Gwendolyn Brooks (June 7, 1917 – December 3, 2000) was a highly awarded American poet whose works included sonnets and ballads as well as blues rhythm in free verse. She also created lyrical poems, some of which were book-length.
Arguably her most famous poem is the brief, much-anthologized “We Real Cool,” but it would be sad to stop with this brief but memorable poem — her career as a working poet was rich and varied.
Though her work reflected urban Black life, its underlying themes were universal to the human experience. Gwendolyn Brooks’ lifetime output encompassed more than twenty books, including children’s books. Read More→
Pearl S. Buck (June 26, 1892 – March 6, 1973), was an American author of fiction and nonfiction, as well as a humanitarian and human rights advocate. She was the first American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
Born Pearl Sydenstricker in Hillsboro, West Virginia, she was the daughter of Southern Presbyterian missionaries. Her parents had spent much of their years of marriage, from about 1880 on, in China.
They returned to the U.S. shortly before Pearl was born, then, when she was just five months old returned to China, settling in Zhenjiang, a town near Nanking. Read More→
Georgia Douglas Johnson’s first poems were published in the NAACP’s magazine, The Crisis, in 1916. She published four poetry collections: The Heart of a Woman (1918), Bronze (1922), An Autumn Love Cycle (1928), and after a long gap, Share My World (1962).
Though considered an important participant in the Harlem Renaissance movement, Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880 – 1966) was never a New York City resident. Georgia and her family lived in Washington, D.C. Their house on S Street NW came to be known as the “S Street Salon” — a satellite of sorts for writers of the movement visiting in the nation’s segregated capital.
Among the colleagues who were regular visitors were the leading lights of the Renaissance: Langston Hughes, Jean Toomer, Alain Locke, and many of the noted women writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Read More→
As a Black woman science fiction writer, Octavia E. Butler (1947 – 2006) blazed a trail when she broke through the then-white male-dominated genre. Here we’ll delve into some fascinating facts about Octavia E. Butler.
In her New York Times obituary, she was described as “an internationally acclaimed science fiction writer whose evocative, often troubling novels explore far-reaching issues of race, sex, power, and ultimately, what it meant to be human.”
It wasn’t easy to break into publishing, but after publishing some short stories, Octavia’s first novel was Patternmaster (1976). It was the first in what would become a four-volume series. Central to these novels are Patternists, people with telepathic powers. Read More→
Simone de Beauvoir (January 9, 1908 – April 14, 1986), born Simone-Lucie-Ernestine-Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir, was a French author, existential philosopher, political activist, feminist, and social theorist. Her most enduring work is The Second Sex (1949).
Born in Paris, de Beauvoir was deeply religious in her youth. She intended to become a nun until a crisis of faith at age fourteen resulted in her becoming an atheist. This remained central to her philosophy for the rest of her life.
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Louisa May Alcott (1832 – 1888) is best known as the author of Little Women and its sequels, including Jo’s Boys and Little Men, though the scope of her work goes far beyond these beloved books. Following is a selection of quotes from Little Women that remind us why the classic novel is so timeless.
In 1868, Louisa’s publisher offhandedly asked that she try writing a “girls’ story” for their list. Thinking little of the request, she cranked it out in two and a half months, though her heart wasn’t in it. Neither she nor her publisher thought it was in any way remarkable.
In addition to her literary pursuits, Louisa May Alcott was also known for promoting women’s rights and campaigning for women’s suffrage. In Little Women and subsequent novels, she expresses her views through her characters, in their dialogues and actions.
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While this is by no means an exhaustive list of classic feminist authors, it’s easy to argue that these women writers (who are no longer with us) were all visionaries in their unique ways. Fortunately, many more women writing today weave their feminist views into their fiction and nonfiction works.
It’s safe to say that they stand on the shoulders of those presented here. Are there any others you would have included in this list? Who are today’s leading feminist authors? Read More→
Daphne du Maurier (1907 – 1989) was a British novelist, playwright, and short story writer.
As the author of romantic suspense thrillers, she’s arguably best known for Rebecca (1938), though Jamaica Inn, My Cousin Rachel, and the short story “The Birds” (which inspired the terrifying 1963 film are close contenders.
Initially, some reviewers dismissed Rebecca as “women’s fiction,” or mere gothic romance. But with the benefit of decades of perspective, it’s viewed as a masterful psychological thriller. Read More→
