The Scribner Writers Series has set the standard for literary reference for more than 25 years. In addition to addressing the lives and careers of important writers, the articles discuss the themes and styles of major works and place them in pertinent historical, social and political contexts for today's readers. Novelists, playwrights, essayists, poets, short story writers, and more recently, genre writers in science fiction and mystery, are all expertly discussed in the more than 16 sets comprising this series.This collection of essays covers 286 writers who have made contributions to British, Irish and Commonwealth literature from the 14th century to the present day. Introductory essays and chronological tables open each volume and provide historical background.Supplement V adds articles on 26 writers, among them contemporary authors such as J. G. Ballard, Anita Desai, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and Edna O'Brien as well as classic writers omitted from earlier volumes, such as A. A. Milne.