World Literature and Its Times helps students and researchers make connections between political/social climate during which books were written and the works themselves. Each volume focuses on major fiction, poetry and nonfiction from a particular country and region, representing approximately 50 works. The detailed essays are approximately 10 pages in length and offer the following features:

Introductory profile -- an overview that discuss genre, time, place and other important elements with a synopsis and introduction that places the work in the context of the authors' life

Events in history -- a report on the social, political and cultural climate relevant to the work, including primary source documents, charts, timelines and other illustrative materials

Literary work in focus -- three sections that place the work in context with an in-depth summary, related history and historical sources

Sources for more information -- full citations offering additional sources of information

Additional features include illustrations; maps; author and title tables of contents; sidebars; timelines; advisor information; and an alphabetical index of authors, titles, events and personalities.

The series contains eight volumes covering the following literatures:

Latin American literature

African literature

British & Irish literature (2 volumes - The Victorian Era to the Present and Celtic Migrations to the Reform Bill )

Spanish & Portuguese literature

Middle Eastern literature

Italian literature

Classical literature