100 Most Popular African American Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies

(Hardback)

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Description

Here's a one stop resource, containing 100 profiles of your favorite contemporary African American writers, along with complete lists of their works. Focusing on writers who have made their mark in the past 25 years, this guide stresses African American writers of popular and genre literature-from Rochelle Alers and Octavia Butler, and Samuel Delaney to Walter Mosley, and Omar Tyree, with a few classic literary giants also included. Short profiles provide an overview of the author's life and summarize his or her writing accomplishments. Many are accompanied by black-and-white photos of the author. The biographies are followed by a complete list of the author's published works. Where can you find information about popular, contemporary African American authors Web sites can be difficult to locate and unreliable, particularly for some of the newer authors, and their contents are inconsistent and often inaccurate. Although there are a number of reference works on African American writers, the emphasis tends to be on historical and literary authors. Here's a single volume containing 100 profiles of your favorite contemporary African American writers, along with lists of their works. Short profiles provide an overview of the author's life and summarize his or her writing accomplishments. Many are accompanied by black-and-white photos of the author. The biographies are followed by a complete list of the author's published works. Focusing on writers who have made their mark in the past 25 years, this guide covers African American writers of popular and genre literaturefrom Rochelle Alers, Octavia Butler, and Samuel Delaney to Walter Mosley, Omar Tyree, and Zane. A few classic literary giants who are popular with today's readers are also includede.g., Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison, and Richard Wright. Readers who want to know more about their favorite African American authors or find other books written by those authors, students researching AA authors for reports and papers, and educators seeking background information for classes in African American literature will find this guide invaluable. (High school and up.)

Reviews

This book should appeal to a variety of readers. Included along with such standard figurs as Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou, and Alice Waters are newer or lesser-known authors. A useful tool for librarians and readers alike, this book is recommended for all collections. * Public Libraries *
Teachers, librarians, and students will find this easy-to-read volume useful in identifying and reading about popular African American authors' backgrounds and their works. * American Reference Books Annual *
Of interest to high school readers and older, this volume consists of profiles of 100 popular, contemporary African American authors, mostly those who have become prominent in the past 25 years, but with some seminal figures such as Alex Haley, Langston Hughes, and Zora Neale Hurston. The profiles, which are presented alphabetically, provide brief biographies and discussions of their works, along with complete lists of their publications. Authors were chosen with an emphasis on popular fiction, durability, and US orientation in mind. * Reference & Research Book News *
This great resource covers African-American writers from the well known to the up and coming and covers genres from poetry to contemporary literature and everything in between. This reference is intended to cover popular authors of the last 25 years.Each entry is clear, well organized, and complete with background information about the author's inspiration, influences, adult life, and writing aspirations. A Benchmark Title is included for each author as is a comprehensive bibliography of his or her work.This reference would be invaluable for any school requiring the use of concise African-American author information and review of critical analysis. Recommended. * Library Media Connection *

Author Bio

Bernard A. Drew is a freelance writer/editor and book author of numerous articles and books, including 100 Most Popular Young Adult Authors (Libraries Unlimited, 2002) and 100 Most Popular Genre Authors (Libraries Unlimited, 2005).