I'm a couple of weeks late,
but Happy New Year to all of you, and I hope you all had lovely holidays.
Our trip to DC was great fun.
It's such a marvelous city to visit over the holidays if you don't mind winter
chill too much. Because so many of those who live in DC hail from other parts
of the country and have come to the city for work in the government, during the
holidays the city veritably empties out as everyone heads for home. But all the
museums (most of them free) are open, as are restaurants and shops, just less
crowded than usual. For example, while Andy was finishing up at the Newseum on
Christmas Eve, I went across the street and caught the gorgeous Vermeer
exhibition at the National Gallery, and I couldn't believe all the meandering
rope lines marked out for the madhouse lines the exhibition usually has. It
took me several minutes to saunter through them all, with nary a soul actually
waiting. There are worse deals than that.
We were lucky in our wintery
weather, too. It was nippy, with temps in the 20s Fahrenheit, but nothing
compared to the brutal cold that came a few days after our return to lovely
mild San Francisco. And all the inclement weather we had were just a few light
snow flurries to punctuate Christmas Day—not quite as much as I would have
liked, and there wasn't enough for a truly white Christmas, but on the other
hand, nothing turned icy or slushy either…
The reason I had to mention
our trip a little is because it was punctuated with two literary excursions. First,
we visited the grave of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Zelda Fitzgerald, tucked away
in an unassuming churchyard in Rockville, Maryland, just a block or two from a
Metro station. When I lived in DC for 10 years, I had no idea the graves were
there. If there were an American version of Westminster Abbey's Poets' Corner,
Fitzgerald might well lie there, but as it is he is very much off the beaten
path. Apparently visitors occasionally leave bottles of whiskey on the
grave—perhaps in questionable taste for an author who died of alcoholism, and
poor Zelda's fate doesn't bear thinking about—but there were only flowers and a
small bottle of Tabasco sauce when we were there. (Perhaps someone had swiped
the whiskey to keep warm.)
Second, we made a more
offbeat excursion to the very edge, indeed a precipice, of Oak Hill Cemetery in
Georgetown. Those who have read the marvelous, gorgeous, brilliant Lincoln in the Bardo (note to self: time
for a re-read soon) will understand our pilgrimage to the Carroll mausoleum,
where Abraham Lincoln's 12-year-old son Willie was laid to rest following his
death in 1862 of typhoid fever. (Special thanks to the helpful woman from the
cemetery office who saw us wandering aimlessly consulting our cell phones,
asked what we were looking for, and immediately produced a flyer the cemetery
has now had printed for just such literary geek visitors.) We were preceded by
at least a few other visitors to the site of Lincoln's poignant, solitary,
late-night trips to his son's resting place, as the presence of a dozen or so
Lincoln pennies around the gate proved.
All great fun, and there were
other non-literary excursions and much time spent with old friends during the
trip as well. But now, back to the purpose of this post.
As some of you will recall,
just before I went on my blog vacation, I had started mulling the idea of creating
a list of American women writers to complement my British list. And although I've
not been blogging for the past few weeks, I have actually been working rather
diligently on that project and having a lot of fun with it. It's slowly coming together.
So I thought I might begin sharing
the new list with you now and then, as it comes together. I also have a new
batch of authors to add to the neverending British list, which I can share with
you soon. To start the ball rolling, I thought I'd share the bare bones of what
will become my American writers list, which stands at roughly 500 authors or a
bit more and is growing all the time. Since many of you dived in when I first
posted about the idea back
in October to help me brainstorm authors who should be included, it's only
right that you should see the results so far. You'll see that I've only got
through the B's in fleshing out life and death dates, maiden/married names,
etc., and obviously the full narratives on each author are still to come.
Hope you enjoy the preview,
and by all means, should you notice other authors still missing from the list,
bring on the suggestions!
ABBOTT, JANE [LUDLOW]
D[RAKE]. (10 Jul 1881 – 14 Dec 1962)
(née Drake)
1910s – 1950s
AKINS, ZOË (30 Oct 1886 - 29
Oct 1958)
(married name Rumbold)
1910s – 1950s
ALDEN, ISABELLA (3 Nov 1841 -
5 Aug 1930)
(née Macdonald, aka Pansy)
1860s – 1920s
ALDIS, DOROTHY (13 Mar 1896 –
4 Jul 1966)
(née Keeley)
1920s – 1950s
ALDRICH, BESS [GENEVRA]
STREETER (17 Feb 1881 – 3 Aug 1954)
(née Streeter)
1920s – 1940s
ALDRICH, MILDRED (16 Nov 1853
– 19 Feb 1928)
1910s
ALEXANDER, IRENE (dates unknown)
1930s – 1940s
ALLEN, GRACE [WESTON] (5 Nov
1905 – 11 Dec 1995)
(married names Hogarth and
Sayles, aka Amelia Gay, aka Allen Weston)
1940s – 1970s
ALLIS, MARGUERITE (6 Feb 1886
– 6 Aug 1958)
1930s – 1950s
ANDERSON, HELEN (dates
unknown)
(married name Winslow)
1930s
ANGELLOTTI, MARION POLK (12
Nov 1888 – 21 Apr 1953)
1910s – 1920s
ARISS, JEAN F. (9 May 1915 –
15 Jan 2003)
(née ?????)
