Pearl Buck was Born (June 26, 1892)

This week (June 26 – July 2) in literary history – Pearl Buck was born (June 26, 1892); First Newbery Medal for Children’s literature was awarded (June 27, 1922); Alice McDermott was born (June 27, 1953); Robert Louis Stevenson sets sail for the South Pacific (June 28, 1888); Western writer Emerson Hough was born (June 28, 1857); The Globe Theater burned down (June 29, 1613); Robert McCloskey died (June 30, 2003); Novelist George Sand was born (July 1, 1804); Novelist Hermann Hesse was born (July 2, 1877); Ernest Hemingway committed suicide (July 2, 1961)

Highlighted Literary Story of the Week -

On June 26, 1892, Nobel Prize-winning author Pearl Buck was born in West Virginia to parents on furlough from their missionary work in China. The family soon returned to China, where Buck lived for the better part of 40 years.

As a young child she learned to speak Chinese before English. Buck returned to the U.S. to attend college, then married an American agriculture specialist in China. The two settled down to live in the province. The couple later moved to Nanking to teach college.

In 1930, Buck created a literary sensation with The Good Earth. Her novel won the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes and was translated into 30 languages. In the 1930s, The Good Earth and other novels and stories by Buck were more widely read in Europe than those of any other American author. However, today few of her 80 novels and books retain as much interest as The Good Earth. She was awarded the Noble Prize in Literature in 1938, the first female American writer to win the award.

Buck created several charitable foundations for Asian-American children abroad, including an adoption agency. She spoke strongly against the internment of Japanese during World War II and wrote a letter of protest to The New York Times in 1954 that helped change immigration policy. She received many awards for her humanitarian activities. Buck died on March 6, 1973 in Danby, Vermont and was buried at her estate, Green Hills Farm in Perkasie, Pennsylvania.

Check back every Friday for a new installment of “This Week in Literary History.”

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of six nonfiction books that includes the award winning Literary Legends of the British Isles and America’s Literary Legends. Visit Michael’s website www.michaelthomasbarry.com for more information. His books can be purchased from Amazon through the following links:

 

 

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Willa Cather was Born - December 7, 1873

This week (December 5-11) in English literary history – John Steinbeck’s “Sea of Cortez” was published (December 5, 1941); First African-American female poet Phillis Wheatley died (December 5, 1784); James Joyce’s Ulysses was deemed not obscene by a U.S. Federal judge (December 6, 1933); Poet Joyce Kilmer was born (December 6, 1886); Willa Cather was born (December 7, 1873); Thornton Wilder died (December 7, 1975); James Thurber was born (December 8, 1894); Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Charge of the Light Brigade” was published (December 9, 1854); John Milton was born (December 9, 1608); Emily Dickinson was born (December 10. 1830). 

Highlighted Story of the Week -  

On December 7, 1873, Willa Cather was born in Winchester, Virginia. Cather was the first of seven children born to an old Virginia family dating back to colonial times. Her maternal grandfather served several terms in the Virginia House of Delegates. Her grandmother was a strong, courageous woman who had a powerful influence on Cather and served as the model for several of her characters. Cather's family moved to Red Cloud, Nebraska, when she was a child, and for the rest of her life she wrote about the deep conflict she felt between East and West. While books like O Pioneers (1913) and My Antonia (1918) celebrated the spirit of the frontier, in other works, such as The Song of the Lark (1915), she explores the stifling effects of small-town life on creative young minds. 

After graduating from the University of Nebraska in 1895, Cather moved to Pittsburgh to be an editor for a family magazine. She later became an editor for the daily paper in Pittsburgh. In 1901, she became a teacher and stuck with it for several years while she published her first book of poems, “April Twilights” in 1903, and her first collection of short stories, “The Troll Garden” (1905). She then moved to New York to take a job as managing editor of McClure's, a monthly publication, and began writing novels. Her first, Alexander's Bridge, appeared in 1912, but she didn't find her true voice until O Pioneers. Cather won a Pulitzer in 1922 for One of Ours. Her 1927 novel, Death Comes for the Archbishop, the story of two French-Canadian priests who build a cathedral in the wilds of New Mexico, was also well received. Cather lived most of her adult life in New York, writing novels until her death on April 24, 1947 from a cerebral hemorrhage at her home in Park Avenue in New York City. She was buried at Old Burying Ground in Jaffrey, New Hampshire. 

