Customer Reviews

The Companion to Southern Literature: Themes, Genres, Places, People, Movements, and Motifs (Southern Literary Studies)

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The Companion is a massive (1000+ pp)encyclopaedic approach to Southern literature (and culture, though The Companion makes no explicit claims toward tackling that subject). It has articles on people and works among other things, each authored by a wide variety of modern scholars. There is a wonderful index and a table of contents that arranges entries by groups (including Themes, Language, Religion, Music, etc.). The Companion is as current as any book of this type can be; thus, while the Companion contains entries on the Internet and some contemporary authors, both of these entries are destined to be somewhat dated even before the book hit the presses. It is a useful volume for students of Southern Literature, though, as with any encyclopedia, it must be considered as first-stop. The Companion refers readers to other texts and doesn't pretend to exhaust the subject matter of any of its entries. The Companion should also find favor with teachers who include (or want to include) Southern authors in their classrooms. The Companion provides instructors with quick reference contexts for many works that might profitably be included in a classroom.

This single volume, though hefty, is comprehensive. It has references from A-Z of everything--theme, genre, place, person, or movement--related to the South. If you are curious about the South, the development of Southern Literature, or the history of the region, it's in this book. You will be amazed at the wealth of information contained in this reference.