1950s – 1960s
ARMER, LAURA [MAY] (12 Jan
1874 – 16 Mar 1963)
(née Adams)
1930s
ARMSTRONG, CHARLOTTE (2 May
1905 – 18 Jul 1969)
(married name Lewi)
1940s – 1960s
ARNOW, HARRIETTE [LOUISA] (7
Jul 1908 – 22 Mar 1986)
(née Simpson, aka Harriette
Simpson)
1930s – 1970s
ASHMUN, MARGARET [ELIZA] (10
Jul 1875 – 15 Mar 1940)
1910s - 1930s
ATHERTON, GERTRUDE [FRANKLIN]
(30 Oct 1857 – 14 Jun 1948)
(née Horn, aka Frank Lin)
1880s – 1940s
ATWATER, MARY MEIGS (28 Feb
1878 – 5 Sept 1956)
(née Horn, aka Frank Lin)
1880s – 1940s
AUSTIN, MARY HUNTER (9 Sept
1868 – 13 Aug 1934)
(née Hunter)
1900s – 1930s
AYDELOTTE, DORA (10 Jan 1878
– Nov 1968)
1930s – 1940s
BAILEY, [IRENE] TEMPLE (20
Feb 1869 – 6 Jul 1953)
(aka Virginia Blair, aka
Philip Kean)
1900s – 1940s
BAKER, DOROTHY [ALICE] (21
Apr 1907 – 17 Jun 1968)
(née Dodds)
1930s – 1960s
BALDWIN, FAITH (1 Oct 1893 –
18 Mar 1978)
(married name Cuthrell)
1920s – 1970s
BANNING, MARGARET [FRANCES]
CULKIN (18 Mar 1891 – 4 Jan 1982)
(née Culkin, later married
name Salsich)
1920s – 1970s
BARD, MARY [TEN EYCK] (21 Nov
1904 – 29 Nov 1970)
(married name Jenson)
1940s – 1960s
BARKER, SHIRLEY [FRANCES] (4
Apr 1911 – 18 Nov 1965)
1940s – 1960s
BARNES, CARMAN [DEE] (20 Nov
1912 – 19 Aug 1980)
(married name Armstrong)
1920s – 1940s
BARNES, DJUNA [CHAPPELL] (12
Jan 1892 – 18 Jun 1982)
(aka Lydia Steptoe, married
name Lemon)
1910s – 1930s, 1950s
BARNES, MARGARET AYER (8 Apr
1886 – 25 Oct 1967)
(née Ayer)
1920s – 1930s
BARNEY, NATALIE CLIFFORD (31
Oct 1876 – 2 Feb 1972)
(aka Tryphê)
1930s
BARRY, IRIS [LARA] (11 Dec
1903 – 2 Aug 1983)
(née Phillips)
BARTON, BETSEY A[LICE]. (6
Oct 1917 – 12 Dec 1962)
1940s – 1950s
BASSETT, SARA WARE (22 Oct
1872 – Jul 1968)
BATES, SYLVIA CHATFIELD (23
Feb 1882 – 8 Apr 1968)
1910s – 1950s
BEERS, LORNA DOONE (10 May
1897 – 5 Jun 1989)
(married name Chambers)
1920s – 1930s, 1950s – 1960s
BELL, LILIAN [LIDA] (19 Aug
1865 – 18 Jul 1929)
(married name Bogue)
1890s – 1910s
BELL, PEARL [E.] DOLES (2 Apr
1883 – 11 Mar 1968)
(née Doles)
BELL, SALLIE LEE (30 Jul 1885
– May 1970)
(née Riley)
BENNETT, DOROTHY [EVELYN] (12
Sept 1902 – 9 Mar 1992)
(married name Kewley)
BENNETT, GWENDOLYN
B[ENNETTA]. (8 Jul 1902 – 30 May 1981)
(married names Jackson and
Crosscup)
BENSON, MILDRED (10 Jul 1905
– 28 May 2002)
(née Augustine, earlier
married name Wirt)
BENSON, SALLY (SARA) [MAHALA
REDWAY] (3 Sept 1900 – 19 Jul 1972)
(née Smith)
1930s – 1940s
BERCKMAN, EVELYN [DOMENICA]
(18 Oct 1900 – 18 Sept 1978)
1950s – 1970s
BEST, [EVANGEL] ALLENA (4 Jan
1892 – Feb 1974)
(née Champlin, earlier
married name Berry, aka Erick Berry, aka Anne Maxon)
BIANCO, MARGERY [WINIFRED]
(22 Jul 1881 – 4 Sept 1944)
(née Williams)
BIRD, DOROTHY MAYWARD (12 Jul
1899 – 1 Nov 1989)
(née Mayward)
BISHOP, ELIZABETH (8 Feb 1911
– 6 Oct 1979)
