Library of Congress. New York World-Telegram & Sun Collection
Few authors have had the distinction of having their upcoming book being dubbed one of the most anticipated releases of the year and maybe only one has earned that type of accolade six decades after their death. But American writer and folklorist Zora Neale Hurston’s literary legacy is a class apart. Initially celebrated, later vilified, and posthumously canonized as “the patron saint of Black women writers,” her work has inspired the likes of Toni Morrison and Bernardine Evaristo. Here are some things you might not have known about the author, who was born on January 7, 1891.