African American Literature Guides and Encyclopedias

The Afro-Spanish American Author: Annotated bibliography of works by and criticism of Afro-Spanish American authors from the 1800s to present day. Includes lists of authors by country and by time period.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef Z1609.L7 J32

Black Literature Criticism: Gale Literary Criticism Series. Broad selection of criticism of major international black writers of the past 200 years. Focuses on historical survey of critical responses to each author. Multiple volumes. Willis Library 1st floor GenRef PS153.N5 B556 1992

Modern African American Writers: Essential Biography of American Fiction Series. Bibliography of works by and about African American writers who are representative of their culture and are also literary artists.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef Z1229.N39 M63 1994

Modern Black Writers: Focuses on significant writers of the 1980s and 1990s as well as entries and analyses of older authors. Includes popular authors. Has a critics index.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef PN841.M58 2000

Oxford Companion to African American Literature: Explores the scholarship, interpretation, and cultural context of African American literature. Alphabetical entries include biographies, major works and characters, and critical essays. Includes an index.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef PS153.N5 O96 1997

The Schomburg Center Guide to Black Literature: Ready reference on authors, major works and characters, themes, and theories related to black literature from the 18th century to the present. Includes American and international authors. Has a master chronology and subject index.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef Z1039.B56 V36 1995

Twentieth Century Caribbean and Black African Writers: Dictionary of Literary .Biography, vol. 157 ( two earlier volumes, 117 and 125). Focuses on younger generation of writers as well as significant older writers. Extensive biographical, critical, and bibliographical information on each author.  Willis Library 1st floor GenRef PS221.D52, V. 157

Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and about Women of Color A collection consisting of essays with an acknowledged feminist/womanist perspective. It also contains biographies of those male writers who have dealt with themes from feminist perspectives, as well as important works, movements, periods, genres, and events relevant to the literature. Each author profile is followed by a list of selected works by and about the subject. Willis Library 1st floor Gen Ref PS153.N5 W756 2006