William Maxwell dives into the world of literary criticism by the FBI

William Maxwell dives into the world of literary criticism by the FBI
William Maxwell dives into the world of literary criticism by the FBI

William Maxwell dives into the world of literary criticism by the FBI

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You probably couldn’t find two institutions that were more opposed than African American literature and J. Edgar Hoover’s white-bread FBI. But there was an almost absurdist mutual relationship during Hoover’s more than 60 years at the helm. His agents were “ghost reading” novels, letters and plays trying to find evidence or subversion and the black literati knew this and would respond in kind. This and more is laid bare in the new book F.B. Eyes: How J. Edgar Hoover’s Ghostreaders Framed African American Literature. Author William Maxwell joins us.