[AFRICAN AMERICANA]. BROOKS, Gwendolyn (1917-2000). A Street in Bronzeville. New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1945. 8vo. vi, 1-[58] pp. Publisher's full black cloth, front board and spine stamped in peach and gilt, publisher's unclipped ("$2.00") dust jacket. THE RARE FIRST EDITION OF BROOKS' FIRST PUBLISHED BOOK OF POETRY, INSCRIBED AT A LATER DATE BY BROOKS ON THE HALF-TITLE: "To the Pierces. Sincerely Gwendolyn Books." In addition, an inscribed post-it by Brooks is laid-in: "Oct. 25, 1999 Hi! Thank you for your interest! Sincerely Gwendolyn Brooks". This post-it is dated about 13 months before her death.

Brooks was one of the most important poets in the United States: she was appointed the Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1968, and was the Poet Laureate of the United States in the mid-1980s. In 1976, she was the first African-American woman inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Her literary career won her numerous accolades, in addition to the ones mentioned above.

Cloth spine lightly toned, minor rubbing to cloth, minor offsetting to endleaves, text a bit toned, front endleaves with pen markings (ownership signature and bookstore price); jacket toned, edgeworn, occasionally soiled, scuffed. Very good.