BODEN, CLARA [HALL] NICKERSON
(14 Oct 1883 – 1 Jan 1959)
(née Nickerson, name changed
from Bodenstein)
BONIFACE, MARJORIE (23 Oct
1896 – 23 Dec 1974)
(née Grissett)
1940s
BONNER, GERALDINE (c1863 - 17
Jun 1930
(aka Hard Pan)
BONNER, MARGERIE (17 Feb 1905
– 28 Sept 1988)
(married name Lowry)
1940s
BORDEN, [EMILIE] LUCILLE (30
Mar 1873 – 7 Dec 1962)
(née Papin)
BORDEN, MARY (15 May 1886 – 2
Dec 1968)
(went by "May",
married names Turner and Spears, aka Bridget Maclagan)
BOUTELL, ANITA (10 May 1894 –
19 Oct 1972)
(née Day, earlier married names
Kearney and Porterfield)
1930s – 1940s
BOWER, B[ERTHA]. M[UZZY]. (15
Nov 1871 – 23 Jul 1940)
(née Muzzy, later married
names Sinclair and Cowan)
BOWLES, JANE [SYDNEY] (22 Feb
1917 – 4 May 1973)
(née Auer)
BOYD, [MARGARET] WOODWARD
(c1895 – 3 Sept 1965)
(née Smith, later married
name Shane, aka Peggy Shane)
BOYLE, KAY (KATHERINE) (19
Feb 1902 – 27 Dec 1992)
(married names Brault, Vail,
and von Franckenstein)
BOYLSTON, HELEN DORE (4 Apr
1895 – 30 Sept 1984)
BRAINERD, EDITH RATHBONE (22
Apr 1884 – 28 Jan 1922)
(née Jacobs, aka E. J. Rath,
with her husband J. Chauncey Corey Brainerd [1874-1922])
BRAINERD, ELEANOR HOYT (31
Jan 1868 – 18 Mar 1942)
(née Hoyt)
BRANDE, DOROTHEA (12 Jan 1893
– 17 Dec 1948)
(née Thompson)
BRINK, CAROL RYRIE (28 Dec
1895 – 15 Aug 1981)
(née Ryrie)
BRODY, CATHARINE (13 Dec 1900
- ????)
(named changed from
Borodovko)
BROOKS, GWENDOLYN [ELIZABETH]
(7 Jun 1917 – 3 Dec 2000)
(married name Blakely)
BROWN, ALICE (5 Dec 1856 – 21
Jun 1948)
BROWN, KAREN (dates unknown)
1920s - 1930
BROWN, ROSE (6 Jan c1880 – 8
Apr 1952)
(née Johnston, aka Mrs. Rose
Brown)
1940s – 1950s
BROWN, ZENITH JONES (8 Dec
1898 – 1 Sept 1983)
(née Jones, aka Brenda
Conrad, aka Leslie Ford, aka David Frome)
BRUSH, KATHARINE (KAY)
[LOUISE] (15 Aug 1900 – 10 Jun 1952)
(née Ingham, later married
name Winans)
BRYNER, EDNA [CLARE] (1 Sept
1886 – 28 Jan 1967)
(married name Schwab)
BUCK, PEARL [COMFORT]
S[YDENSTRICKER]. (26 Jun 1892 – 6 Mar 1972)
(née Sydenstricker, later
married name Walsh, aka John Sedges)
BUFF, MARY [ELEANOR] (10 Apr
1890 – 30 Nov 1970)
(née Marsh)
BURR, ANNA ROBESON (26 May
1873 – 10 Sept 1941)
(née Brown)
BURT, KATHARINE (6 Sept 1882
– Jun 1977)
(née Newlin)
BYRD, ELIZABETH (8 Dec 1912 –
11 May 1989)
(married name Phares)
BYRNE, MARIE (4 Oct 1886 – 18
Jan 1961)
(pseudonym of Mary Freeman
Byrne)
CALISHER, HORTENSE
CALL, HUGHIE FLORENCE
CAMERON, ALICE
CAMERON, MARGARET
CAMPBELL, ALICE
CAMPBELL, HARRIETTE
R[USSELL].
CAMPBELL, LILY BESS
CANNON, CORNELIA
CARLETON, JETTA
CARLETON, MARJORIE CHALMERS
CARLSON, NATALIE
(née Savage)
CARNEAL, GEORGETTE
CARPENTER, FRANCES
CARROLL, GLADYS HASTY
CAREY, ERNESTINE GILBRETH
CASPARY, VERA
CATHER, WILLA
CHAMBERS, JANE (1895-1971)
(pseudonym of Olivia F.
