The distinguished body of short stories depicting African Americans in the western United States has long been overlooked, and for a number of reasons: black writers were historically denied publication in white journals, American publishers have tended to show a bias towards East Coast fiction, and the short story has frequently been neglected in literary circles. In response to this lack of recognition, Bruce Glasrud and Laurie Champion have compiled The African-American West: A Century of Short Stories. The beginning of the twentieth century saw western American writers giving new meaning to the literature portraying African Americans. Rather than reproducing the racial stereotypes and condescending dialogue found in past fiction of the eastern United States, these authors portrayed black Americans seeking new lives. Ranging from early twentieth-century writers such as Charles Chesnutt to contemporary authors such as Walter Mosley, the works in The African American West demonstrate how the West, as seen through the eyes of African Americans, has evolved over the last century. Glasrud, a historian, and Champion, a literary scholar, combine their varying areas of expertise in The African American West, and their introductions to each chapter of the book provide both literary and historical insight into the African American experience in the West. Containing forty-six short stories as well as an extensive bibliography, this volume is an excellent resource for scholars of modern literature and African American history and culture. This one-of-a-kind anthology sheds needed light on a neglected body of literature. Gathered here are a century's worth of African American short stories, told from the point of view of a black person or featuring a black person as a major character and set in the American West. The 46 stories range widely in settings within that vast chunk of American real estate called the West; and not suggesting these gems of fiction were meant as sociological tracks, each one nonetheless contributes in its own fashion to a greater understanding of the history of the black presence in the West. Male and female characters from all walks of life make their way through these pages. Some stories have as a nucleus the author's historical consciousness; other stories focus strictly on the here and now in which they were written. Less well known names stand strong against bigger names, which include Charles W. Chesnutt, Frank Yerby, and Walter Mosley. Not to be overlooked when rounding out any public library's short-story collection. Brad Hooper Used Book in Good Condition