A Bibliographical Guide to African-American Women Writers

(Hardback)

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Description

The most complete record of the literary achievement of black American women, this bibliography documents the works of and works about 900 writers from Theresa Williams Abram to Sister Zubena. Chronologically spanning the output from Lucy Terry's poem of 1746 to best sellers and obscure publications of 1991, it includes such stellar figures as Phillis Wheatley, Frances E. W. Harper, Jessie Redmon Fauset, Zora Neale Hurston, Gwendolyn Brooks, Lorraine Hansberry, Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, and Terry McMillan. Considerable effort has been made to seek out products of small presses and unindexed periodicals. The thousands of primary sources are complemented by thousands of secondary sources. These appear directly with each author's entry, with cross references to separate sections for General Works and Anthologies. A comprehensive author index brings together primary and secondary sources.

Reviews

A Bibliographical Guide to African-American Women Writers is an important research tool because it provides access to so many writers and is recommended for academic and large public libraries. * Booklist Reference Books Bulletin *
This compilation provides access to an array of primary and secondary source materials by and about 900 African-American women, writers. Inclusiveness is the hall-mark of this bibliography. Jordan lists authors of all genres-poetry, novels, essays, memoirs, and plays-from more than two centuries of American literary history. a commendable effort to organize useful, but often hard to find, material on a large number of famous and little-known African-American women writers. This book belongs on the reference shelf of academic and large public libraries. * RQ Spring 1994 *
. . . Since this spans more than two centuries and because it treats many more writers than . . . much of its useful information augments bibliographic access to these creative women's works and to readers' responses to those works. . . . students of African American women writers . . . should be grateful for the timesaving guidance it offers. * Wilson Library Bulletin *
. . . the most complete record of the literary achievement of black American women, this bibliography documents the works of and about 900 writers from Theresa Williams Abram to Sister Zubena. * 0B0CALA News *
The only work that covers so vast an array of African American women writers; highly recommended for all libraries. * Choice *

Author Bio

CASPER LEROY JORDAN, a librarian, educator, and scholar of black studies, retired as Deputy Director of the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library and was formerly Associate Professor in the Atlanta University School of Library and Infomation Studies. Many of his publications focus on black librarianship, the black experience in America, and black achievements in the arts. He was a contributor to The Encyclopedia of Library Information Science, the Dictionary of American Librarians, the Handbook of Black Librarianship, Ethnic Genealogy, Notable Black American Women, and Famous Black Firsts.