Gloria Naylor, National Book Award winner, dies at 66
Gloria Naylor died on on Wednesday near her Virginia home at the age of 66.
She is best known for her novel “The Women of Brewster Place,” which won a National Book Award and later become a mini-series starring Oprah Winfrey, who also produced the series.
The book tells the story of seven women living in a housing project and weaves stories of racism, sexism, poverty and homophobia through the stories of fully realized black female characters. In 1989, the book was developed into a two-part television movie and received praise for its depiction of so many issues underlying our society, though it was criticized for its lack of strong black male characters.
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“Viewers may find themselves wondering how black society has ever managed to produce any men deserving respect,” John J. O’Connor wrote in The Times in 1989. Even with this criticism, however, he went on to say, “Despite this nagging imbalance, ‘The Women of Brewster Place’ provides a good many moments of remarkably affecting television.”
Naylor’s other works include “Linden Hills,” “Bailey’s Cafe” and “The Men of Brewster Place.” In “The Men of Brewster Place,” Naylor dived deeper into the lives of the men whose stories she had briefly touched on in her first novel.
In addition to the National Book Award, Naylor also received National Endowment for the Arts and Guggenheim fellowships.
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