LITERATURE

From The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1069, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

10 Surprising Facts About Madame Bovary

Emma Bovary has been described as "the original desperate housewife."

21 Memorable Virginia Woolf Quotes

With flowing prose and a courageous pen, Virginia Woolf wasn't afraid to dissect any topic, whether it was the idiocy of warfare or the joys of sex.

Can You Decipher the Playful 1817 Letter Jane Austen Sent to Her Niece in Code?

Shortly before her death, the author sent her 8-year-old niece a New Year's greeting—written entirely backwards.

Public Domain // Mendhak // CC Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic (Wikimedia Commons)

George Orwell's 11 Tips for Proper Tea Making

"I maintain that one strong cup of tea is better than twenty weak ones."

10 Dramatic Facts About King Lear

The tragic monarch has captivated audiences for centuries, but there's still plenty to learn about Shakespeare's classic play.

Trash Collectors in Turkey Use Abandoned Books to Build a Free Library

Where some people saw trash, garbage collectors saw potential.

Thousands of Rare Stephen King Writings Lost in Basement Flood in Maine

The collection included first editions and original manuscripts.

Archivio Cameraphoto Epoche/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

8 Lost and Rediscovered Literary Works by Famous Authors

These lost literary works were rediscovered in private collections, archives, and in one case, an attic.

10 Fun Facts About Paddington Bear

The Wellington-wearing bear has been charming children and adults alike for 60 years.

These Vending Machines Dispense Short Stories Instead Of Snacks

Snack on that!

Alice hunts for Easter eggs through the looking-glass.

8 Surprising Literary Easter Eggs

Think you know everything about 'The Great Gatsby' or 'The Lord of the Rings'? You may have skipped over a few Easter eggs. They're easy to miss.

8 Literary Relics From the World's Largest Private Collection of Mark Twain Memorabilia

Kevin Mac Donnell, a rare bookseller in Austin, Texas, safeguards over 8000 Twain-related items in a climate-controlled home archive.

The Most Mysterious Thing About Edgar Allan Poe Might Be How He Died

The writer was found in great distress and wearing someone else's clothes. A few days later, he was dead.

An AI Program Wrote Harry Potter Fan Fiction—and the Results Are Hilarious

“Magic: it was something Harry Potter thought was very good.”

Vivid Imagery Makes Poetry More Pleasurable, According to Psychologists

Aspiring Wordsworths, take note.

15 Facts About Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire

"Stella! Hey, Stella!"

British mystery author Agatha Christie autographing French editions of her books in 1950.

15 Mysterious Facts About Agatha Christie

With more than 2 billion copies of her books in print, British novelist Agatha Christie has kept countless readers up into the early morning hours.

15 Powerful Quotes From Margaret Atwood

"Optimism means better than reality; pessimism means worse than reality," 'The Handmaid's Tale' author Margaret Atwood said. "I'm a realist."

5 Things You Should Know About Chinua Achebe

The “father of African literature,” who was born on this day in 1930, had originally planned to become a doctor.

Found: A Long-Lost Copy of John Donne's Fart-Filled Satire

The biting work satirizes Jacobean England, public figures, and religious corruption.

9 Things You Might Not Know About Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace

1. It's one of three Atwood adaptations hitting the small screen this year.

New York Public Library, Billy Rose Theater Collection // Public Domain

15 Facts About Tennessee Williams's The Glass Menagerie

The mid-century masterpiece has been called his most autobiographical play.

Pablo Neruda's Death Wasn't Caused by Cancer, Experts Conclude

Foul play might have been involved.

Whitby as seen from the top of the 199 Steps

The Charming English Fishing Village That Inspired Dracula

How a seaside vacation in 1890 gave rise to Bram Stoker's terrifying tale.

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