Collects critical essays on the author's autobiographical work - (Baker & Taylor)
Booklist Reviews
%% This is a multi-book review: SEE also the title "Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre". %% Gr. 8^-12. Eminent Yale professor Harold Bloom, who has edited many literary criticism series for adults, now provides YA study guides to some of the great books of the canon. Not that there is anything particularly YA about these collections of critical essays by leading scholars. Cliff Notes they are not. In fact, teachers might be as much the audience as students. Each book includes an introduction by Bloom, a brief biography, character sketches, and a brief chapter summary; there are also an index of themes and ideas and an extensive bibliography. Most of each study guide consists of extracts from major critical essays, both traditional and new, which will help students get started with term paper research and classroom discussion. The Jane Eyre volume includes pieces by Virginia Woolf, Adrienne Rich, and many others, several focusing on feminist viewpoints. The Angelou volume contains essays about the celebration of black culture, the narrative technique, and the use of language; and Opal Moore answers the censors who want to keep the book out of the classroom. There are 50 titles currently available in the Bloom's Notes series, ranging from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the Aeneid, and Catcher in the Rye to Silas Marner, Paradise Lost, and Macbeth. ((Reviewed January 1 & 15, 1997)) Copyright 2000 Booklist Reviews
Booklist Reviews
%% This is a multi-book review: SEE also the title "Maya Angelou". SEE the title "Native-American Writers" for next imprint and review text. %% ((Reviewed June 1 & 15, 1998)) Copyright 2000 Booklist Reviews
School Library Journal Reviews
Two slender volumes that present critical information about popular classic titles. Bloom's introduction is followed by a short biographical sketch of each author and then a detailed thematic and structural analysis that summarizes the novel in question, chapter by chapter. Excerpts from critical essays constitute the major portion of each book. Some of the essays on The Sun center around character analysis, especially of the main female character, Brett Ashley. Other entries include comparisons to other works of literature including F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, and discussions of the symbolism, morality, and the work's historical context. Hemingway's own interpretation of the book and a letter from Fitzgerald to Hemingway about its flaws are excerpted. In the second book, the writings explore Angelou's use of language, her narrative technique, unique qualities of Caged Bird, comparisons with other works, and opposition to it. Motherhood, racial pride and self-hatred, rape, and honesty are among the issues explored. While similar material may be found in many other places, these series titles will be useful resources. Copyright 1998 School Library Journal Reviews
