From School Library Journal
Grade 9 Up-These 350 essays on writers and movements from the 1600s to the present illuminate the richness of American literature. Each writer entry (representing a diverse array of mostly 20th-century novelists, poets, short-story writers, playwrights, and essayists) provides biographical information along with historical perspectives and social context, analysis of long-term literary impact, and a list of works and suggestions for further reading. Longer essays, such as the 10-page article on Stephen Crane, provide criticism on selected works and may be followed by one of the 45 "master works" essays on a notable title, e.g., a five-page critical analysis dedicated to Crane's
The Red Badge of Courage. Most entries include a portrait. The 50-plus essays on themes and movements ("Academic Novels" to "Writing as a Woman in the Twentieth Century") provide genre overviews. Volume one includes a comprehensive list of articles, a chronology that highlights historical parallels to literary works and authors, and a topical outline. An essential cumulative index appears in volume four. As in any limited collection of notables, second guessers will inevitably question the inclusion of some writers, works, and movements over others (why not an essay on humor?). More accessible than the chronological
Encyclopedia of American Literature (Facts On File, 2002), and more concise than the "American Writers" literary biography series (Scribners),
Oxford provides a wealth of reliable information on standard bearers of American literature in an easy-on-the-eyes format for students and general readers.
-Mary Ann Carcich, Hampton Bays Public Library, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
This encyclopedia brings together 350 signed, alphabetically arranged essays on American literature from the colonial period to the present. The essays, although written by scholars for a general readership, vary in both length (between 2 and 14 pages) and sophistication (some are appropriate only for the undergraduate level and above). The majority of well-known American authors in the canon are surveyed here, including favorites such as Faulkner, Frost, Hawthorne, Melville, Salinger, and Whitman. Author essays discuss both biographical and critical aspects of the writer and include a bibliography of major works, followed by a list of briefly annotated secondary sources. Forty-five of the entries are critical readings of notable texts that often get studied in the classroom, such as
The Bell Jar, The Sun Also Rises, and
To Kill a Mockingbird. Fifty-two of the essays are on literary movements like the Black Arts movement, literary periods such as the Harlem Renaissance, and themes such as detective fiction or war literature. All essays have a bibliography for further reading, and most essays are accompanied by one of 250 black-and-white illustrations. Where applicable,
see also references are placed at the end of essays. Other features include a chronology starting with 1607 that juxtaposes select literary works with historical context; a topical outline; a directory of contributors; and a good index leading to both authors and titles.
The Oxford encyclopedia set does a wonderful job of covering American literature's core in depth but does not have a fully comprehensive range. In his preface, the editor notes that "in any work of this kind, exclusion is necessary," but that "every effort was made to include subjects who might interest high school and college students as well as the general reader." In particular, a number of important contemporary figures seem to be missing. For example, John Guare is mentioned only in relationship to Edward Albee's far-reaching influence, and Paul Auster and Stephen Millhauser are mentioned only in relationship to E. L. Doctorow's inspiration for younger writers. There is no mention of John Kennedy Toole at all.
When compared to other similar sources, Oxford is intrinsically better but lacks the same breadth. The Encyclopedia of American Literature (Facts On File, 2002), a three-volume set, offers broader coverage within 1,500 briefer entries but has ineffective cross-references and no cumulative index. A cheaper, single-volume option, the Continuum Encyclopedia of American Literature (2003), also has a better selection of contemporary American authors but an index that doesn't cover titles. The oxford set is praiseworthy and recommended for most high-school, public, and academic libraries, though it needs to be used in conjunction with other, more comprehensive resources. It should be noted that supplements are promised in the preface, to take up additional authors as well as movements and texts. RBB
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
