Traces the growth of biological thought as seen in children's books about the wolf from the early and late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Discusses social values and books on wolves. (PRA)

"Dust Tracks on a Road," author Zora Neale Hurston's autobiography, is not a typical black autobiography. Hurston is a complex woman and author who addresses both black and white audiences, shifting the cadences of her voice to invoke a readership that can hear the textures of many voices and respond to an underlying call to a world…

Traces the history of English prose from Francis Bacon to the present, commenting on the quality of various authors' writing and of fiction today. (HTH)

Designed for students with little or no background in classical literature, this book introduces the Greek and Roman myths of creation, myths of the gods, Greek sagas and local legends, and presents contemporary theories about the myths. Drawing on Homer, Hesiod, Pindar, Vergil, and others, the book provides many translations and paraphrases of…

Designed for young adults, this book on Jane Austen's novels is one of an anthology series providing accessible resources for students researching great literary lives and works. Contributing writers' essays in the book are taken from a wide variety of sources and are edited to accommodate the reading and comprehension levels of young adults; each…

Shows how literature gradually assumed importance during the nineteenth century, particularly when promoted as a valuable study by the colleges and universities, and reviews some American and British authors who were widely read during the century. (DD)

Designed for young adults, this book on William Shakespeare's tragedies is one of an anthology series providing accessible resources for students researching great literary lives and works. Contributing writers' essays in the book are taken from a wide variety of sources and are edited to accommodate the reading and comprehension levels of young…

David Wisniewski's 1992 picture book version of the African epic of "Sundiata, Lion King of Mali" and the actual historical account of the 13th century Lion King, Sundiata, are both badly served by Disney's "The Lion King." Disney has been praised for using African animals as story characters; for using the African landscape as…

Taking off from the theme that makes Laurence Yep such a popular and beloved young adult author--the outsider seeking identity and connection in a strange, foreign world--this study of Yep's most important works shows how his experiences as a Chinese American in San Francisco fill his stories with firsthand knowledge of what it is like to be an…

The 33 essays that make up this volume examine the history of literature in performance from five perspectives: (1) language, (2) popular culture, (3) teaching, (4) theory, and (5) entertainment. The essays in the first section explore the basic perspective of oral performance as a factor in the development of languages themselves and their…