The future George IV was a big fan of the author, a feeling she half-heartedly reciprocated with a dedication years later or an author publishing her first novel, every pre-order is a valuable prize. For Jane Austen, a 36-year-old … Continued
The author of a new book about the classic says the 19th-century novel contains life lessons for all, especially for boys When Louisa May Alcott lifted her pen after writing the last line of Little Women, she never … Continued
Johanna Basford, whose fanciful, hand-drawn illustrations launched a worldwide craze, is back with flying colors Not far from Johanna Basford’s home on the northeast coast of Scotland lies a parabola of golden-ocher sand where the proportion of sky … Continued
Raised in the U.S. but a lifelong speaker of Lithuanian, Laima Vince became enamored of Matilda Olkin’s writing Laima Vince stood up from her computer and stepped onto her balcony. It wasn’t the first time during this nearly … Continued
Like Johnny Appleseed, Smith has been planting the seeds of verse across the U.S. As a minivan shuttled her to a gala at the Alaska State Library in Juneau, the capstone of her first visit to America’s northernmost frontier, the … Continued
Fans of the mystery writer have no shortage of ways to pay homage to the scribe behind “The Raven” and so much more Elisabeth Becker went all the way from Wisconsin to Philadelphia last July to introduce her … Continued
An heirloom is charged with both sentiment and purely speculative history I am related to a man who once knew a man who knew another man who knew George Washington. And to prove it, my family has a souvenir … Continued
A new Smithsonian book whisks readers on a culinary odyssey, tracing the history of salt, pork, honey, chili, tomato, rice and chocolate At first blush, pork, honey, salt, chile, rice, chocolate and tomato may seem an unremarkable and arbitrary … Continued
In 1855, Mary Mildred Williams energized the abolitionist movement On February 19, 1855, Charles Sumner, the Massachusetts senator, wrote his supporters about an enslaved 7-year-old girl whose freedom he had helped to secure. She would be joining him … Continued
Before soaring into theaters, Disney’s flying elephant was about to be published as a scrolling children’s book As Dumbo soars into theaters this week with a new Disney live-action movie, it is interesting to note that it was a simple … Continued