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Department of Africana Studies

Tess Chakkalakal

Affiliation: Africana Studies, English
Associate Professor of Africana Studies and English

Tess Chakkalakal [pronounced “Chah-KAHL-ickle”] has published widely on nineteenth-century African American and American literature. She is the author of (Illinois, 2011) which earned the Robert K. Martin Prize for best book on American literature and "a must read" title by Choice. She is co-editor of (Georgia, 2013). She is also co-editor of  (West Virginia Press, 2022).

Her new book, A Matter of Complexion: The Life and Fictions of Charles W. Chesnutt is available now from , or wherever you buy books. She is at work, with her co-host Brock Clarke on Season 2 of their award-winning podcast series and a new edition of Chesnutt’s Journals forthcoming from Oxford University Press. Professor Chakkalakal serves on the Board of Directors of the Stowe Center in Hartford, CT and The Maine Maritime Museum in Bath, ME.

Inquiries for speaking requests should be directed to Africana Studies’ Department Coordinator Elizabeth Palmer (epalmer@bowdoin.edu).

Office Hours: Wednesdays, noon to 3:00 p.m.

      

Left to right: Book covers for ; ; ; and .


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Dead Writers takes listeners inside famous American authors’ homes. Riffing on literature, history, home décor, gardens, and ghosts, literary critic Tess Chakkalakal and novelist Brock Clarke, bring great American writers, and the books they wrote, back from the dead.
Tess Chakkalakal Headshot

Education

  • PhD, York University
  • MA, York University
  • BA, University of Toronto