Larry Brown And The Blue-Collar South [Paperback]

With contributions from Robert G. Barrier, Robert Beuka, Thomas ?rvold Bjerre, Jean W. Cash, Robert Donahoo, Richard Gaughran, Gary Hawkins, Darlin Neal, Keith Perry, Katherine Powell, John A. Staunton, and Jay Watson

Larry Brown is noted for his subjectsrural life, poverty, war, and the working classand his spare, gritty style. Browns oeuvre spans several genres and includes acclaimed novels (Dirty Work, Joe, Father and Son, The Rabbit Factory, and A Miracle of Catfish), short story collections (Facing the Music, Big Bad Love), memoir (On Fire), and essay collections (Billy Rays Farm). At the time of his death, Brown (19512004) was considered to be one of the finest exemplars of minimalist, raw writing of the contemporary South.

Larry Brown and the Blue-Collar South considers the writers full body of work, placing it in the contexts of southern literature, Mississippi writing, and literary work about the working class. Collectively, the essays explore such subjects as Browns treatment of class politics, race and racism, the aftereffects of the Vietnam War on American culture, the evolution of the South from a plantation-based economy to a postindustrial one, and male-female relations. The role of Browns mentorsEllen Douglas and Barry Hannahin shaping his work is discussed, as is Browns connection to such writers as Harry Crews and Dorothy Allison. This volume is one of the first critical studies of a writer whose depth and influence mark him as one of the most well-regarded Mississippi authors.