Young, née Lukens)
CHANSLOR, TORREY (1899-1964)
(pseudonym of Marjorie
Torrey)
CHASE, MARY ELLEN
CHASE, VIRGINIA
CHIDESTER, ANN
CHILD, NELLISE
CHILDRESS, ALICE
CHILTON, ELEANOR
CHUTE, MARCHETTE
CLARK, ELEANOR
COATES, GRACE STONE
COATSWORTH, ELIZABETH
COLE, HAZEL
COLEMAN, EMILY HOLMES
COLLINS, MARY
COLVER, ALICE ROSS
COMSTOCK, HARRIET
COMSTOCK, SARAH
CONVERSE, FLORENCE
COOK, FANNIE
CORBETT, ELIZABETH
COUNSELMAN, MARY ELIZABETH
COWLES, VIRGINIA
CRANE, FRANCES
CROCKETT, LUCY HERNDON
CROSBY, CARESSE
CURRY, PEGGY SIMSON
CURTISS, URSULA
CUSHMAN, CLARISSA FAIRCHILD
DALGLIESH, ALICE
DALY, ELIZABETH
DANIELS, DOROTHY
DARGAN, OLIVE TILFORD
DAVENPORT, MARCIA
DAVIDSON, LILLIAS
DAVIS, DOROTHY SALISBURY
DAVIS, LAVINIA
DAVIS, MILDRED
DEFORD, MIRIAM ALLEN
DE FRIEZ, GRACE
DE LIMA, SIGRID
DEAN, ELIZABETH
DELAND, MARGARET
DENNISTON, ELINORE
(aka Dennis Allan, aka Rae
Foley, aka Helen Maxwell)
DEVITT, TIAH
DIAMANT, GERTRUDE
DICKERSON, MARY AUGUSTA
DISNEY, DORIS MILES
DIX, BEAULAH MARIE
DOLAN, RUTH (c1915-????)
(née ?????, aka Rory
Gallagher)
DOOLITTLE, HILDA
DORMIE, M. A. (1893-1956)
(pseudonym of Marian Edna
Dormitzer, married name Sharrock)
DORRANCE, ETHEL SMITH
DRYDEN, BRIDGET (dates
unknown)
(pseudonym of ???)
DU JARDIN, ROSAMOND
DUFFIELD, ANNE (1913-1976)
(pseudonym of Dorothy Dean
Duffield, née Tate, earlier married name Duer)
DUNDY, ELAINE
DURIE, ALICE
EBERHART, MIGNON G.
EIKER, MATHILDE
ENRIGHT, ELIZABETH
EUSTIS, HELEN
FAIRBANK, JANET AYER
FAUSET, JESSIE REDMON
FENELLOSA, MARY
FERBER, EDNA
FIELD, RACHEL
FISCHER, MARJORIE
FISHER, DOROTHY CANFIELD
FISHER, M[ARY]. F[RANCES].
K[ENNEDY].
FITLER, MARY BIDDLE
FITZGERALD, ZELDA
FLETCHER, INGLIS
FOLSOM, ELIZABETH IRONS
FOOTE, MARY HALLOCK
FORBES, ESTHER
FORD, LESLIE
FOSTER, ELIZABETH
FOSTER, ETHEL TWYCROSS
FRANKEN, ROSE
FRASIER, SCOTTIE
FREEMAN, MARY ELEANOR WILKINS
GADDIS, EROLIE PEARL
(aka Roberta COURTLAND;
Georgia CRAIG; Peggy DERN; Peggy GADDIS; Gail JORDAN; Carolina LEE; Perry
LINDSAY; Joan SHERMAN)
GALE, ZONA
GARIS, LILIAN
GELLHORN, MARTHA
GIBBS, JEANNETTE PHILLIPS
GILES, JANICE HOLT
GILLMORE, INEZ HAYNES
GILMAN, CHARLOTTE PERKINS
GIZYCKA, ELEANOR [JOSEPHINE
MEDILL]
GLASGOW, ELLEN
GLASPELL, SUSAN
GLENN, ISA
GOLDSMITH, MARGARET
GORDON, CAROLINE
GRANT, MARY GEARY
GRANVILLE-BARKER, HELEN
GRAU, SHIRLEY ANN
GREEN, ANNA KATHERINE
GREEN, ANNE
GREEN, ELEANOR
GREGORY, ALYSE
GREY, SERENE
HAHN, EMILY
HAINES, ALICE CALHOUN
HALE, NANCY
HALL, AMANDA B.
HALL, ANNA GERTRUDE
HALLOWELL, ELEANOR
HANCOCK, LUCY AGNES
HANSHEW, HAZEL
HANSHEW, MARY ELIZA
HARDWICK, ELIZABETH
HARNAN, [EDNA] TERRY
HARRIS, CORRA
HARSHAW, RUTH HETZEL
HART, FRANCES NOYES
HAVILAND-TAYLOR, KATHARINE
HAWTHORNE, HILDEGARDE
HAYWOOD, CAROLYN
HEATH, E[LLA]. CROSBY
HENRY, HARRIET
HERBST, JOSEPHINE
HEWES, AGNES DANFORTH
HIGHSMITH, PATRICIA
HILL, GRACE LIVINGSTON
HILL, PATRICIA
HOBART, ALICE
HOLDING, ELISABETH SANXAY
HOLLEY, HELEN
HOWE, HELEN HUNTINGTON
HOYT, NANCY
HUBBARD, MARGARET ANN
HUESTON, ETHEL
HUGHES, DOROTHY B.
HULL, HELEN R.
HULME, KATHRYN
HUNTINGTON, GLADYS
HURST, FANNIE
HURSTON, ZORA NEALE
HUTCHINS, MAUDE
IRWIN, INEZ HAINES
JACKSON, SHIRLEY
JAFFE, RONA
JANEWAY, ELIZABETH
JAYNES, CLARE
JEWETT, ELEANOR
JOHNSON, E. PAULINE
JOHNSON, ENID
JOHNSON, JOSEPHINE
JOHNSTON, MARY
JORDAN, ELIZABETH
JUDD, FRANCES K.
