Louisiana has been home, by birth or adoption, to numerous literary greats. But among that talent, there's an under-celebrated cohort: Black women. Due to lack of education and opportunity, their record is fairly brief, but over the past century they have been responsible for a flowering of literature that portrays the Black experience through poetry, fiction, plays, essays and journalism. The writers profiled here have not gone wholly unrecognized though--far from it. Some have been honored with prestigious awards and have found a readership large enough to put them at the forefront of the national literary scene. Beginning with Alice Ruth Dunbar Nelson--a fiery activist, columnist and storyteller in the late nineteenth century--the work extends to Fatima Shaik, named 2021 Louisiana Writer of the Year. Join Ann B. Dobie on this celebration of Louisiana literary talent.
Follows a nineteenth-century woman of color as she makes pralines, then strolls through the French Quarter of New Orleans selling the sweets to passersby and shopkeepers. Includes historical note.
Increasingly disturbed by her inability to uncover the true identity of an old friend, New Orleans private investigator and poet Talba Wallis takes on a suspicious new client and encounters an ugly secret in the small town of Clayton, Louisiana.
"This invaluable volume, consisting of eleven critical and biographical essays and an extensive bibliography, represents a rich source of insight and information on Louisiana women writers past and present. The book focuses on an array of authors - from Grace King and Alice Dunbar-Nelson to Shirley Ann Grau and Ellen Gilchrist - associated with a state whose imaginative appeal is singular even in a region rife with mythologies." "The essays are linked by a common thread: the interaction of gender and place as a dynamic of significant critical interest. In the Introduction, Barbara C. Ewell details the fundamental issues, noting that writing about Louisiana, and writing as a Louisiana woman, involves writing about life at the margins - on the borderlines where dominant and muted cultures, role definition and identity, race and class, place and places impinge. She argues that the peculiar otherness of that experience, imposed onto the more familiar layers of southern myth, gender roles, and racial prejudice, distinguishes the contributions of this group of writers to the place that Louisiana occupies in the American psyche." "Rather than attempting to confirm a canon, these essays emphasize the diversity of Louisiana women writers. The critical approaches vary from specialized or speculative comments (such as the essays on Sarah Morgan Dawson and on Kate Chopin's "Desiree's Baby") to introductory or biographical treatments (such as those on Mollie Moore Davis and Berthe Amoss). Other writers considered in the volume include Sidonie de la Houssaye, Ada Jack Carver, Katherine Anne Porter, Sheila Bosworth, and Nancy Lemann." "The Bibliography provides an indispensable new tool for researchers and a fascinating guide for anyone interested in the rich legacy of Louisiana's women writers. It is the first major survey of Louisiana women writers in more than fifty years. Although chiefly limited to imaginative writing in English, it includes entries on some two hundred authors, making it the most complete available. The entries supply names and pen names, dates of birth and death, birthplaces and other biographical information, lists of works with available publication data, and lists of secondary sources." "Intended for both scholarly and casual readers, Louisiana Women Writers will stimulate renewed interest in a rich and vigorous body of literature."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
The inspiration for the acclaimed OWN TV series produced by Oprah Winfrey and Ava DuVernay "Queen Sugar is a page-turning, heart-breaking novel of the new south, where the past is never truly past, but the future is a hot, bright promise. This is a story of family and the healing power of our connections—to each other, and to the rich land beneath our feet." —Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage Readers, booksellers, and critics alike are embracing Queen Sugar and cheering for its heroine, Charley Bordelon, an African American woman and single mother struggling to build a new life amid the complexities of the contemporary South. When Charley unexpectedly inherits eight hundred acres of sugarcane land, she and her eleven-year-old daughter say goodbye to smoggy Los Angeles and head to Louisiana. She soon learns, however, that cane farming is always going to be a white man’s business. As the sweltering summer unfolds, Charley struggles to balance the overwhelming challenges of a farm in decline with the demands of family and the startling desires of her own heart.
A chance meeting with a handsome stranger turns into a whirlwind affair that gets everyone talking in this New York Times bestseller. Dating is the last thing on Olivia Monroe’s mind when she moves to LA to start her own law firm. But when she meets a gorgeous man at a hotel bar and they spend the entire night flirting, she discovers too late that he is none other than hotshot junior senator Max Powell. Olivia has zero interest in dating a politician, but when a cake arrives at her office with the cutest message, she can’t resist—it is chocolate cake, after all. Olivia is surprised to find that Max is sweet, funny, and noble—not just some privileged white politician, as she assumed him to be. Because of Max’s high-profile job, they start seeing each other secretly, which leads to clandestine dates and silly disguises. But when they finally go public, the intense media scrutiny means people are now digging up her rocky past and criticizing her job, even her suitability as a trophy girlfriend. Olivia knows what she has with Max is something special, but is it strong enough to survive the heat of the spotlight?
