"Two of My Favorite Authors" by Prof. Carol Zitzer-Comfort

Our second Guest Recommender is Professor Carol Zitzer Comfort. 

The CSULB English Department website says that Dr. Zitzer-Comfort "received her BA from CSU Fullerton, her MA from Cal Poly Pomona and her PhD from Claremont Graduate University. Her areas of interest include: Reading and Composition, Cognitive Development, American Indian Literature, Disability Studies and English Education. She has published several articles and a book chapter on Williams syndrome, authored a textbook for basic writing courses, co-edited an anthology of American Indian Women’s writings and presented at several national and international conferences. Carol serves on the Advisory Board for the SALK Institute Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, on the Board of Directors of the Williams Syndrome Association and on several CSULB department, college and university committees. Before coming to CSULB in 2005, Dr. Zitzer-Comfort taught and directed a Student Support Services program at Cal Poly Pomona for ten years."

Here's what she has to say:

As an undergraduate English major, I was introduced to the fiction of Louise Erdrich. It was love at first read.

It all started with Love Medicine, which was assigned reading for an American Indian Literature course. If you have been in one of my classes, you know that I know way too much about Erdrich. I can never decide which of her novels I like best: Love Medicine or Tracks. I find her most recent novel Shadow Tag incredibly haunting and beautiful. I read it straight through and immediately began reading it again.  Her novels aren’t easy reading, but they are worth the effort.  In addition to being a prolific novelist, Erdrich is also an accomplished poet. For more information about her, one of her poems, a short story, and excerpts from interviews, click HERE .

Another favorite author of mine is Toni Morrison, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.

I’ve been reading and teaching Beloved since the 1990s. Each time I read it, I find a new way to read parts of it, which is what makes it so powerful. It is a novel that demands much from its readers. Other Morrison novels that I particularly enjoy are Song of Solomon, Sula, and The Bluest Eye.