The Eighties

The Eighties was a time in history when Reganomics had expanded the gap in the economy to the point that poverty among blacks was at an all time high. Crack had hit the African American community harder than any other drug in the past. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday was established as a national holiday and Jesse Jackson ran for president. The Eighties was a time when female authors burst onto the scene. Publishing companies witnessed the enhancement of established talent among African American female writers. These writers became apart of America's pop culture and started to float in society's mainstream. African American authors discussed themes such as black female-male relationships, self-identity,and more authors had female main characters depicted in their works.

Bradley, David. "The Chaeysville Incident." Harper and Row, 1981.

This novel is about John Washington's efforts to discover the meaning of his past, to understand the significance of his home ground, and to establish a spiritual foundation that will permit another person to share his life. This book should be read because it shows Washington's search for the true self that he has kept hidden for many years. This search leads him to a series of discoveries that enable him to grow toward a kind of maturity and completeness.

Campbell, BeBe Moore. "Sweet Summer." Ballantine books, 1989.

This is the story of the authors childhood living most of the year with her mother and grandmother, but spending the summers with her father in the South. This story should be read because it tells how her parents, though divorced, supported and sustained her. It is a story that breaks all stereotypes about the black family.

Fuller, Charles. "A Solider's Play." Hill and Wang, 1982.

This play is a detective story which exposes the institutional racism of the Army in the forties. It is a murder mystery which explores the effects of racism by focusing on the tragedy of one man, Sergeant Vernon C. Waters. The story shows how Waters, in his attempts to forge the way for other blacks becomes lost and separated from his people when he takes many of the racist views of white people. This book should be read because it looks at how members of the same race can hold the same racist views as their oppressors. It also addresses issues that many other authors tend to ignore.

Gaines, Ernest J. "A Gathering of Old Men." Random House, 1983.

This is the story of racial tension on a Louisiana plantation after a Cajun farmer is killed by a black man. Eighteen old men each claim responsibility for the shooting despite threats and physical violence from the sheriff. The story is important because it shows these old black men's first taste of power and pride as they stand up to the whites who threaten them with death.

Guy, Rosa. "A Measure of Time." Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1983.

This story chronicles the life of the main character, Dorine Davis, against a historical backdrop of race relations in the North and South over four decades. Dorine pursues her goals of acquiring money and the things money can buy but she also knows her obligations to her family in Alabama. This story should be read because it tells the story of a woman who lives through a period of political and social upheaval for blacks and tells how these changes affected her.

McMillian, Terry. "Mama." Viking, 1987.

This is the story about Mildred Pencock and hers struggles to achieve a satisfying life for herself and her five children. The novel is concerned with showing one woman trying to be the best mother she can be while also trying to be the best person she can be. This novel should be read because it emphasizes the fact that positive change is possible and that black people need not be confirmed or thwarted by race or class limitations.

Morrison, Toni. "Beloved." Knopf, 1987.

This story moves back and forth through time, telling in flashbacks the story of the character's slave past. It is a portrait of the black slave woman's experience. The story is important for its demonstration of the concern that slave mothers had for the welfare of their children. Additionally, it is an attempt to understand the forces, both historically and personally, that would cause a mother to murder her child rather than allow her to experience the horrors of slavery.

Morrison, Toni. "Tar Baby." Knopf, 1981.

This story traces the quest for Jadine Childs', the protagonist, self-identity. Set in the late seventies, the story explores the sexual, racial, familial, and social tensions associated with the individual's journey to self-autonomy and self actualization. The book's importance lies in the fact that it shows Jadine's growth into a fully realized person determined to define herself on her own terms.

Naylor, Gloria. "The Women of Brewster Place." Viking, 1982.

This is the story of seven women who for different reasons end up in the ghetto. The women come from different walks of life but they are all hopeful even with a hostile world and a wall enclosing them in. This book should be read because it is a story about survival with dignity even through the most grim of circumstances.

Shange, Ntozake. "Betsey Brown." St.Martin's Press, 1985.

This is the story of thirteen year old Betsey Brown living during the fifties, which was the first year of school integration. The story traces the stress caused in black families not only due to the racism and court ordered integration but also the conflicts within the black community itself. It is an important story to read because it tells of the effects of integration from the perspective of a thirteen year old girl who is not only dealing with her awakening adolescence but her place in a decisive point in American history.

Walker, Alice. "The Color Purple: A Novel." BJ, 1982.

This story is written in the form of intimate letters Celie, the main character, to GOD, and later to her sister Nettie. Celie is a poor, uneducated black women whose letters represent her attempts to make sense of her often tragic life. The book's importance lies in the fact the despite a life with almost no encouragement and little love, Celie is a survivor. Because of her own healing and growth, Celie becomes an agent for healing in the lives of others. This is a very powerful book because the author deals with issues that many other writers try to ignore.

Wideman, John Edgar. "Brothers and Keepers." Holt, 1984.

This autobiography is about two brothers who grew up in the same house but whose lives took drastically different courses. Wideman wrote the book to reestablish his relationship with his brother and his community. This book should be read because it shows these brothers lives and their coming together to give each other love and support.

Williams, Shirley Anne. "Dessa Rose." William Morrow, 1986.

This book is a fictional slave narrative of a strong black woman's commitment to fight until she and those she loves can be free. The story is important because it counters the stereotypes of the passive slave mother and the cruel plantation mistress with the story of a pregnant slave woman who dares to fight for her freedom and of a white woman who defies the law and ignore social taboos to seek friendship with her black companions. Though the brutality of slavery is never minimized, there is an emphasis on the strength of black culture and the loving interaction of the slaves on the plantation.

Wilson, August. "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom." New American Library, 1985.

This novel examines the relationship between black artists and the world of mass communications in the early twentieth century. This relationship mirrors the position of black people in the society at large, a society dominated by white racism. This book should be read because it tells the experiences of the musician through story telling, poetry, and music. This dialogue enables the reader to share the hurt, the desires and the frustrations that are expressed by the characters.

Wilson, August. "Joe Turner's Come and Gone." New American Library, 1988.

This is a play about Black Americans cut adrift by slavery form the African past. Now technically free, they wander aimlessly, without roots, looking for solace but often mistaking or not knowing what they really need, which is a sense of self-esteem and personal identity. This books speaks to the part of us what spends so much time looking outside ourselves for self worth or meaning and urges us to look inward for those things.

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