Ernest J. Gaines

Ernest J. Gaines (1933-2019) was an American author whose novels, drawing from his childhood on a Louisiana plantation, vividly portrayed the African American experience in the rural South, exploring themes of race, family, community, and humanity. His most notable works include The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1971), adapted into an Emmy-winning TV movie, and A Lesson Before Dying (1993), which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction. Among his major achievements are the MacArthur Fellowship, National Humanities Medal, National Medal of Arts, and Chevalier in France's Order of Arts and Letters.