Barnes, Yolanda 1959–

PERSONAL: Born 1959. Education: Graduated from University of Southern California; University of Virginia, M.F.A.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, Sarabande Books, 2234 Dundee Rd., Ste. 200, Louisville, KY 40205.

CAREER: Writer and journalist. Los Angeles School of Gymnastics, Los Angeles, CA, former teacher.

MEMBER: Phi Beta Kappa.

WRITINGS:

When It Burned to the Ground, Sarabande Books (Louisville, KY), 2005.

Contributor to Los Angeles Times and Hartford (CT) Courant.

SIDELIGHTS: Yolanda Barnes's first novel, When It Burned to the Ground, is set in a decaying Los Angeles, California, neighborhood and relates the inhabitants' lives as they attempt to transcend their surroundings. Though they are only incidentally described, the Los Angeles riots of 1992 are a significant presence. "Barnes makes poetry out of the grime and regret of daily life on a run-down city street," wrote Joy Humphrey in Library Journal.

Indeed, critics consistently remarked on Barnes's writing technique. Reviewers for both Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews praised the author's writing talent, but also observed that the narrative lacks an overall cohesiveness. Thomas McGonigle, writing in the Los Angles Times, offered a different view: "When It Burned to the Ground enlarges our imaginations and launches Yolanda Barnes as a significant voice in American literature. Let us hope she always resists the malicious temptation of the conventional."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Kirkus Reviews, review of When It Burned to the Ground, May 15, 2005, p. 554.

Library Journal, July 1, 2005, Joy Humphrey, review of When It Burned to the Ground, p. 63.

Los Angeles Times, August 10, 2005, Thomas McGonigle, "The Unsaid Looms Large in Novel on L.A. Riots."

Publishers Weekly, June 13, 2005, review of When It Burned to the Ground, p 30.

San Francisco Chronicle, August 21, 2005, review of When It Burned to the Ground.