Juneteenth is an unfinished novel, shaped by an editor after Ellison's death from the large body of manuscript he left. It centres on two men: Alonzo Hickman, a Black jazz musician turned preacher, and Adam Sunraider, a white-passing senator who was raised in Hickman's care. When the senator is in danger, Hickman tries to reach him, and the story moves back and forth through memory, sermon and speech. It follows their shared past, touching on religion, performance, family and the tangled history of race in America. The book gives readers a glimpse of Ellison's long second project and his interest in voice and storytelling.