This volume provides a comprehensive introduction to fiction in the English-speaking world during the period from 1970 to the present day. During this period, a sea change has transformed fiction in English, and this collection introduces the key developments as well as the works of some of the most important writers today.The book has a truly international scope, as it draws together the work of critics concerned with British, Irish, North American, African, Indian and Australasian writing. Thirteen scholars have combined forces to discuss a wide variety of texts, authors, themes and issues. Fictional works are discussed in relation to different historical, theoretical and political issues, including postmodernism, postcolonialism, ethnicity, gender and genre. The works of several major and sometimes notorious figures are introduced and skilfully analysed, including those of Martin Amis, Samuel Beckett, William S. Burroughs, J. M. Coetzee, Don DeLillo, James Kelman, Ian McEwan, Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie, Muriel Spark, Graham Swift, Alice Walker, Alan Warner and Jeanette Winterson. A stimulating introduction for students of contemporary fiction, this volume provides a balanced and well-informed view of various literary works and key issues in the cultural and critical agenda.