A HISTORY OF AMERICAN LITERATURE 1950 TO THE PRESENT
Featuring works from notable authors as varied as Salinger and the Beats
to Vonnegut, Capote, Morrison, Rich, Walker, Eggers, and DeLillo, A
History of American Literature: 1950 to the Present offers a
comprehensive analysis of the wide range of literary works produced in
the United States over the last six decades and a fascinating survey of
the dramatic changes during America's transition from the innocence of
the fifties to the harsh realities of the first decade of the new
millennium. Author Linda Wagner-Martin - a highly acclaimed authority on
all facets of modern American literature - covers major works of drama,
poetry, fiction, non- fiction, memoirs, and popular genres such as
science fiction and detective novels. Viewing works produced during this
fertile literary period from a wide-ranging perspective, Wagner-Martin
considers literature in relation to such issues as the politics of civil
rights, feminism, sexual preferences, and race- and gender-based
marketing. She also places a special emphasis on works produced during
the twenty-first century, and writings influenced by recent historic
events such as the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and the
global financial crisis. With its careful balance of scholarly precision
and accessibility, A History of American Literature: 1950 to the
Present provides readers of all levels with rich and revealing insights
into the diversity of literary forms and influences that characterize
postmodern America.
"A monumental distillation of an enormous range of material,
Wagner-Martin's rich book should be required reading for anyone
grappling with making sense of the prolific, broad-spectrum, and diverse
writing in the US since 1950."
Thadious M. Davis, University of Pennsylvania "Linda Wagner-Martin's
history impressively and judiciously surveys all fields of American
writing over the past sixty years, taking full account of significant
cultural and historical contexts and the major critical commentaries
that have helped shape our understanding of developments in the second
half of the last century and the dozen years following the millennium.
Balanced, informative, and always highly readable there is much here for
general readers, students, and specialists alike."
Christopher MacGowan, the College of William and Mary
