Nella Larsen's novel Passing, originally published in 1929, is an exploration of racial identity set in New York during the late 1920s. Young Irene Redfield lives a comfortable life in Harlem, but when she renews her friendship with Clare Kendry, she realises her friend has married a racist and "passes" as a white woman due to her light skin. Tension breeds between them and their husbands, culminating into a gripping thriller.