The Hazeley Family (Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers) [Paperback]

Mrs A. E. Johnson (Author), Barbara Christian (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers | Publication Date: April 9, 1992

When The Hazeley Family was first published by the American Baptist Publication Society in 1894, it was advertised as "a book that should be in every Sunday-School Library." A novel set in the North, The Hazeley Family is somewhat typical of the "angel of the home" romances written by American women during the latter half of the nineteenth century--except that the author is a black woman. The book is based on the belief that "a happy home is the acme of human bliss," and that women are central to the achievement of that acme. It is the moral fiber of Flora Hazeley, the central character, that keeps her family together--a constant concern in Afro-American literature and life. Featuring "nonracial" characters, this novel exemplifies one of the various tactics that many black writers used to overcome the racial stereotypes demanded by the white literary establishment.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An extraordinary representation...The Schomburg Library of Nineteenth-Century Black Women Writers allows us for the first time to see clearly the full dimensions of the literary achievements of black women....The voices of these black women provide a stunning new collective portrait of the Afro-American rise from slavery to freedom....This magnificent project will dramatically change the landscape of Afro-American literature and American cultural history."--Eric J. Sundquist, The New York Times Book Review

"The collaboration among The Schomburg Library, Oxford University Press and these exceptional scholars is an extraordinary event--but the collection is a spectacular achievement."--Toni Morrison

"What an astonishing gift--to scholars, to readers, to historians and lovers of literature, to people in general--this collection is! These buried voices now coming into the light; those haunting faces. The words that tell us so passionately and truthfully where we have been, where we might go. To have all of these black women writers' works together in one collection seems almost a fabulous dream."--Alice Walker

"A literary treasure-chest...For scholars in nearly every field in the humanities, it is a gold mine, but it is particularly valuable for those teaching and writing about Afro-American women's literature, women's literature or American literature. Indeed, it is a collection we will have to turn to again and again...For the writing that it makes accessible to us, for the connections it encourages us to make, and for the necessary work it inspires us to continue, their is reason to celebrate. Here is not just one voice, but many--all lifted in a collective song of work, commitment and exhortation to pass it on."--The Women's Review of Books

"The amount of rediscovered material is staggering."--The Christian Science Monitor

"A literary treasure-chest...For scholars in nearly every field in the humanities, it is a gold mine, but it is particularly valuable for those of us teaching and writing about Afro-American women's literature, women's literature or American literature. Indeed, it is a collection we will have to turn to again and again....For the writing that it makes accessible to us, for the connections it encourages us to make, and for the necessary work it inspires us to continue, there is reason to celebrate. Here is not just one voice, but many--all lifted in a collective song of work, commitment and exhortation to pass it on."--The Women's Review of Books

"In an editorial feat of epic proportions, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has...reinstated black literary ancestresses to their positions of prominence. This handsome, 30-volume collection of autobiographies, essays, fiction, and poetry will change the way we read Afro-American literature."--The Village Voice

"A major event in both historical and literary publishing."--Georgia Historical Quarterly

"The massive publishing program, established in collaboration with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, will contain the work of a generation of black women that, until now, has been available only in rare book collections."--Publishers Weekly

"While scholars are saving enough to buy their own set, any research library that pretends to serve them will have to acquire it."--American Literature

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Barbara Christian, University of California, Berkeley.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (April 9, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195075773
• ISBN-13: 978-0195075779
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,589,672 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)