Blackwell Reference Online

Through a wide-ranging series of essays and readings, A Companion to Twentieth-Century United States Fiction presents an overview of fiction published in the United States since the conclusion of the First World War. These thought-provoking essays cover a diverse cross-section of novelists from the period; from canonical literary figures such as Hemingway and Faulkner to popular contemporary fiction writers such as Amy Tan and Alice Walker, as well as critical overviews of various literary genres, such as crime and ‘hard-boiled’ fiction, along with coverage of the ethnic and cultural traditions that continue to permeate U.S. fiction. A Companion to Twentieth-Century United States Fiction is an accessible and invaluable entree into the fertile period that cemented America's literary reputation throughout the world.