RICHARD WRIGHT

I wouldn't say that Richard Wright is an obscure author, but is easily overlooked. A journalist, poet, and author, Wright (1908-1960) wrote noteworthy books like Native Son, Black Boy, and White Man, Listen, of which I've read the first two. He wrote of his experiences growing up in Jim Crow south, his strict upbringing in which he rejected religion as a way to solve the plight of racism.

Richard Wright was uncompromising in his views and refused to stray from them. He was not politically correct, something that I admire about him. Whatever your views about his politics, one needs to read his work with an open mind. Richard Wright's works may not be the most noted works but they are important into understanding what shaped his views about American society.