Critical Survey of Long Fiction

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—Though this attractive set is well conceived and includes 678 essays on the authors most studied in high school and their works (97 new essays, 130 revised from the 2000 edition), and a wealth of information and opinion, it is not essential. Each entry provides brief biographical data and a list of principal long works; a short discussion of the subject's other literary forms; sections entitled "Achievements," "Biography," and "Analysis," which provide general overviews of the author's writings; and a selection of analysis and plot summaries for specific titles. These summaries, which are detailed enough to impart themes and motifs, offer a sense of the literary value of each work and describe its critical reception. The writing is clear and informative, but the material selected, spurred as it is by curriculum concerns, can appear odd. For example, although Charles Dickens and Stephen King are popular authors, each with a large body of publications and each having attained academic standing, one could argue their relative importance. Compare the essays devoted to them: 5 Dickens titles are discussed in 10 pages, while 14 of King's works are covered in 13 pages. Also, John Steinbeck's East of Eden is briefly mentioned while his long stories "The Pearl" and "The Red Pony" and short novel Of Mice and Men receive lengthier coverage. An electronic version of this set, free with purchase until the end of 2011, offers easy, full-text searching.—Herman Sutter, Saint Agnes Academy, Houston, TX

Library Journal

An updated and expanded version of the 1991 "English Language" series and the 1984 "Foreign Language" series of the publisher's "Critical Survey of Long Fiction" series, this eight-volume work covers over 460 authors of long fiction from a host of nations. The preface maintains that 138 out of 401 essays taken from the older sets have been revised and that 62 new essays have been added (34 entries from the two earlier series were excluded, largely because those authors are no longer taught). Is that a sufficient change to justify the expense if your library already owns the two older sets? If you need the essays on such added authors as Louisa May Alcott, Isaac Asimov, Bebe Moore, Michael Ondaatje, and Barbara Kingsolver, for example, then the answer is yes. This is a fine reference work that will be well used by patrons. The first seven volumes contain lengthy essays arranged alphabetically by author. Each essay includes basic biographical information, a bibliography of writings, and a critical analysis of the author's longer works of fiction. In addition, the final volume includes essays that cover topics such as long fiction in various time frames (Greco-Roman through contemporary) in 17 countries, in North America by many different ethnic groups, and in 16 genres, including the detective novel, the novella, and feminist fiction. There is also a glossary of literary terms, a chronology, and a listing of authors by geographic area, genre, time period, and writing style. A fine index provides access to the eight volumes. Highly recommended for college libraries and wherever the need outweighs the cost for public libraries already owning the sets mentioned above.--Neal Wyatt, P.L. Chesterfield, VA Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.