Akosu, Tyohdzuah, The Writing of Ezekiel [Es'kia] Mphahlele, South African Writer: Literature, Culture and Politics, Mellen University Press, 1995.

This book is an important overview of the critical reception of Mphahlele's work and an assessment of his literary achievements. Akosu claims that aesthetic questions about African writing are inappropriate, and that Mphahlele's work should be analyzed from a functionalist stance-that is, how it works as literature.

Barnett, Ursula A., Ezekiel Mphahlele, Twayne, 1976.

Although published before Mphahlele's return to South Africa from exile in 1977, this volume is still the best introduction to Mphahlele's early and middle life and work. It includes a chronology, biography, and close reading of his major writings, including "Mrs. Plum."

Egejuru, Phanuel Akubueze, Towards African Literary Independence: A Dialogue with Contemporary African Writers, Greenwood Press, 1980.

These pieces are interwoven interviews with several important writers, including Mphahlele, on the importance of African literature for Africans...