MARKOVICS, Joyce . Lorraine Hansberry . ISBN 9781684506682 . MARKOVICS, Joyce . Maya Angelou . ISBN 9781684506705 . MARKOVICS, Joyce . Octavia E. Butler . ISBN 9781684506699 . MARKOVICS, Joyce . Toni Morrison . ISBN 9781684506712 . MARKOVICS, Joyce . Zora Neale Hurston . ISBN 9781684506729 .ea vol: 24p. (Power of the Pen). Rosen / Norwood House . Feb. 2024. Tr. $25.27. Gr 2–5— The lives of six brilliant Black female authors are presented in these volumes. Readers learn that Alice Walker was born in 1944 to Georgia sharecroppers, playwright Lorraine Hansberry was the first Black woman to have a play on Broadway, and Maya Angelou was a successful dancer and actress as well as author. Octavia E. Butler won the Hugo award for best science fiction story, Toni Morrison wrote Beloved to share the truths of slavery, and Zora Neale Hurston was prominent in the Harlem Renaissance. The chronological narratives are informative as well as interesting and are complemented with photographs. Personal lives and professional achievements are equally featured, making these volumes fairly comprehensive. The authors are honest in the content and address difficult situations in a delicate manner. For instance, in the volume on Angelou, "the boyfriend touched and hurt private parts of Maya's body." While report writers will employ these volumes, those interested in the subjects will find them to be engaging reads. VERDICT These biographies present above average narratives on the lives of important 20th-century female writers and should be considered for purchase in both school and public libraries.