Overview

The moving story of the life of the woman behind A Raisin in the Sun, the most widely anthologized, read, and performed play of the American stage, by the New York Times bestselling author of Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee Written when she was just twenty-eight, Lorraine Hansberry's landmark A Raisin in the Sun is listed by the National Theatre as one of the hundred most significant works of the twentieth century. Hansberry was the first Black woman to have a play performed on Broadway, and the first Black and youngest American playwright to win a New York Critics' Circle Award. Charles J. Shields's authoritative biography of one of the twentieth century's most admired playwrights examines the parts of Lorraine Hansberry's life that have escaped public knowledge: the influence of her upper-class background, her fight for peace and nuclear disarmament, the reason why she embraced Communism during the Cold War, and her dependence on her white husband―her best friend, critic, and promoter. Many of the identity issues about class, sexuality, and race that she struggled with are relevant and urgent today. This dramatic telling of a passionate life―a very American life through self-reinvention―uses previously unpublished interviews with close friends in politics and theater, privately held correspondence, and deep research to reconcile old mysteries and raise new questions about a life not fully described until now.

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9798200930494

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Reviews

A fine introduction to Hansberry's world. -- Publishers Weekly All who admire or are curious about Hansberry will cherish this bracing and fascinating analysis of a life cut short. -- Booklist (starred review) Amid a welcome resurgence of interest in Lorraine Hansberry, Charles J. Shields's biography is distinguished by its narrative verve, its sweeping research, and its deep dive into the playwright's several families, given and chosen. The joint history of A Raisin in the Sun and its ever-young author has never been richer. -- William J. Maxwell, author of F.B. Eyes An illuminating portrait of Lorraine Hansberry and her tragically brief but formidable career...A revealing and rewarding biography documenting the life, work, and historical relevance of a great American author. -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Author Information

Charles J. Shields is an American biographer, primarily of twentieth century American novelists. In 1997, Shields left a career in high school teaching and administration to write independently. Over the course of the next six years, he published twenty histories and biographies for young people. His first biography for adults, Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee went on to become a New York Times bestseller. In 2009, with fellow biographers Nigel Hamilton, James McGrath Morris, and Debby Applegate, Shields co-founded Biographers International Organization (BIO), a nonprofit organization founded to promote the art and craft of biography, and to further the professional interests of its practitioners. As of July 2011, BIO has members in forty-three American states and ten nations, including Australia, India, Kenya, and the Netherlands. Donald Corren is a New York actor, with leading credits on and Off-Broadway, as well as numerous television appearances. On Broadway, he costarred with Judy Kaye in the critically acclaimed production of Souvenir, and replaced Harvey Fierstein in the seminal production of Torch Song Trilogy. His Off-Broadway appearances include The Soap Myth, Dietrich & Chevalier, The Last Sunday in June, Stephen Sondheim's Saturday Night, and the original New York production of Tomfoolery. His television credits include eight seasons as forensic tech Medill on NBC's Law & Order, as well as his current role as Dr. Kurian on Syfy's Z Nation.

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