This major new history of American literature from pre-Columbian times to the present is written in an informed but accessible style by one of the leading authorities in the field.







A major new one-volume history of American literature from pre-Columbian times to the present.

Extremely broad-ranging, taking in Native American, Anglo American, African American, Asian American and Hispanic American literature.

Covers oral literature, folktales, spirituals, the blues, the western, the detective story, the thriller and science fiction, as well as canonical literature.

Relates the history of American literature to American social and cultural history.

Takes account of changes in critical and theoretical debates about literature in the last 30 years.

Written by a leading international authority on American literature.