Reviews for Reading in America: Literature and Social History

The average rating for Reading in America: Literature and Social History based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2011-09-03 00:00:00 David Pascoe There were only two essays that I enjoyed reading in this book: "Literacy Instruction and Gender in New England" and "Sense and Sensibility: A Case Study of Women's Reading in Late-Victorian America." The other essays were dry, scholarly, overly formal, and very boring.

Review # 2 was written on 2013-03-11 00:00:00 Gretchen Wagner If you already enjoy rap and listen to it as poetry/think about it in literary terms (at least some of it), you'll find this book a bit simplistic, but still enjoyable. However, if you think you hate rap, or if you refuse to listen to it because some of it is misogynistic, racist, sexist, violent, or incomprehensible, this book could be enlightening. Pate addresses the literary roots of rap and its place in hip-hop culture, and it takes rap/poets seriously. A number of song lyrics are listed and examined, and further readings are given. Probably won't introduce the fan of rap to any artists he/she hasnt' heard of, unfortunately.