Anthologies#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Women and Fiction |
1975 |
Buy |
| A World of Fiction |
1983 |
Buy |
| Black Noir |
2009 |
Buy |
Collections#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Miss Muriel and Other Stories |
1971 |
Buy |
Non-Fiction#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Harriet Tubman |
1955 |
Buy |
Short Stories/Novellas#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| Checkup |
2020 |
Buy |
Standalone Novels#
| Title |
Published |
Buy on Amazon |
| The Street |
1946 |
Buy |
| Country Place |
1947 |
Buy |
| The Drugstore Cat |
1949 |
Buy |
| The Narrows |
1953 |
Buy |
| Tituba of Salem Village |
1964 |
Buy |
Ann Petry was a novelist, short story writer, children’s book author, and journalist from Old Saybrook, Connecticut. She trained as a pharmacist at the University of Connecticut before moving to New York City, where she worked as a reporter for prominent Black newspapers. Her debut novel The Street, published in 1946, became the first novel by a Black woman to sell more than a million copies.
Petry wrote three adult novels — The Street, Country Place (1947), and The Narrows (1953) — along with children’s books including Tituba of Salem Village and the non-fiction Harriet Tubman. Her work dealt directly with race, poverty, and the pressures of urban life, written in a realist style influenced by writers like Theodore Dreiser and Richard Wright. She was inducted into the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has Ann Petry written?
Ann Petry has written eleven books across five series.
What was Ann Petry's first book?
Ann Petry’s first book is The Street, published in 1946.
Why is Ann Petry historically significant?
Petry’s debut novel The Street (1946) was the first novel by an African American woman to sell over one million copies. A trained pharmacist turned journalist and novelist, she wrote unflinching fiction about race, class, and urban life in mid-century America. The Library of America published a volume of her work in 2019.