The first title of a new African literature series, this is a lively, accomplished collection of essays about modern African literature in French. It aims to address the need - of both the anglophone African and the non-African reader - for literary criticism of francophone literature in English, and thus bridge a prevailing, prohibitive lanaguage and cultural barrier. The collection covers a comprehensive range of genres - from the epic traditon and oral literature, to poetry and the modern novel. Its contributors are all specialists in French literature and African literature in French, and include for example the prominent Nigerian critic of feminist literature and feminism, Adule Adebayo. Subjects include: negritude poetry as a process of protest, revolt and reconciliation; the biographies and autobiographical novels of women writers and their comparative late arrival on the literary scene; and perspectives on the debate surrounding the tradition and status of the African novel.