Check back every Friday for a new installment of “This Week in English Literary History.”

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of six nonfiction books that includes the gold medal winning Literary Legends of the British Isles and soon to be released America’s Literary Legends. Visit Michael’s website www.michaelthomasbarry.com for more information. His books can be purchased from Amazon through the following links:

 

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Louisa May Alcott Published First Short Story - November 11, 1852

This week (November 7 – November 13) in English literary history – Margaret Mitchell was born (November 8, 1900); Bram Stoker was born (November 8, 1847); Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five was burned (November 10, 1973); Louisa May Alcott published her first short story (November 11, 1852); Robert Louis Stevenson was born (November 13, 1850). 

Highlighted Story of the Week -  

On November 11, 1852, the Saturday Evening Gazette published the short story "The Rival Painters: A Story of Rome," by Louisa May Alcott, who will later write the beloved children's book Little Women (1868). Alcott, the second of four daughters, was born on November 29, 1832 in Germantown, Pennsylvania but spent most of her life in Concord, Massachusetts. Her father, Bronson, was close friends with Transcendentalist thinkers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, whose progressive attitudes toward education and social issues left a strong mark on Louisa. Her father started a school based on Transcendentalist teachings, but after six years it failed, and he was unable to support the family and, afterward, Louisa dedicated most of her life to supporting them. After the publication of her first story, she made a living off sentimental and melodramatic stories for more than two decades.

In 1862 she went to work as a nurse for Union troops in the Civil War until typhoid fever broke her health. She turned her experiences into Hospital Sketches (1863), which established her reputation as a serious literary writer. Looking for a bestseller, a publisher asked Alcott to write a book for girls. Although reluctant at first, Alcott finally agreed and poured her best talent into the work. The first volume of the serialized novel Little Women was an immediate success, and she began writing a chapter a day to finish the second. Her subsequent children's fiction, including Little Men (1871), An Old-fashioned Girl (1870), Eight Cousins (1875), and Jo's Boys (1886), while not as popular as Little Women, are still enjoyed today. She also wrote many short stories for adults. She became a strong supporter of women's issues and spent most of her life caring for her family financially, emotionally, and physically. Her father died on March 4, 1888, and she followed him just two days later. 

Check back every Friday for a new installment of “This Week in English Literary History.” 

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of six nonfiction books that includes the gold medal winning Literary Legends of the British Isles (2012) and America’s Literary Legends (2015). Visit Michael’s website www.michaelthomasbarry.com for more information. His books can be purchased from Amazon through the following links:

 

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Literary-Legends-Burial-Writers/dp/0764347020/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1415381732&sr=8-2&keywords=michael+thomas+barry

 

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Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" was published (September 30, 1868)

On this date in American literary history – September 30, 1868, the first volume of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women was published. The novel will become Alcott's first bestseller and a beloved children's classic. Like the fictional Jo March, Alcott was the second of four daughters. She was born in Pennsylvania but spent most of her life in Concord, Massachusetts, where her father, Bronson, associated with Transcendentalist thinkers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. The liberal attitudes of the Transcendentalists left a strong mark on Louisa May. Her father started a school based on Transcendentalist teachings, but after six years it failed, and he was left unable to support the family. Louisa dedicated most of her life and writing to supporting her family. In 1852, her first story, The Rival Painters: A Tale of Rome, was published in a periodical, and she made a living off sentimental and melodramatic stories over the next two decades. In 1862, she worked as a nurse for Union troops in the Civil War until typhoid fever broke her health. She turned her experiences into Hospital Sketches (1863), which earned her a reputation as a serious literary writer.

Looking for a bestseller, a publisher asked Alcott to write a book for girls. Although reluctant at first, she poured her best talent into the work, and the first volume of the serialized novel Little Women became an instant success. She wrote a chapter a day for the second half of the book. Her subsequent children's fiction, including Little Men (1871), An Old-Fashioned Girl (1870), Eight Cousins (1875), and Jo's Boys (1886), were not as popular as Little Women. She also wrote many short stories for adults. She became a strong supporter of women's issues and spent most of her life caring for her family's financial, emotional, and physical needs. Her father died on March 4, 1888, and she followed him just two days later at the age of 55.

