Literary Legacies, Folklore Foundations: Selfhood and Cultural Tradition in Nineteenth- And Twentieth-Century American Literatur

Beardslee (language and literature, Burlington County College, New Jersey) argues that many writers of different ethnic origins, both women and men, engage folk tradition in order to facilitate a character's achievement of self as a necessary part of the journey to health. She pairs contemporary American writers with forerunners to demonstrate that the current practice is not an innovation but a return. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)