Biographical Dictionary of Hispanic Literature in the United States

Book excerpt: This book promises to be a very useful reference work, covering material that has heretofore been hard to find. . . . . useful in academic libraries and large public libraries. Reference Books Bulletin This dictionary provides an exhaustive reference guide to representative figures in Hispanic literature within the geographic, political, and cultural boundaries of the United States. While concentrating on contemporary writers who have made or promise to make a lasting contribution to multiethnic letters in this country, it is designed to make accessible to the English-language reader a literary world that has until now been articulated primarily in Spanish. Focusing mainly on Puerto Rican and Cuban writers, each entry summarizes the importance of the subject and indicates the literary genres and themes cultivated. There is a brief biography of each author, an analysis of major works and themes, and a survey of the criticism of the author's works. The first and most comprehensive volume on the subject, this extraordinarily detailed sourcebook is a compilation of bio-bibliographical essays on leading Hispanic novelists, poets, and dramatists, and includes secondary bibliographies for each entry as well as a general bibliography on Hispanic literature. Especially highlighted are such authors as Nuyorican Miguel Pinero, winner of the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best American Play; Chilean novelist, critic, and editor Fernando Alegria; the Cuban-American chronicler of life in Miami's exile community, Roberto Fernandez, and others. Kanellos' work answers a definite need for comprehensive biographical and critical information on these writers, and it will be a significant addition to academic and public libraries, and to research in Spanish, English, bilingual education, and ethnic studies.