"Brown wrote extensively as a journalist but was also a pioneer in other literary genres.
The volume opens with an introductory essay that places Brown and his work in a cultural and political context.
His controversial novel "Clotel; or, the President's Daughter "(1853), a fictionalized account of the lives and struggles of Thomas Jefferson's black daughters and granddaughters, is the first novel written by an African American.
"Brown wrote extensively as a journalist but was also a pioneer in other literary genres.
Ezra Greenspan’s masterful work, elegantly written and rigorously researched, sets Brown’s life in the richly rendered context of his times, creating a fascinating portrait of an inventive writer who dared to challenge the racial ...