Praise for Toni at Random

“The more we learn about Toni Morrison, the more in awe we are of her gifts and her incredible range as a writer, intellectual and now we meet her as a literary activist and editor. Dana A. Williams rises to the challenge of documenting the workings of a genius, by demonstrating a mighty brilliance of her own. We have in our hands a masterpiece— a scholarly page turner, dwelling at the intersection of meticulous research, abiding passion, and tremendous respect. — Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage

"Toni Morrison is best known as one of the world’s most significant novelists, but in this meticulously researched work Dana Williams introduces us to Morrison the literary editor, who shaped American publishing by introducing a generation of new voices and topics to the reading public. Through Williams we come to see Morrison’s editorial work, along with her fiction, as part of a larger visionary project that was nothing short of transformative. Toni at Random is a major accomplishment.”  — Farah Jasmine Griffin, William B. Ransford Professor of English & Comparative Literature and African American and African Diaspora Studies. Author of Read Until You Understand: The Profound Wisdom of Black Life and Literature 

“In this essential work, Williams not only reveals the genius of Morrison as editor of some of the nation's most iconic writers, she provides an insider’s view of mainstream publishing during a golden age of Black authors and literature. Toni at Random is a cultural treasure.”  — Paula J. Giddings, E.A.Woodson Professor Emerita of Smith College and author of IDA, A Sword Among Lions, Ida B. Wells and the Campaign Against Lynching

“I flew through these pages. With a dazzling array of characters who become household authorial names and an editor who was as perceptive as she was assertive, 'Toni at Random' is an outstanding exaltation to the legend of the woman herself who birthed so many generations of Black artists alongside and after her.”  — Morgan Jerkins, author of Zeal and This Will Be My Undoing

“Toni at Random stands as a towering accomplishment for Dana Williams. Readers, historians, and students of literature are now in Williams' debt... Toni Morrison was responsible for much of what we read as we matured, as our literature became mainstream. By offering Morrison's editorial history to stand beside her literary production, Dana Williams has proven, again, that Toni Morrison is and was indomitable. In Toni at Random, Dana Williams brings receipts.”  — A.J. Verdelle, author of Miss Chloe: A Memoir of a Literary Friendship with Toni Morrison

"This book can be seen as a handbook for editing during a rapidly changing cultural period, how to patiently, diplomatically, or even bluntly help a creative spirit discover his/her true vision in a work. It certainly and effectively presents another dimension to Morrison’s stature as an ever-important contributor to African American and therefore American culture." — John McCluskey, Jr. Professor Emeritus Dept. of African American and African Diaspora Studies at Indiana University and author of  Mr. America's Last Season Blues 

Publishers Weekly

Howard University English professor Williams (In the Light of Likeness—Transformed) spotlights Toni Morrison’s efforts to shepherd Black literature into the mainstream in this enthralling chronicle of her tenure as an editor at Random House in the 1960s and ’70s. Drawing on Morrison’s correspondence, Williams assembles rousing stories of her editorial projects that coalesce into a rich portrait of her interests and politics. Her first project at the imprint, a 1972 anthology of African literature, laid the groundwork for her “editorial aesthetic.” She also worked on To Die for the People by Black Panther Party founder Huey P. Newton and The Case for Black Reparations by legal scholar Boris Bittker; championed poets Barbara Chase-Riboud, Lucille Clifton, and June Jordan; and went to bat for transgressive writers like Wesley Brown, Leon Forrest, and John McCluskey. Read more

Vulture

Is there anything better than literary gossip? The relationship between writer and editor is fractious, tender, and ever-changing, with resentments and gratitude sloshing back and forth like a rooftop pool during an earthquake. Now imagine the editor in question is Toni Morrison. Editing was Morrison’s middle career; she joined Random House after a successful stint as a professor and before becoming a totemic writer herself. Read more

NPR

Spring is here – the perfect season to sit in the grass and read a book. Or maybe the pollen count is getting to you, in which case it's the perfect season to sit indoors and read a book. Either way, you're going to need a few recommendations. Here are some books coming out in the next few months that caught our attention. Read more