It’s the birthday of F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940), known for his novels and stories about the Jazz Age, and particularly known for writing the novel zillions of American high school students are forced to read every year, The Great Gatsby (1925). I don’t think you’re allowed to call yourself an American if you haven’t read [...]
It’s the birthday of Stephen King (b. 1947), the King of Horror (ha—see what I did there? I’m sure I’m the first to think of that) and one of the bestselling authors of all time—the sort of author, in fact, that prompts one to google “bestselling authors of all time,” which I have done for [...]
It’s the birthday of poet, memoirist, and essayist Donald Hall (1928-2018), U.S. poet laureate from 2006-2007 and one of the most important poets of his generation. He’s best known as a rural poet who focused on the natural world and used simple language that nonetheless often had a surrealistic effect. Hall was born and raised [...]
It’s the birthday of Sir William Golding (1911-1993), author of Lord of the Flies (1954), winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature (1983), and lifelong proponent that “man produces evil as a bee produces honey.” Golding was born in the village of St. Columb Minor near the coastal town of Newquay in Cornwall, England. He [...]
It’s the birthday of one of the most important intellectual and literary figures of the 18th century, Samuel Johnson (1709-1784). Johnson wrote everything from essays to biography to poetry but is best known for his Dictionary of the English Language. Johnson was born in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England, and had lifelong health problems after contracting tuberculosis [...]
Today is the birthday of William Carlos Williams (1883-1963), one of those people who thought he could be both a successful doctor and a brilliant poet and writer, and who turned out to be right. Among his accomplishments were becoming chief of pediatrics at a general hospital in Paterson, New Jersey, winning the National Book [...]
Today is the birthday of Irish novelist and short story author Bernard MacLaverty (b. 1942), whose novels have been called quietly brilliant and whose first novel in 16 years, Midwinter Break, just came out in 2017. MacLaverty’s novels have been shortlisted for many major awards, including the Booker Prize and the Whitbread Novel Award. MacLaverty [...]
Today is the birthday of such an array of fascinating and important authors that one is tempted to give up and go hide with a good book. It’s the birthday of one of the big ones, Daniel Defoe (1660-1731), best known for his novel Robinson Crusoe, sometimes called the first English novel (but them’s fightin’ [...]
It’s the birthday of one of science fiction’s most prominent authors, Stanisław Lem (1921-2006), whose first name required me to figure out how to get a Polish “L with stroke” out of my keyboard, so that’s six or seven minutes of my life I’m not getting back. Lem is best known for his novels Solaris [...]
It’s the birthday of famed short story author O. Henry (1862-1910), known for writing stories with a *twist* at the end, such as occurs in one of his most famous and beloved stories, “The Gift of the Magi.” Henry was born William Sidney Porter in Greensboro, North Carolina, and began his working life in his [...]
Today is the birthday of poet Mary Oliver (b. 1935), whose poetry usually focuses on the natural world and who has been called one of America’s finest poets (and best-selling poets). Oliver was born in Maple Heights, Ohio, a few miles southeast of Cleveland. She had a deeply unhappy childhood (abusive father, neglectful mother), and [...]
Today is the birthday of Elinor Morton Wylie (born Elinor Hoyt, 1885-1928), whose novels and poetry were very popular in her short lifetime, though she was as famous for her “ethereal beauty and personality” as she was for her literary works. (I struggle with that too. It’s a burden.) Wylie was born in Somerville, New [...]