April 2003
African American Fiction Writers: A Selected List
Novels and short stories dealing with African American life are an important part of our collection. Here's a selection of some of our favorites.
The Classics
- Arna Bontemps
- James Baldwin
- Charles Chesnutt
- W.E.B. DuBois
- Paul Laurence Dunbar
- Ralph Ellison
- Langston Hughes
- Chester Himes
- Zora Neale Hurston
- John Oliver Killens
- Nella Larsen
- Julius Lester
- Claude McKay
- Toni Morrison
- Ann Petry
- Jean Toomer
- Dorothy West
- Richard Wright
Gay & Lesbian
- Donna Allegra
- Steven Corbin
- Melvin Dixon
- Larry Duplechan
- James Earl Hardy
- E. Lynn Harris
- Randall Kenan
- Audre Lorde
- Darieck Scott
- John Alfred Williams
Historical
- Barbara Hambly
- Charles Johnson
- Hiram King
- Julius Lester
- James McEachin
- Toni Morrison
- Jewel Parker Rhodes
- Sherley Anne Williams
- Margaret Blair Young
Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror
- Steven Barnes
- Levar Burton
- Octavia Butler
- Samuel R. Delany
- Tananarive Due
Mystery & Suspense
- Eleanor Taylor Bland
- Charlotte Carter
- Christopher Chambers
- Christopher Darden
- Nora DeLoach
- Grace F. Edwards
- Ardella Garland
- Barbara Hambly
- Gary Hardwick
- Chester Himes
- Hugh Holton
- Guy Johnson
- Norman Kelley
- Jake Lamar
- Lee E. Meadows
- Penny Mickelbury
- C.M. Miller
- Walter Mosley
- Barbara Neely
- Kris Nelscott
- Gary Phillips
- John Ridley
- Blair S. Walker
- Chassie West
- Valerie Wilson Wesley
- Paula L. Woods
Urban Life
- Toni Cade Bambara
- Paul Beatty
- Gwendolyn Brooks
- Stanley Crouch
- Ricardo Cortez Cruz
- Nelson George
- Claude McKay
- Willard Motley
- Jess Mowry
- Robert Deane Pharr
- John Edgar Wideman
- Al Young
Romance
- Rochelle Alers
- Anita Richmond Bunkley
- Anita Carlylse
- Francine Craft
- Gwynne Forster
- Carmen Green
- Shirley Harrison
- Donna Hill
- Hunter Hayes
- Brenda Jackson
- Reon Laudat
- Terry McMillan
- Kayla Perrin
- Angela Winters
Women
- Toni Cade Bambara
- Connie Briscoe
- Maxine Clair
- Pearl Cleage
- J. California Cooper
- Grace Edwards-Yearwood
- Marita Golden
- Rosa Guy
- Marsha Hunt
- Sheneska Jackson
- Gayl Jones
- Slim Lambright
- Benilde Little
- Andrea Lee
- Bernice L. McFadden
- Diane McKinney-Whetstone
- Terry McMillan
- Devorah Major
- Paule Marshall
- Louise Meriwether
- Karen E. Quinones Miller
- Mary Monroe
- Gloria Naylor
- Ann Petry
- Connie Porter
- Kimberla Lawson Roby
- Lucinda Roy
- Ntozake Shange
- April Sinclair
- Alice Walker
- Shay Youngblood
Men
- Michael Baisden
- Eric Jerome Dickey
- Trey Ellis
- E. Lynn Harris
- Brian Keith Jackson
- Edwardo Jackson
- Kenji Jasper
- Marcus Major
- C. Kelly Robinson
- Franklin White
- Van Whitfield
The South
- Raymond Andrews
- Ernest J. Gaines
- John Oliver Killens
- E. Eric Lincoln
- Clarence Major
- Albert Murray
- Gwendolyn M. Parker
Modern Life & Relationships
- Doris Jean Austin
- David Bradley
- Parry “Ebony Satin” Brown
- Bebe Moore Campbell
- Stephen Carter
- Lorene Cary
- Samuel Charters
- Alice Childress
- Cyrus Colter
- Steven Corbin
- Edwidge Danticat
- Thulani Davis
- Eric Jerome Dickey
- Rita Dove
- Henry Dumas
- Erika Ellis
- Leon Forrest
- Albert French
- Ernest J. Gaines
- Sam Greenlee
- R.M. Johnson
- William Melvin Kelley
- Jamaica Kincaid
- Helen Elaine Lee
- Diane McKinney-Whetstone
- Reginald McKnight
- Terry McMillan
- Clarence Major
- Marcus Major
- Denene Millner & Nick Chiles
- Toni Morrison
- Walter Mosley
- Albert Murray
- Gloria Naylor
- Gwendolyn M. Parker
- Alexs D. Pate
- Robert Deane Pharr
- Darryl Pinckney
- Connie Porter
- Ishmael Reed
- Charlotte Watson Sherman
- William Gardner Smith
- Susan Straight
- Henry Van Dyke
- Colson Whitehead
- Sarah E. Wright
Bestsellers
- Bertice Berry
- Sheila Copeland
- Eric Jerome Dickey
- Linda Grosvenor
- E. Lynn Harris
- David Haynes
- Timmothy B. McCann
- Kim McLaurin
- Rosalyn McMillan
- Terry McMillan
- Karen E. Quinones Miller
- Mary Morrison
- Sister Souljah
- Camika Spencer
- Omar Tyree
- Van Whitfield
Need more suggestions? Email the Popular Library or contact your local branch and our staff will be happy to assist you.