![]() | John Oliver Killens: A Life of Black Literary Activism Subjects: Killens John Oliver 1916–1987; Killens John Oliver 1916–1987 -- Political activity; African American authors -- Biography; African Americans -- Intellectual life -- 20th century; John Oliver Killens's politically charged novels And Then We Heard the Thunder and The Cotillion; or One Good Bull Is Half the Herd , were nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. His works of fiction and nonfiction, the most famous of which is his novel Youngblood , have been translated into more than a dozen languages. An influential novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and teacher, he was the founding chair of the Harlem Writers Guild and mentored a generation of black writers at Fisk, Howard, Columbia, and elsewhere. Killens is recognized as the spiritual father of the Black Arts Movement. In this first major biography of Killens, Keith Gilyard examines the life and career of the man who was perhaps the premier African American writer-activist from the 1950s to the 1980s. KEITH GILYARD is distinguished professor of English at Pennsylvania State University. |
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