 

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of numerous books that includes the soon to be released America’s Literary Legends: The Lives and Burial Places of 50 Great Writers. Visit Michael’s website www.michaelthomasbarry.com for more information. The book can be purchased from Amazon through the following link. 

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Literary-Legends-Burial-Writers/dp/0764347020/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1412090844&sr=8-2&keywords=michael+thomas+barry

Margaret Mitchell's "Gone with the Wind" was Published - 1936

On this date in American literary history – June 30, 1936, Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind, was published. The book caused a sensation in Atlanta and went on to sell millions of copies throughout the world. While the book drew some criticism for its romanticized view of the Old South and its slaveholding elite, its epic tale of war, passion and loss captivated readers far and wide. In 1926, Mitchell was forced to quit her job as a reporter at the Atlanta Journal to recover from a series of physical injuries. With too much time on her hands, Mitchell soon grew restless. Working on a Remington typewriter, a gift from her second husband, John R. Marsh, in their cramped one-bedroom apartment, Mitchell began telling the story of an Atlanta belle named Pansy O'Hara. In tracing Pansy's tumultuous life from the antebellum South through the Civil War and into the Reconstruction era, Mitchell drew on the tales she had heard from her parents and other relatives, as well as from Confederate war veterans she had met as a young girl. While she was extremely secretive about her work, Mitchell eventually gave the manuscript to Harold Latham, an editor from MacMillan Publishing. Latham encouraged Mitchell to complete the novel, with one important change: the heroine's name. Mitchell agreed to change it to Scarlett, now one of the most memorable names in the history of literature.

By the time Mitchell won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1937, a movie project was already in the works. The film was produced by Hollywood giant David O. Selznick, who paid Mitchell a record-high $50,000 for the film rights to her book. After testing hundreds of unknowns and big-name stars to play Scarlett, Selznick hired British actress Vivien Leigh days after filming began. Clark Gable was also on board as Rhett Butler, Scarlett's dashing love interest. Plagued with problems on set, Gone with the Wind nonetheless became one of the highest-grossing and most acclaimed movies of all time, breaking box office records and winning nine Academy Awards out of 13 nominations. Though she didn't take part in the film adaptation of her book, Mitchell did attend its star-studded premiere in December 1939 in Atlanta. Tragically, she died just 10 years later, after she was struck by a speeding car while crossing Atlanta's Peachtree Street.

 

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of numerous books that include America’s Literary Legends: The Lives and Burial Places of 50 Great Writers. The book can be pre-ordered from Amazon through the following link:

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Literary-Legends-Burial-Writers/dp/0764347020/ref=la_B0035CPN70_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404151107&sr=1-6

Harriet Beecher Stowe was Born - 1811

On this date in American literary history – June 14, 1811, Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom's Cabin, was born in Litchfield, Connecticut. She was the seventh child of Congregationalist minister Lyman Beecher. Stowe studied at private schools in Connecticut and worked as a teacher in Hartford for five years until her father moved to Cincinnati in 1832. She accompanied him and continued to teach while writing stories and essays. In 1836, she married Calvin Ellis Stowe, with whom she had seven children. She published her first book, Mayflower, in 1843. While living in Cincinnati, Stowe encountered fugitive slaves and the Underground Railroad. Later, she wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin in reaction to recently tightened fugitive laws. The book sold some 300,000 copies and did much to galvanize public opinion in the North against slavery. Stowe traveled to England in 1853, where she was welcomed as a literary hero. Along with Ralph Waldo Emerson, she became one of the original contributors to The Atlantic, which launched in November 1857. Stowe continued to write throughout her life and died on July 1, 1896 in Hartford, Connecticut.

Michael Thomas Barry is the author of numerous book that include America’s Literary Legends: The Lives and Burial Places of 50 Great Writers. The book can be pre-ordered on-line from Powell’s bookstore through the following link: 

Powell’s - http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9780764347023-0