(pseudonym of Elizabeth Mildred
Duffield Ward, Mildred Wirt Benson, Edna Stratemeyer Squier, and Anna Perot
Rose Wright, at different times)
JUDSON, CLARA INGRAM
JUDSON, JEANNE
(aka Frances Dean Hancock,
aka Emily Thorne)
KAUFFMAN, CHRISTMAS CAROL
KEITH, AGNES NEWTON
KELLEY, EDITH SUMMERS
KELLY, ELEANOR MERCEIN
KENT, LOUISE ANDREWS
KENYON, THEDA
KERR, JEAN
KERR, SOPHIE
KEYES, FRANCES PARKINSON
KIMBROUGH, EMILY
KING, GRACE
KUTNER, NANETTE
LANE, MRS. JOHN (1854-1927)
(pseudonym of Annie
Philippine Eichberg Lane, first married name King)
LANGLEY, ADRIA LOCKE
LARRMORE, LIDA
LARSEN, NELLA
LASSWELL, MARY
LATIMER, MARGERY
LAWRENCE, HILDA
LEE, GYPSY ROSE
LEE, HARPER
LEECH, MARGARET
LEWIS, JANET
LINCOLN, VICTORIA
LININGTON, ELIZABETH
LITTLE, CONSTANCE &
GWYNETH
LOCKRIDGE, FRANCES
LOMBARDI, CYNTHIA
LONG, AMELIA REYNOLDS
LONG, LAURA
LOOS, ANITA
LORING, EMILIE BAKER
LOVELACE, MAUD HART
LUDLUM, JEAN KATE
LUMPKIN, GRACE
LYTTLETON, KAY (dates
unknown)
(pseudonym of Jean Lyttleton
McKechnie)
MACDONALD, BETTY
MACGREGOR, ELLEN
MAINWARING, MARION
MALLETTE, GERTRUDE
MALLY, E. LOUISE
MALVERN, GLADYS
MARKS, JEANETTE
MARSHALL, LENORE G.
MARSHALL, PAULE
MARSHALL, ROSAMOND
MASON, GRACE SARTWELL
MAVITY, NANCY BARR
MAYHALL, JANE
MCCARTER, MARGARET
MCCARTHY, MARY
MCCLOY, HELEN
MCCLURE, MARJORIE BARKLEY
MCCULLERS, CARSON
MCGERR, PATRICIA
MCKENNEY, RUTH
MCLELLAND, ISABEL COUPER
MCMULLEN, MARY
MEIGS, CORNELIA
MERWIN, DECIE
MILLAY, KATHLEEN
MILLER, AGNES
MILLER, ELIZABETH YORK
MILLER, FRANCESCA FALK
MILLER, HELEN TOPPING
MILLER, ISABEL
MILN, LOUISE JORDAN
MITCHELL, FAY
MITCHELL, ISLA
MITCHELL, MARGARET
MOLLOY, ANNE BAKER
MONROE, ANNE SHANNON
MOREHOUSE, KATHLEEN
MOWAT, GRACE
MURFREE, MARY NOAILLES
MURRAY, PAULI
NEILSON, ISABEL
NEUMANN, DAISY
NEWBERRY, CLARE
NORRIS, KATHLEEN
NORTON, ALICE MARY
O'CONNOR, FLANNERY
O'DONNELL, MARY KING
O'DONNELL, LILLIAN
OGDEN, HARRIET
OGILVIE, ELIZABETH
OLSEN, DOLORES BIRK
OLSEN, TILLIE
O'MORE, PEGGY
OSTRANDER, ISABEL
PAGE, MYRA
PALEY, GRACE
PARADIS, MARJORIE BARTHOLOMEW
PARKER, CORNELIA STRATTON
PARKER, DOROTHY
PARMENTER, CHRISTINE WHITING
PARRISH, ANNE
PARROTT, URSULA
PATTON, FRANCIS GRAY
PAYES, RACHEL COSGROVE
PAYNE, ELIZABETH STANCY
PEATTIE, LOUISE
PECKHAM, BETTY
PENNELL, ELIZABETH
PETRY, ANN
PHELPS, ELIZABETH STUART
PIPER, EVELYN
PIPER, MARGARET REBECCA
PLATH, SYLVIA
PORCHER, MARY F. WICKHAM
PORTER, ELEANOR
PORTER, KATHERINE ANNE
POST, EMILY
POTTER, MIRIAM
POU, GENEVIEVE
POWELL, DAWN
PROUTY, OLIVE HIGGINS
PULLMAN, GLADYS
RADFORD, RUBY LORRAINE
RAND, AYN
RATH, VIRGINIA
RAWLINGS, MARJORIE KINNAN
RAY, ANNA CHAPIN
REED, MYRTLE
REICHARD, GLADYS A[MANDA].
REILLY, HELEN
RICE, ALICE HEGAN
RICE, CRAIG
RICHMOND, GRACE S.
