Jeffery Renard Allen

Jeffery Renard Allen (born 1962 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American poet, novelist, short story writer, and essayist best known for his novels exploring African American life, such as Rails Under My Back (2000) and Song of the Shank (2014). Raised on Chicago's South Side, he earned a Ph.D. in English (Creative Writing) from the University of Illinois at Chicago and has taught at institutions including Queens College and Columbia University while co-founding the Pan African Literary Forum. His achievements include the Whiting Award, Guggenheim Fellowship, Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Fiction, and PEN/Faulkner finalist recognition.