The randomness of literary success is terrifying. Great writers are only recognized years after their deaths; forgotten literary works are recovered in attics and archives. What if those discoveries and rediscoveries never happened? Fortunately for posterity, Kathleen Collins, author of the short story collection, Whatever Happened to Interracial Love, finally published in 2016, has been justly rescued from obscurity. Collins, who died of breast cancer in 1988, age 46, was prolific in several genres. This new collection highlights her strengths as dramatist, screenwriter, and short-story creator. Whether she's writing about five sisters-in-law recounting the troubled past of a color struck family, a young widow dreading that her son's demons will drive him to replicate the suicide of his father, or two women forced to confront their racial animosity at a psychic's office, Collins limns incisive portraits of artistic, intellectual Black women stretched to their limits that glimmer against a background of racism, sexism, and just plain life. A timely reclamation of a remarkable voice.--Lesley Williams Copyright 2019 Booklist

Prior to her death in 1988 at age 46, Collins was best known for Losing Ground (1982), one of the first American feature films produced by an African American woman. Her renown grew with the excellent posthumously published short story collection Whatever Happened to Interracial Love. Now Collins's groundbreaking work as a writer, filmmaker, activist, and educator is rapidly being recognized. This collected volume of fiction, plays, and autobiographical material, edited by Collins's daughter Lorez Collins, adds to the author's evolving reputation. Of particular interest are the short story "Nina Simone," in which two narrators discuss their own troubled relationship through the lens of the famous singer; searing commentary on race and gender in the diaries; a potent excerpt from the unfinished novel Lollie: A Suburban Tale; and the Losing Ground screenplay (including copious directorial notes by the author). VERDICT While not as eye-opening as Collins's earlier stories, this compilation will add appreciation for a talented writer whose life was cut too short as well as provide hope for the recovery of her previously unpublished work. Recommended for all libraries. [See Prepub Alert, 8/20/18.]-L.J. Parascandola, Long Island Univ., Brooklyn © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.