RICKETTS, BERTHA
RIDDLE, BETTINA
RIDING, LAURA
RINEHART, MARY ROBERTS
RIVES, AMÉLIE
RIVES, HALLIE ERMINIE
ROBINS, ELIZABETH
ROTH, HOLLY
ROTHERY, AGNES EDWARDS
RUKEYSER, MURIEL
RUSSELL, CHARLOTTE MURRAY
RUTLEDGE, NANCY
SAMPSON, EMMA SPEED
SANDOZ, MARI
SARTON, MAY
SAWYER, RUTH
SCARBOROUGH, DOROTHY
SCHERF, MARGARET
SCOTT, EVELYN
SEAMAN, AUGUSTA
SEDGWICK, ANNE DOUGLAS
SEELEY, MABEL
SEIFERT, ELIZABETH
SERGEANT, ELIZABETH
SETON, ANYA
SETTLE, MARY LEE
SHERIDAN, JUANITA
SHOLL, ANNA MCCLURE
SHOR, JEAN BOWIE
SILLIMAN, VERA
SIMONS, KATHERINE DRAYTON
SKINNER, CORNELIA OTIS
SLAUGHTER, GERTRUDE ELIZABETH
SLESINGER, TESS
SMITH, BETTY
SMITH, HARRIET LUMMIS
SMITH, LILLIAN
SMITH, MARGARET CHASE
SPEARE, DOROTHY
SPEARE, ELIZABETH GEORGE
SPECKING, INEZ
SPOFFORD, HARRIET PRESCOTT
SPYKMAN, E[LIZABETH].
C[HOATE].
STAFFORD, JEAN
STEIN, GERTRUDE
STEPHEN, RUTH
STEVENS, FRANCIS
STONE, GRACE ZARING
STRABEL, THELMA
STRANGE, JOHN STEPHEN
(1896-1983)
(pseudonym of Dorothy
Stockbridge Tillett)
STRATTON-PORTER, GENE
SUCKOW, RUTH
SUTTON, MARGARET
SWAIN, VIRGINIA
TAYLOR, PHOEBE ATWOOD
TAYLOR, ROSEMARY
THANE, ELSWYTH
THAYER, LEE (1874-1973)
(pseudonym of Emma Redington
Lee Thayer)
THOMAS, CLARA CHAPLINE
TOMPKINS, JULIET WILBOR
TORREY, WARE
TREADWELL, SOPHIE
TRUAX, RHODA
TUTTLE, MARGARETTA
UPRIGHT, BLANCHE
VINING, ELIZABETH GRAY
VORSE, MARY HEATON
WALDEN, AMELIA
WALKER, MILDRED
WALKER, AUGUSTA
WALLER, MARY E[LLEN].
WALTON, EVANGELINE
WALZ, AUDREY
WARREN, LELLA
WATKINS, SHIRLEY
WATSON, SALLY
WATTS, MARY S.
WEBER, LENORA MATTINGLY
WEIMAN, RITA
WEINSTOCK, HELEN
(aka Helen Wells, aka
Francine Lewis)
WELLS, CAROLYN
WELTY, EUDORA
WEST, DOROTHY
WEST, JESSAMYN
WEST, MAE
WESTCOTT, JAN
WHARTON, EDITH
WHITE, ELIZA ORNE
WHITE, GRACE MILLER
WHITNEY, GERTRUDE CAPEN
WHITNEY, PHYLLIS A.
WIDDEMER, MARGARET
WILDER, LAURA INGALLS
WILLIAMS, REBECCA YANCEY
WILLIAMSON, ALICE MURIEL
(c1867-1933)
(née Livingston, aka M. P.
Revere, aka Dona Teresa de Savallo, aka Alice Stuyvesant, aka Mrs. C. N.
Williamson, aka Mrs. Harcourt Williamson)
WILSON, MARGARET
WINSLOW, ANNE GOODWIN
WINSLOW, HELEN MARIA
WINSLOW, THYRA SAMTER
WOLFF, MARITTA
WONG, JADE SNOW
WOOLSEY, GAMEL
WORKMAN, GLADYS
WRIGHT, ANNA ROSE
WRIGHT, CONSTANCE CHOATE
WYATT, EDITH
WYLIE, ELINOR
YATES, ELIZABETH
YAUKEY, GRACE
YENNI, JULIA TRUITT
YEZIERSKA, ANZIA
YOUNG, MARGUERITE
I had read or have copies of books by 37 of these authors. Looking forward to hearing more about them...
ReplyDeleteNot a bad number at all, Veronica, and I love that your first instinct was (as mine would have been) to add them up!
DeleteI love Harriette Arnow and Bess Streeter Aldrich and am thrilled to see them on the list!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kat! I've always meant to read both of those authors, but never have, so I am noting your recommendation.
DeleteWhat a challenging new project - US Furrowed Middlebrow. I am familiar with a few of these authors, especially Laura Ingalls Wilder, whose works made a big impact on me.
ReplyDeleteJerri
Thanks, Jerri. Yes, Wilder of course, and I've just realized that somehow although her name had already come up in my research, I managed to leave Wilder's daughter, Rose Wilder Lane, off of this list. I was fascinated to learn that, quite apart from her apparent collaboration with her mother on the Little House books, Lane wrote several novels of her own in the 1920s and 1930s, so clearly belongs on the list.
