Toni Morrison was born Chloe Ardelia Wofford on February 18, 1931, in Lorain, Ohio, a small city about 30 miles west of Cleveland. She was the second oldest of four children. Her father, George ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. The Port-au-Prince-born and -raised, New York-based author (she lived in Miami for more than 20 years), studied at Barnard and ...

Morrison, it seemed, needed to expand her horizons and get on with the main business of writing about white America. The assumption didn’t go away as her fame grew. It was still apparent in 1998 when ...

As a little black girl who didn't always want to be black, Toni Morrison at once understood me and shamed me. Like many girls before and after me, I would place a towel on my head, pretending it was ...

In its first installment of the REPORT, the Arts & Life Desk — hosted by Lucy Lawler and Emma Wozniak — tackles all things “R,” which stands for “read.” Watch as Lucy and Emma each unpack two of their ...

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Welcome to Shelf Life, ELLE.com’s books column, in which authors share their most memorable reads.