KRLemmons African American academic work, African American Authors, African American Nonfiction

365 Black Books April Langley Tuesday

I attended a booksigning at Detroit Public Library. April C. E. Langley, Associate Professor and Chair of African American studies at the University of South Carolina and Associate Professor emerita of English and Black studies at the University of Missouri–Columbia, wrote a book titled: Depoliticizing the Word Through Poetry and Preaching. She focuses on three women, Phillis Wheatley, Maria W. Stewart, and Jarena Lee, and examines their speeches, poetry, and other written works through the lens of Afrofuturism and Sankofa. I was truly fascinated by her talk: the depth of her research and how she examined these women works through so many different lenses.

KRLemmons African American anthology, African American Authors, African American Short Stories

365 Black Books Eugenia Collier Monday

Happy 98th birthday Eugenia Collier! Eugenia Collier is a writer and critic best known for her 1969 short story “Marigolds”, which won the first Gwendolyn Brooks Prize for Fiction in 1969; it was Collier’s first published story. She was born in Baltimore, Maryland. Collier’s collection, Breeder and Other Stories, was released in 1993. More of her works: