The goal of Literary Ladies’ Guide is to be the most comprehensive archive on the subject of classic women authors (mainly in the English language, or who have been translated into English).
The authors listed must be deceased, since our mission is to focus on our literary foremothers. Fortunately, there are many more women writing today than there were even in the recent past, so to have entries on living writers would be overwhelming.
Sometimes we do veer a bit off the path of literary authors to include historic women journalists and various women of the past who engaged in creative fields categorized as other voices.
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Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 – 2000), the multi-award-winning poet created a significant body of poems reflecting African American life. Following is a selection of quotes by Gwendolyn Brooks on poetry and the poet’s life.
Brooks’ lifetime output encompassed more than twenty books, including children’s books. In 1950 she won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry, becoming the first African American to do so.
In 1968, Brooks was named Poet Laureate for the state of Illinois. From 1985 to 1986 she was Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. Read More→
Dorothy Parker often applied her rapier wit to book reviews she wrote as “Constant Reader” for the New Yorker from 1927 to 1933 and for Esquire from 1957 to 1962. Here’s a selection of gems from Dorothy Parker’s book reviews from the venerable publication.
The prevailing attitude toward Parker’s work as frivolous changed once her stories started being published in the New Yorker in the 1920s. After that, her work became a staple in the magazine, with frequent stories as well as her regular book review column which made good use of her wit and snark.
Parker appreciated a well written book and beautifully turned phrase. She wasn’t always prickly, but was definitely the most fun to read when her talons came out. Here are selected gems from some of her New Yorker and Esquire reviews. Read More→
“Overnight sensations”—authors whose first books are smash successes—are a rarity, if they exist at all; for even a stellar first effort is most often preceded by years of false starts, sweat, and toil that become invisible once the book is perched on the bestseller list.
What’s more common resembles Louisa May Alcott’s experience—years or decades of steady effort until success seems to “suddenly” arrive.
That’s how it happened for Alcott with Little Women. As we’ve come to find out, she cranked out thrillers, gothic novels, plays, sketches, and more than eighty articles before penning her autobiographical (if highly idealized) novel. Read More→
Colette (1873 – 1954), the noted French author, confidently expressed her experiences of femininity and sexuality through strong female eponymous characters like Claudine and Gigi. Following are some favorite short and sweet quotes by Colette.
When Colette broke away from her first husband, the nefarious Willy (who sought to control her life and work, and indeed, put his own name on her early writings) she reveled in her freedom.
For the remainder of her career, Colette wrote prolifically, producing many novels, and occasionally worked as a journalist. Her love life was the stuff of legend, as well. Read More→
Kate Chopin (1850 – 1904) started her writing career with stories for magazines such as Vogue and The Youth Companion. She is known to be a foremother of twentieth century feminism and often wrote in a realist perspective, reflecting the setting of her time.
Here we’ll sample some thoughtful quotes by Kate Chopin, best known for the 1899 short novel The Awakening.
Chopin went through much loss and hardship in her life and suffered from depression, which also influenced the themes in her work. She was quite prolific for some dozen years, producing numerous short stories and two other novels, as well as plays and poems. Read More→
Simone de Beauvoir (1908 – 1986) was a philosopher, political activist, novelist, and social theorist who grew up in France during the 20th century. Following are some philosophical quotes by Simone de Beauvoir to muse over.
She studied mathematics and philosophy at the Institut Catholique and the Sorbonne, becoming the youngest philosophy teacher in France at age twenty-one.
Her most impactful work, The Second Sex, was published in 1949 and made its mark as a manifesto for second wave feminism. Read More→
British author Agatha Christie (1890 – 1976) used her observations of people to construct her characters and stories, drawing inspiration from eavesdropping on conversations, her experiences as a nurse with the Red Cross, and her interest in archeaology.
Following is a selection of quotes by Agatha Christie, best known for the entertaining mysteries that earned her the title Queen of Mystery and “Queen of Crime.” (photo at right courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
Christie saw incredible success during her lifetime. At the time of her death, her books had sold hundreds of millions of copies worldwide, and the number has only grown since then. Both before and after her death, a number of her books have been made into feature films. Read More→
