Sweet Words So Brave: The Story of African American Literature

Bidding his granddaughter to sit by him while he tells stories of ""orators turned into writers, brave all in all,"" the narrator of this enlightening book adopts a folksy, conversational tone as he chronicles the history of African American writing. Yet this is more than a celebration of a remarkable literary legacy. From early ""slave narratives"" to the poetry of Langston Hughes and the autobiographical writing, the literature discussed here becomes a springboard to an account of the African American experience. Curry and Brodie describe such phenomena as the musical highlights of the Harlem Renaissance, the role of black servicemen in WW II and civil rights activists of the '60s. Speaking with genuine passion and immediacy, the narrator introduces many writers as though they were his personal friends, often giving his story the sound of an eyewitness account; at one point, he even notes, ""Sure enough, youngster, I was there."" Excerpts from several authors' works and clearly reproduced, large-scale photos offset the book's considerable text. But what really catches the eye here are Butler's stunning, stylized paintings featuring groups of African Americans in a variety of settings. At times evocative of the work of Jacob Lawrence, these compositions contain cogent images and symbols, and are often iconic in their impact. Ages 8-up. (Dec.)