Grundy has produced a notable contribution to the field of American literary and cultural studies not only in its attention to Umbra, but also in its attention to the complexities of how we approach and understand literary movements.

Journal of Beat Studies

Grundy (Univ. of Cambridge, UK) chronicles the Umbra poets, historical moments (for instance the assassination of Malcolm X in 1965), and the rise of black nationalism, investigating them-and the literature that came out of this period of awakening-with equal thoroughness … Grundy is also an excellent close reader of poetry. Though Grundy is an academic, there is no academic jargon in this well-researched, clearly presented study. He does an excellent job of dealing with the complexities of this history and how it informed the period.

CHOICE

The book produces some fine close readings and provides a useful (re)introduction to poets such as Henderson and Dent.

American Literary Scholarship

By granting more attention to Tom Dent, David Henderson, Calvin Hernton, and Lorenzo Thomas, A Black Arts Poetry Machine remains specific and attentive to the range of approaches and poetic responses to the struggle for rights and community with the breadth of a 'workshop' rather than the unity of a 'movement'.

The Year's Work in English Studies