By Taylor Jasmine | On January 13, 2019 | Updated December 7, 2020 | Comments (0)
Ethan Frome (1911) by Edith Wharton is a somber tale indeed, but so beautifully told that many readers return to it again and again. An original review in the San Francisco Call from the year the book was published sketches the outline of the novella:
“Twenty years before the tale opens we learn that Ethan Frome has been crippled in a terrible accident … Ethan had his old parents to take care of and after their death he married the young woman who had helped him to nurse them … In a few years she needed assistance, so a young poor relation, Mattie Silver, came to live with them. Slowly she and Ethan fell in love. What happens next isn’t ‘happily ever after.’” Read More→
By Taylor Jasmine | On December 29, 2018 | Updated August 25, 2026 | Comments (0)
P.L.Travers (1899 – 1996) loved fairy tales and myths from childhood on, and no doubt reading them from childhood on fueled her imagination. Following is a selection of quotes from Mary Poppins and Mary Poppins Comes Back, two timeless children’s classics from the multi-volume series.
Her Mary Poppins series of books have entertained generations of readers, ever since the first volume was published in 1934. As one character in Mary Poppins Opens the Door says of the magical nanny, “She’s a fairy-tale come true.”
Mary Poppins was the basis of the beloved 1964 Disney musical film, which the famously testy author was none too happy with. Read More→
By Emma Ward | On December 22, 2018 | Updated May 10, 2023 | Comments (0)
Harriet the Spy (1964), the hugely popular children’s classic novel by Louise Fitzhugh has been both beloved and banned , but it has never been ignored. Following is a selection of quotes from Harriet the Spy, an enduring book that has been beloved by generations of readers.
Louise Fitzhugh (1928 – 1974) hailed from Memphis, Tennessee. She had a varied education, studying art in Italy and France as well as New York City, where she took courses at the Art Students League and at Cooper Union. It may not be surprising that she studied child psychology, art, and literature, as these seem to entwine in the books she produced.
Harriet the Spy put Fitzhugh on the literary map and cemented her legacy. A brief description from the 1964 HarperCollins edition:
“Harriet is determined to grow up to be Harriet M. Welsch, the famous writer; and in order to get a head start on her career, she spends part of every day on her spy route “observing” and noting down, in her singular, caustic, comic way, everything of interest to her. Read More→
By Jordan St. Clair-Jackson | On November 5, 2018 | Updated June 28, 2024 | Comments (0)
The 1913 novel O Pioneers! by Willa Cather is written in the spare yet lyrical prose that came to define her style. One of her earliest novels, and one of the most successful on many levels, it explores themes of fate, love, perseverance, family ties, and community.
The novel’s central character, Alexandra Bergson, is the daughter of Swedish immigrants who pioneer the harsh, unforgiving land of the Nebraska prairie.
In an unusual move, Alexandra’s father tasks her, in his dying wish, with taking the lead on managing the family farm. He tells his sons to honor the decisions of their sister. Of course, a novel doesn’t move along without conflict, but Cather delivers it without the sentimentality and overwrought prose characteristic of novels of that era. Read More→
By Aiyana Edmund | On October 13, 2018 | Updated April 26, 2026 | Comments (0)
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: With Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects by Mary Wollstonecraft (1792) is considered of the earliest works of feminist philosophical literature,
In this classic, Mary Wollstonecraft (not to be confused with her daughter, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, author of Frankenstein) argues for equality of men and women. In her view, both are born with equal ability to reason, and so, power and influence should be available to all.
Wollstonecraft believed that regardless of wealth and social status, males and females deserved the same educational opportunities. She sought radical reform of 18th-century education systems, believing that a society where all were offered the same opportunities would bring beneficial change to the future of humanity. Read More→
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