The Modern Literary Collections began as a result of several large book donations by Joseph E. Nechasek ’62 concentrating on first editions by American authors William Faulkner and Robert Stone. The collections expanded to include international works by authors W. G. Sebald, J. M. Coetzee and J. M. G. Le Clezio, the writings of African American women including Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison and Pulitzer Prize playwright Lynn Nottage, and nearly 100 works of contemporary immigration literature. A number of 20th century works of fiction by such authors as John De Passos, E. L. Doctorow and others were added from the Rare Books Collection.