First published 1999
Charles Johnson brings together his creative work across multiple forms in this comprehensive collection. The National Book Award winner for Middle Passage showcases his range as both storyteller and visual artist. Johnson includes fiction, essays, reviews, scripts, and his distinctive cartoons alongside speeches and interviews that reveal his creative process. Academic writers contribute scholarly analysis in a final section that examines his literary techniques and cultural impact. The collection spans Johnson's career as he evolved from cartoonist to acclaimed novelist, following the path of his idol Ralph Ellison. Johnson received a MacArthur Fellowship in 1998, cementing his status among America's leading creative voices. The book captures both his artistic versatility and his commitment to exploring African American experience through multiple media.
Genres: fiction, art, 20th-century, african-american, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family
Period: 20th Century, 21st Century
398 pages · Hardcover · Indiana University Press