIGHTENINGLY PERCEPTIVE — Abigail Dean INVENTIVE, ADDICTIVE, A WILD RIDE — Ashley Audrain SHOT THROUGH WITH HUMOUR AND LACED WITH DARKNESS — Clare Mackintosh The Stepford Wives meets The Handmaid's Tale — Hannah Deitch My name was Natalie Heller...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$3699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
Theo of Golden
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON'For anything to be truly good, there must be love in it. Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core.' One morning, a stranger arrives in the town of Golden. No one knows who he is or where he came from…His name is Theo and he's arrived there by chance –...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
17% offThe Wedding People
'BEST READ OF THE YEAR SO FAR' THE TIMES 'BOOKS AS FUN AS THIS ONE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN' GUARDIAN Phoebe Stone arrives at a grand beachside hotel in Rhode Island wearing her best dress and least comfortable shoes. Immediately she is mistaken for one of the wedding people — but she's actually the only guest at the Cornwall...Paperback$2000Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
New ReleaseThreshing Day
The next book in the blockbuster Empyrean series, Threshing Day contains thirteen stories starring your favorite characters and their dragons. The deluxe first edition includes sixteen beautiful original full-color illustrations by artist Joe Requeza. Rebecca Yarros is the #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over twenty novels, including Fourth Wing and In the...Hardback$6999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
A Court of Thorns and Roses Paperback Box Set (5 books)
All five of the Court of Thorns and Roses paperbacks packaged together in a gorgeous box set. "Passionate, violent, sexy and daring." —USA TODAY on A Court of Thorns and Roses Feyre is a huntress. The skin of a wolf would bring enough gold to feed her sisters for a month. But the life of a magical creature comes at...Set$9999Elsewhere:$12495Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
New ReleaseChain Reaction
Jack Reacher, \"the coolest continuing series character\" (Stephen King), returns in a brand new, pulse-pounding read from Lee and Andrew Child. The world’s bestselling hero is back in a brand new, high-octane adventure! ‘She knew that finding Reacher would not be easy . . .’ Washington DC. General Susan Turner needs help from the only guy she knows will get...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
A Court of Mist and Fury
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas continues Feyre Archeron's epic journey in the world of the High Fae. Having survived the brutal trials under the Mountain, Feyre returns to the Spring Court. Though she now possesses the immortal powers of the High Fae, the traumatic experiences have left scars on her human heart. Haunted by the...Paperback$2100Elsewhere:$2299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
A Court of Wings and Ruin
The third instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From multi-million and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas. In A Court of Wings and Ruin, the gripping third book of the ACOTAR series, Feyre Archeron faces the ultimate battle for her world. Having returned to the Spring Court, she is determined to gather...Paperback$2100Elsewhere:$2299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
A Court of Thorns and Roses
The first instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON and TikTok sensation, from multi-million selling and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas. Maas has established herself as a fantasy fiction titan – Time Harry Potter magic, Taylor Swift sass, Fifty Shades-level athleticism – The Sunday Times With bits of Buffy, Game of Thrones and Outlander, this is a glorious series...Paperback$2100Elsewhere:$2299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
Limited EditionA Court of Silver Flames - Night Court Edition
The magic and beauty of the Night Court is captured in these LIMITED EDITIONS of the Court of Thorns and Roses series! This Night Court Edition features the Night Court symbol on a striking black and silver foiled cover and includes black sprayed edges. The latest instalment of the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From multi-million...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
Limited Edition
A Court of Frost and Starlight - Night Court Edition
The magic and beauty of the Night Court is captured in these LIMITED EDITIONS of the Court of Thorns and Roses series! This Night Court Edition features the Night Court symbol on a striking black and silver foiled cover and includes black sprayed edges. An unmissable companion tale to the GLOBAL PHENOMENON, romantic fantasy epic and TikTok sensation, ACOTAR. From...Paperback$2300Elsewhere:$2799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday -
A Court of Frost and Starlight
In A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas, readers are invited to revisit the enchanting world of Prythian in a heartwarming and introspective narrative. Set against the backdrop of the Winter Solstice, Feyre Archeron and her mate Rhysand return to centre stage as they strive to restore the Night Court after the devastating conflicts of A Court...Paperback$2100Elsewhere:$2299Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips Tuesday
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
General Fiction lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
-
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Fiction about Fathers
Here are some incredible stories that explore various angles of fatherhood and father figures in the most poignant and wonderful ways. Featuring...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
What to read now you've watched The Odyssey
Contemporary fiction, classical non-fiction, feminist retellings, and inspired stories that would make for an interesting read now that you're obsessed with The...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Kevin's listGeneral Fiction
The Odyssey & Trojan War Classics (and Retellings)
Long before Christopher Nolan turned it into a blockbuster in the summer of 2026, The Odyssey was the original epic. After a...View the list -
![Tsubaki Stationery Store]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Have You Tried ... Healing Fiction
Healing Fiction is a relatively new genre still finding it's place, and yet people are reaching for it without realizing, desperate for...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Lizzy's Favourite Picks for Winter Reading
These are the books that Lizzy loves to read in Winter, or that feel like Winter. A combination of fiction, some non-fiction,...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listGeneral Fiction
Shirl's Favourite Books of 2026
The first half of 2026 has been packed with brilliant books, making it hard to choose favourites but here are a few...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Books to Escape a Reading Slump
A reading slump can be a frustrating feeling and hard to break out of, but we've gathered together a list of crowd...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![Star Shipped]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Lizzy's Pride Fiction Picks!
June marks Global Pride Month so in case you're looking for your next great fiction read, here's a list of some of...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Readers’ Top 100 Novels of All Time - from The Guardian
There was some controversy when The Guardian released their critics and authors list of the top 100 novels of all time, but...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listGeneral Fiction
Seasonal Reads - 10 Books for Autumn
If you haven't tried seasonal reading, Lizzy thinks you should. It's a way to romanticizing the current season rather than trying to...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Hannah's listGeneral Fiction
Gothic Reads for Dark Nights
With the advent of movie adaptations like Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, it looks like pop culture is seeing a revival of the...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
General Fiction
The 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Winners
Celebrate all the winners of the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Explore the powerful fiction of Ingrid Horrocks' 'All Her Lives',...View the list
