The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature is designed to bring literature to life — and to make students lifelong readers. As an instructor of literature and writing, editor Michael Meyer understands that a particular challenge in today’s classroom is that students may not see literature as relevant to their lives. They may have difficulty reading it critically and lack confidence in their writing skills. With these factors in mind, Meyer has put together a lively collection of literature drawn from many periods, cultures, and voices, with an excellent representation of contemporary authors, women authors, and authors of color. These works are presented with more than a dozen chapters of critical reading and writing support, and a generous helping of sample close readings, writing assignments, and student papers. And, because everyone teaches a little differently, the book offers more options for working with the literature than any comparable anthology — including in-depth chapters on major authors and case studies on individual works and universal themes.
MICHAEL MEYER (Ph.D., University of Connecticut) has taught introductory writing and literature courses for almost 30 years -- since 1981 at the University of Connecticut and earlier at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and The College of William and Mary. Meyer's scholarly articles have appeared in American Literature, Studies in the American Renaissance, and Virginia Quarterly Review. An internationally recognized authority on Henry David Thoreau, he is a former president of the Thoreau Society and the co-author (with Walter Harding) of The New Thoreau Handbook, a standard reference source. His first book, Several More Lives to Live: Thoreau's Political Reputation in America, was awarded the Ralph Henry Gabriel Prize by the American Studies Association. In addition to several introductory literature texts for Bedford/St. Martin's, Meyer is also editor of Frederick Douglass: The Narrative and Selected Writings and the author of The Little, Brown Guide to Writing Research Papers.
