Contemporary world writers /

The latest volume in the "Contemporary Writers of the English Language" series that began in 1973 with Contemporary Literary Criticism, ed. by Elmer Borklund, this work has been assembled from contributions by faculty, chiefly in foreign languages and literatures, at universities, colleges, and religious institutions in Japan, Norway, the Netherlands, Wales, Scotland, Britain, Canada, and the US. The preface states frankly: "there is no canon of world literature, nor could there be," although this expensive volume attempts to remedy this by being inclusive. Each of the 345 entries provides a biographical sketch; a bibliography that lists (1) primary works by genre (fiction, plays, verse, and "other," the latter including children's books, translations, and edited works), (2) bibliographies, and (3) critical studies; and an essay summarizing critical opinion. Noteworthy in a work treating 70 nationalities is the recognition of contemporary political trends, evidenced by entries for Czech, Slovak, and Kirghiz authors. While the work's overall quality is high, it is most suitable for colleges and universities with active programs in comparative and foreign literatures and for large public libraries. R. B. M. Ridinger; Northern Illinois University