A History of American Literature

by Richard Gray

Updated throughout and with much new material, A History of American Literature, Second Edition, is the most up-to-date and comprehensive survey available of the myriad forms of American Literature from pre-Columbian times to the present.

928 pages, Paperback

First published December 16, 2003

Reviews

[Shaghayegh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last exam of this semester :) 6/8

[Becky Filipek · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read this whole book completely, but what I did read was relatively fair and definitely informative. I have read all I need to for my graduate class, which is why I am considering myself done with this book. Gray's writing was good, and his summaries at the beginning of chapters and sections provided very interesting information about eras and movements within American literature. He wrote about most religious authors fairly, though I'm not sure he understood them all very well. When I have the time I hope to read more of his final chapter and his conclusion for the current era of American literature, because I did enjoy reading Gray's analysis of the times and writings he covered in this book.

[Marguarite Markley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read for a "Topics in American Literature" graduate course. I didn't read it all. Much of it was not required. The portions I used outside of the required reading were helpful in defending literary analyses.