Copyright Date:
2008
Edition Date:
2008
Release Date:
06/01/08
Pages:
xvii, 430 pages
ISBN:
0-8160-6084-3
ISBN 13:
978-0-8160-6084-9
Dewey:
810.9
LCCN:
2007034805
Dimensions:
25 cm.
Language:
English
Reviews:
ALA Booklist
(Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 CST 2009)
Part of Facts On File's Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Literature series, this volume focuses on the major works, notable authors, and essential concepts and movements in Hispanic American literature. For this volume, the major subgroups of this category are Spanish American Caribbean; Puerto Rican; and Cuban, Dominican, and Mexican American (i.e., Chicano) literatures. There are more than 250 alphabetically arranged entries, averaging about a page in length. Author-centered entries follow a template ort biographical information followed by a summary of the writer's career, publications, consistent themes and motifs in the work, and awards garnered. Works that have their own separate entries are cross-referenced. The entries devoted to specific works mainly focus on summarizing the plot but also delve briefly into thematic elements and characters. Often cross-references to entries fleshing out the historical and social context of the work in question are provided. For example, the entry on Oscar Hijuelos' novel The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love (1989) contains references to other entries on Cuban-American literature, the Cuban Revolution, and Fidel Castro. All entries are concise and well written, offering quick and useful summaries of careers, concepts, and works. Users wanting more depth can consult the helpful bibliography at the end of each entry, which usually includes both books and journal articles. The overwhelming number of entries are devoted to writers and works. Entries on themes and concepts are relatively few and focus on topics like Border literature, Magic realism, Santeria, and Spanglish. The volume also contains bibliographies of secondary sources and major works by Hispanic American writers. Overall, this is an excellent quick-study guide to one of the major emerging ethnic literatures in the U.S. today and would be useful for most types of libraries.
Bibliography Index/Note:
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Hispanic-American literature has a venerable history, but it has never been more important and popular than it is now. Containing more than 250 entries, Encyclopedia of Hispanic-American Literature includes those authors and works that are an integral part of the high school and college literary canon, as well as those that are historically significant or gaining a reputation in today's literary circles.
Coverage includes:
Isabel Allende
Julia Alvarez
Rudolfo Anaya
Bless Me, Última
Chicano literature
Junot Díaz
Dominican-American literature
El Bronx Remembered
Cristina García
Oscar Hijuelos
Hispanic-American journalism
How the García Girls Lost Their Accents
The Mambo Kings Play Songs of Love
Jose Martí
Pat Mora
Nuyorican Poets Café
Richard Rodriguez
and more.
Excerpted from Encyclopedia of Hispanic-American Literature by Luz Elena Ramirez
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
Hispanic American literature has a venerable history and has dramatically increased its importance and popularity in recent years. This resource contains around 250 entries on some of the most popular Hispanic American authors and their works.