A Black Woman Did That! spotlights vibrant, inspiring black women whose accomplishments have changed the world for the better. A Black Woman Did That! is a celebration of strong, resilient, innovative, and inspiring women of color. Through vibrant illustrations and engaging storytelling, author Malaika Adero spotlights well-known historical figures including Ida B. Wells, Madam CJ Walker, Mae Jemison, and Shirley Chisholm, as well as contemporary stars including Kamala Harris, Stacey Abrams, Jesmyn Ward, Ava DuVernay, and Amy Sherald. Readers will recognize some names in the book, but will also be introduced to many important Black women who have changed history or who are reshaping the cultural landscape. They’ll learn: *how Barbara Harris became the first female bishop of the Episcopal Church *how Misty Copeland became the first Black principal dancer of the American Ballet Theater *how the work and inventions of Dr. Patricia Bath have saved or restored the eyesight of people around the world *how Shirley Chisolm changed the face of politics in America *how Glory Edim has turned her passion for reading into a thriving online community *and much more! .
African American women writers published extensively during the Harlem Renaissance and have been extraordinarily prolific since the 1970s. This book surveys the world of African American women writers. Included are alphabetically arranged entries on more than 150 novelists, poets, playwrights, short fiction writers, autobiographers, essayists, and influential scholars. The Encyclopedia covers established contemporary authors such as Toni Morrison and Gloria Naylor, along with a range of neglected and emerging figures. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and provides a brief biography, a discussion of major works, a survey of the author's critical reception, and primary and secondary bibliographies. Literature students will value this book for its exploration of African American literature, while social studies students will appreciate its examination of social issues through literature. African American women writers have made an enormous contribution to our culture. Many of these authors wrote during the Harlem Renaissance, a particularly vital time in African American arts and letters, while others have been especially active since the 1970s, an era in which works by African American women are adapted into films and are widely read in book clubs. Literature by African American women is important for its aesthetic qualities, and it also illuminates the social issues which these authors have confronted. This book conveniently surveys the lives and works of African American women writers. Included are alphabetically arranged entries on more than 150 African American women novelists, poets, playwrights, short fiction writers, autobiographers, essayists, and influential scholars. Some of these figures, such as Toni Morrison and Gloria Naylor, are among the most popular authors writing today, while others have been largely neglected or are recently emerging. Each entry provides a biography, a discussion of major works, a survey of the writer's critical reception, and primary and secondary bibliographies. The Encyclopedia closes with a selected, general bibliography. Students and general readers will welcome this guide to the rich achievement of African American women. Literature students will value its exploration of the works of these writers, while social studies students will appreciate its examination of the social issues these women confront in their works.
THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club Pick “There is so much to relate to and throughout the novel, there is a sharp feminist edge. Loved this one, and you will too.”—New York Times bestselling author Roxane Gay The New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding Date serves up a novel about what happens when a public proposal doesn't turn into a happy ending, thanks to a woman who knows exactly how to make one on her own... When someone asks you to spend your life with him, it shouldn't come as a surprise—or happen in front of 45,000 people. When freelance writer Nikole Paterson goes to a Dodgers game with her actor boyfriend, his man bun, and his bros, the last thing she expects is a scoreboard proposal. Saying no isn't the hard part—they've only been dating for five months, and he can’t even spell her name correctly. The hard part is having to face a stadium full of disappointed fans... At the game with his sister, Carlos Ibarra comes to Nik’s rescue and rushes her away from a camera crew. He’s even there for her when the video goes viral and Nik’s social media blows up—in a bad way. Nik knows that in the wilds of LA, a handsome doctor like Carlos can't be looking for anything serious, so she embarks on an epic rebound with him, filled with food, fun, and fantastic sex. But when their glorified hookups start breaking the rules, one of them has to be smart enough to put on the brakes...
From Attica Locke, a writer and producer of FOX’s Empire: “The Cutting Season is a rare murder mystery with heft, a historical novel that thrills, a page-turner that makes you think. Attica Locke is a dazzling writer with a conscience.”—Dolen Perkins-Valdez, New York Times bestselling author of Wench After her breathtaking debut novel, Black Water Rising, won acclaim from major publications and respected crime fiction masters like James Ellroy and George Pelecanos, Locke returns with The Cutting Season, a second novel easily as gripping and powerful as her first—a heart-pounding thriller that interweaves two murder mysteries, one on Belle Vie, a historic landmark in the middle of Lousiana’s Sugar Cane country, and one involving a slave gone missing more than one hundred years earlier. Black Water Rising was nominated for a Los Angeles Times Book Prize, an Edgar® Award, and an NAACP Image Award, and was short-listed for the Orange Prize in the U.K.
