Overview

In this first-ever collection of nonfiction by John Edgar Wideman, a ""towering figure in American literature"" (The Nation), five decades of cultural and literary criticism paint a vivid portrait of America's changing landscape and chronicle the emergence and evolution of a generational talent. ""Wideman is a writer of titanic skill."" --4ColumnsJohn Edgar Wideman, acclaimed since the early 1970s for his award-winning fiction and memoirs, has long been engaged in a project to redefine, from the perspective of an American of color, the wondrous and appalling power of his country's literary culture and history. Now, curated by him, this first-time collection from his extensive body of long-form journalism and biographical essays offers readers a chance to see and judge for themselves how Wideman has proven himself to be a luminous witness of America's history. This volume goes beyond mere compilation; its challenging, insightful critical essays tell the story of a nation in transition--from the shame of legalized human slavery, to the civil rights movement, to the rise of the Obama era, and beyond. Originally featured in publications such as Esquire, Vogue, and The New Yorker, these narratives explore the elusive cores of American culture, politics, and identity. Through his unique depictions of iconic figures such as Zora Neale Hurston, Malcolm X, Spike Lee, Emmett Till, and Michael Jordan, and intimate questioning of his own life, Wideman shares his original views of the changing tides of life in the United States. The result is an ""essential chronicle of the American experience"" (Publishers Weekly, starred review).

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9781668101643

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John Edgar Wideman's books include, among others, Languages of Home, Slaveroad, Look for Me and I'll Be Gone, You Made Me Love You, The Homewood Trilogy, American Histories, Writing to Save a Life, Brothers and Keepers, Philadelphia Fire, Hoop Roots, and Sent for You Yesterday. He won the PEN/Faulkner Award twice and has twice been a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and National Book Award. He is a MacArthur Fellow and a recipient of the Lannan Literary Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. He divides his time between New York and France. When he was seven, David Sadzin's first grade teacher gave him a paragraph to read out loud. She interrupted him halfway to proclaim him the ""Ringmaster"" in his class's musical extravaganza about the circus. He's been using his voice to get out of trouble ever since. After a few intense years on New York's stages, performing traditional and experimental theater, improv, and sketch comedy, he's now settled comfortably in front of the mic in his home studio in Brooklyn.

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