DeleteA new list! Happy to see Mildred Walker included, I really loved Winter Wheat. And I am glad you were able to see the Vermeer exhibit. I saw it in Paris and it was insanely crowded which took some of the enjoyment away. (Wow, that sounded really snobby. First world problems, right?)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Karen! Winter Wheat is one of several new TBR books that have come out of this list. I seem to be a masochist when it comes to torturing myself with an impossibly long TBR!
DeleteWeren't the Vermeers gorgeous? And one of the other paintings really caught my eye as well, though I have forgotten the name, of course. Snobby or not, I was thrilled to have been able to gaze at the paintings with almost no one else around.
Exciting list! And you're back, hooray! What a lovely story about your trip. Although I haven't read Lincoln in the Bardo, I have transcribed two interviews with the author, so it was interesting for me to see the location, too. Happy list-making for 2018!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Liz! Oh, do read Lincoln in the Bardo! It's quite unconventional, but so so wonderful. I read a library copy, but just last week ordered a copy of my own to re-read and keep for my shelves.
DeleteWelcome back, Scott. And, seriously? You're going ahead with this? Oh what a project.
ReplyDeleteEvery now and then I think, hmmm, maybe I could do that with Canadian authors. But then I think again. :^0
Clearly I am a glutton for punishment, Susan, but we already knew that! Believe me, I have thought of Canada and been tempted. Perhaps in the future. Or if you decide to take the plunge, let me know and I can give you a fair number of names from my database... :-)
DeleteAmbitious! But you thrive on that... You have several of my favorites: Lovelace, Thane, Vining, Malvern, Walden but I would suggest considering the following, unless their dates don’t work for you:
ReplyDeleteAlcott, Louisa May
Allee, Marjorie Hill (One of many authors I was introduced to by my mother. She was a Quaker, married to a zoologist, and among other things is noteworthy because her heroines were often interested in science.)
born June 2, 1890
died April 30, 1945
Cavanna, Betty (Elizabeth) http://www.nytimes.com/2001/08/15/arts/betty-cavanna-92-author-for-teenagers.html
Born June 24, 1909, Camden, NJ
Died August 13, 2001, Vézelay, France
And did you see this article earlier this month? https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/05/books/review/malt-shop-teen-romances.html I don’t know why she didn’t mention Janet Lambert!
Child, Lydia Marie (Born Lydia Maria Francis. In addition to writing Over the River and Through the Woods, she is the author of Hobomok, one of the first historical novels written by a woman in America)
Born February 11, 1802
Died October 20, 1880
Coolidge, Susan (Sarah Chauncey Woolsey) (author of What Katy Did, and following books. Oddly, more popular in the UK than in the US)
born on January 29, 1835 Ohio
died April 9, 1905 Rhode Island
Lambert, Janet (Like Gladys Malvern, an actress who turned to writing; as the wife of a military officer, she set many of her books in that world, which I found fascinating as a child. When I read The Dancing Bear (at your suggestion) I was reminded of Little Miss Atlas, in which teen Tippy Parrish goes to live in post WWII Germany when her father is stationed there.)
L’Engle, Madeleine (Camp) (Happy I got to meet her once in NYC – that was a very long line!)
Born November 29, 1918
Died September 6, 2007
LeGuin, Ursula (Kroeber)
Born: October 21, 1929, Berkeley, CA
Leighton, Margaret Carver (author of the fabulous Judith of France and others, fiction and nonfiction)
Born: December 20, 1896, Oberlin, OH
Died: June 19, 1987, Santa Monica, CA
[LeGuin, Leighton, and Irwin are all Radcliffe alumnae]
Richards, Laura E. (Bestselling and prolific author in her day of Captain January, the Hildegarde books, and I used to live around the corner from where she grew up. She was the daughter of Julia Ward Howe and Samuel Gridley, and was named after the famous Laura Bridgman. I have a nice collection of her work.)
Born February 27, 1850
Died January 14, 1943
Webster, Jean (Author of Daddy Long Legs and Dear Enemy; neice of Twain; died too young.)
Born July 24, 1876
Died June 11, 1916
Thank you, Constance, this is amazing! A few might not fit my dates, but many of them do and I'm delighted to have the info about them. Although she doesn't fit the list, I have always sort of halfway meant to read Hobomok, and now you've piqued my interest in it again.
DeleteI'm ashamed to say I had never heard of malt shop authors or malt shop romances (which Julia also mentions below), but I am looking forward to exploring them.
Comments Re Authors You Listed
ReplyDeleteIrwin, Inez (should be Haynes, not Haines; my mother was a big Maida fan so I collected them all, plus at least one of her adult novels)
Keyes, Frances Parkinson (Her books are extremely dated but I am a fan, especially of Came a Cavalier and Crescent Carnival; I regularly send people to visit her home in New Orleans, now a museum. I suspect I would not have liked her in real life, however, as she was a big adversary of Eleanor Roosevelt.)
http://www.nytimes.com/1970/07/04/archives/frances-parkinson-keyes-dies-writer-and-washington-hostess-senators.html
Judson, Clara Ingram (author of the Mary Jane books, the first chapter books I read. I have them all in a box in the attic, hand-me-downs from my grandmother and my mother that were surprisingly memorable; too fragile to lend, you will need to stop by)
Malvern, Gladys (author of YA historical fiction, a few bios, and some contemporary fiction; I am a big fan and am delighted a number are back in print, especially Behold Your Queen, arguably her best book)
Neumann, Daisy (she sometimes spells it Newman (just went to check my shelves). She was my mother’s housemother at Radcliffe in the 50s. Preachy but enjoyable.)
