When it comes to poetry of the heart, Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s work has been read, enjoyed, and quoted among lovers and students since the 19th century. Today she is most famous for the poems she composed for her husband, fellow poet Robert Browning. While these poems certainly deserve their praise, Browning’s success actually began long before meeting her husband, and her collective work spans much farther than just her love poems.
Imagine skimming through a new novel at the bookstore, when suddenly your name jumps unexpectedly off the page. With a little more digging, you realize that the character carrying your identity is not saving the day or getting the girl. He’s not even a plucky sidekick – he’s the villain.
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain has long been considered an invaluable work of literature – some even declaring it THE great American novel. Students pore over it in the classroom; lovers of classic literature read it, and reread it, and reread it again; and book collectors dream of adding rare editions to their libraries.
Although Twain’s story manages to capture a long-passed time period while also exploring themes relevant to today’s society, books of a certain age rarely make the headlines of our newspapers. They are seen as time capsules, set in stone just as they are. But the final word on Huckleberry Finn has yet to be spoken.
When it comes to award-winning writing, it may seem that a vast majority of the recipients of the most distinguished prizes are American or English authors. While the scale may dip heavily in this direction, there are international writers who have received the praise and recognition they deserve. JM Coetzee, a South African author, is one of these. Along with winning the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2003, he has also won two Booker Prizes, three CNA prizes, and many others. Richard Poplak described him as “inarguably the most celebrated and decorated living English-language author."
Love her or hate her, Ayn Rand undoubtedly made her mark on the literary, political, and philosophical landscape of 20th century America. Nothing can stir up controversy quite like a discussion of The Fountainhead or Atlas Shrugged. Rand was a woman who held her opinions strongly in the face of dissent. Along with the two novels that earned her a place in history, she also wrote plays, published her own magazine, and composed many essays promoting her philosophies. These views have made her an idol for many fiscal conservatives and libertarians, while eliciting ridicule from progressives and religious leaders.
The magic nestled in a good poem is the ability to use only a handful of words to capture a seemingly indescribable emotion, situation, or culture. James Mercer Langston Hughes, who wrote under just "Langston Hughes," understood this magic well and used it to rise to the top of the American poets of his day. He was one of the prominent writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Although he was fiercely proud of his heritage and identity as a black man, his words crossed stubborn racial boundaries during a hostile and segregated time period, earning him a well-deserved spot in the history of literature.
No childhood could be complete without a good helping of talking animals, whether they appear in books, TV shows, movies, or theater productions. While chatty squirrels and dogs are the norm in today's children's stories, one trailblazer stands out from the past: Hugh Lofting, the imaginative mind behind Doctor Doolittle. In his classic works, the titular character is a doctor who exclusively treats animals after discovering his unique ability to communicate with them. The stories began as children's books, but they have been repeatedly adapted for screen, stage, and radio.
Hendrik Willem van Loon had a distinct ability to take dry, historical facts, and make them come alive for his young readers. He published over 50 works in his lifetime, most of it nonfiction targeted at children and young adults. He also illustrated many of his works himself. Van Loon was awarded the first Newbery Medal in December of 1922.
When Charles Dickens passed away in 1870, a young girl in London asked a question that demonstrated just how strongly Dickens' writings were associated with the holiday season and modern Christmas traditions. She asked, "Mr. Dickens dead? Then will Father Christmas die too?"
For a look at Germany in the aftermath of World War II, the works of Heinrich Böll shed a light that can only be given by an insider. Although he and his family opposed the rise of Hitler and the ideals of the Nazi Party, Böll was deeply patriotic and especially attached to his hometown of Cologne. His writing often vilifies government and church officials, while lifting up the common man. Novels by Böll have been translated into over 30 different languages, and he was awarded both the Nobel Prize for Literature and the Georg Büchner Prize.
