"From the first, second, third, and fourth editions, all sound and sane expressions of opinion must be left out. There may be a market for that kind of wares a century from now. There is no hurry. Wait and see."
- Mark Twain, to his editors (1906)
The much awaited second volume of The Autobiography of Mark Twain was released this week.. The autobiography offers a new--and often surprising--view of Mark Twain, often called the most American of American authors.
Today we celebrate Ray Bradbury, born August 22, 1920. The author has bequeathed us an incredible opus that includes modern classics like Fahrenheit 451, Something Wicked This Way Comes, and The Martian Chronicles. Here's a look at Bradbury's legacy, in words and pictures.
Naipaul has said that "half a writer's work is the discovery of his subject matter. And a problem for me was that my life had been varied, full of upheavals and moves." Yet Naipaul found his authorial voice relatively early; after two failed attempts at writing a novel, Naipaul found inspiration in his childhood neighbor from Port of Spain.
Most great authors hold other jobs during their journeys to literary acclaim: Edgar Rice Burroughs sold pencils; JD Salinger was entertainment director on a luxury liner; and Ken Kesey volunteered for CIA psych tests. But what about after legendary authors have earned prestige and recognition? Many of them have turned up on the faculty at illustrious universities.
August 9 is the day we celebrate the birthday of legendary biographer, poet, and fisherman Izaak Walton. A friend of such illustrious figures as John Donne and Charles Cotton, Walton approached the art of fishing with a new sensibility in The Compleat Angler. His work was immensely popular--and it utterly changed the course of fishing literature. Multiple authors have followed in Walton's footsteps, creating a body of literature about fishing that is rich, diverse, and engaging.
August 2nd marks the birthday of novelist James Baldwin. He remains one of the most important African-American writers of all time, up in the ranks of Ralph Ellison, Toni Morrison, and Stephen Wright. His essays and memoirs masterfully combine autobiography and the issues of race that plagued his America. He is remembered for his impeccable prose style, his fearlessness of content, and his stature as a cultural figure,just as well as a literary one. In the words of author Michael Ondaatje, If Van Gogh was our 19th-century artist-saint, James Baldwin is our 20th-century one.
The revelation that JK Rowling is the author behind the warmly received novel The Cuckoo's Calling has caused quite a stir! But Rowling is far from the first famous author to adopt a pseudonym; indeed, she joins a rich literary tradition of the pen name--illustrious authors like Charles Dickens and Mark Twain have also used noms de guerre. Today we'll explore twentieth-century authors who opted to publish under different names.
This weekend we celebrated the birthday of legendary author and adventurer Ernest Hemingway. After a stint as a soldier, Hemingway went on to redefine American literature. Always the adventurer, Hemingway loved big game hunting and fishing. His exploits took him around the world and made him a living legend. Now collectors around the world cherish first editions of Hemingway's works.
Lately there's been much discussion over the Great American Novel. Any discussion on this subject cannot avoid mentioning that seminal masterpiece, Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. On the surface it follows a teenager as he sails south along the Mississippi, but Twain was sure to pack in some of his century's most skillful satire.