Parrish, Anne ( I have my mother’s copy of Floating Island, which is a charming story about shipwrecked dolls but would now be considered controversial for its depiction of a black cook doll)
Seaman, Augusta ( She usually used her middle or maiden name Huiell. She is one of very few children’s authors my grandmother admitted to enjoying. She liked to say she went from the Oz books to Flannery O’Connor. I tried to like them for her sake but I recall those I read as being very pedestrian. The one I remember best is The Vanishing Octant Mystery and that is only because the Octant everyone sought kept washing up on the beach, then tantalizingly disappearing.)
Born April 3, 1879
Died June 5, 1950
Sorry so long!
Thanks again, Constance! This is wonderful information. How interesting about Daisy Neumann/Newman--I've always meant to read Now That April's There as well. Can't wait to explore these authors in more depth!
DeleteComment from Julia, which Blogger was too cranky to allow her to post:
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year! Best wishes to you and Andy, and glad you had a nice break! When I read your latest post, I thought how funny it was you just couldn't NOT do the American list. You may do all the other English speaking countries yet! I'm assuming the rules for the new American list are the same as the Original British List. That is, 1910-1960's, and longer children's books or young adult, but not picture books. Even people such as Beverly Cleary would count under those rules, so it's going to be quite the list as well. You'll have quite a few maltshop authors like Janet Lambert, Betty Cavanna, and Rosamond Du Jardin. https://www.lib.umn.edu/clrc/hess-collection/girls_series is a good resource for that kind of thing. Two authors that would count are on my own TBR list, Greenwillow by BJ Chute and Moonset by Margaret Ellsworth Gruen. I have very little information on the Gruen book, but somehow read that it was about an eccentric theatrical family on the internet, where, I don't even remember, but currently have it ILL. There are so many middlebrow gems, time for me to dive in and discover more again!
And a follow-up from Julia re the Gruen book mentioned above:
https://books.google.com/books?id=ekSsAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA58&lpg=PA58&dq=gruen+moonset&source=bl&ots=lQ4uBpTTLy&sig=DGRNdURCvZqSfYazboGs84u-29I&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiYnZCVu-fYAhVHvVMKHbbhCSUQ6AEIVzAP#v=onepage&q=gruen%20moonset&f=false
Must have been here for the Gruen, but I keep thinking I also read a Kirkus review. Kirkus seems to have pretty accurate reviews, and an archive of older material that covers lots of old middlebrow
This is wonderful Julia! For some reason, I had no idea that Beverly Cleary would have started early enough to include here, but I don't know why, as there were many of her books in my elementary school in the early 1970s, so clearly she had been writing for a while. And I also just looked up BJ Chute to see the connection to Marchette Chute who IS included on the list--sisters! Who knew? (Well, you, probably, but not me.) Excited to check out the other authors you mention too. Thanks for your help, and keep the suggestions coming!
DeleteI just discovered this site and after reading this particular post I feel like I've stumbled upon a group of kindred spirits. I've been an avid old-book-reader for many years and the books in my bookcases are almost all by women writers and were published between the late 19th c. and the mid-1960s. I was thrilled to see Jessamyn West, Gladys Hasty Carroll, Shirley Watkins, Betty Cavanna, and Lavinia R. Davis listed here.
ReplyDeleteI feel like a kid in a candy store and am looking forward to researching the authors listed who I've never heard of! Thank you!
Thank you, Tanya, and welcome! Do let me know if you think of others I've missed so far.
DeleteScott, it occurs to me you should also consider Marian Cockrell (1909-99), screenwriter and author of the cult children's book Shadow Castle, as well as several adult novels, of which my favorite is The Revolt of Sarah Perkins. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0168359/
ReplyDeleteI am definitely intrigued, Constance. Thank you for letting me know about her!
DeleteYour blog is amazing! What fun! I will be back, definitely. —Nina
ReplyDeleteMay I suggest some American women for inclusion:
Harriette Ashbrook - see http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7929950/Ashbrook%2C%20Harriette
Gwen Bristow - Plantation Trilogy, Jubilee Trail, etc., plus a couple mysteries with husband Bruce Manning. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/5907/
Ruth Alberta Brown - At the Little Brown House (1913)
Margaret Carpenter- Experiment Perilous https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Seymour_Carpenter
Maureen Daly—Seventeenth Summer (1948). Wife of crime writer William P. McGivern.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maureen_Daly
Marietta Holley—published two Samantha books after 1910. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marietta_Holley
Elizabeth Hughes Holloway published Cobweb House in 1931. http://hermes.lib.olemiss.edu/mystery/exhibit.asp?display=9
Veronica Parker Johns, Murder by the Day (1953)
http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7930861/Johns%2C%20Veronica%20Parker
Lange Lewis, The Birthday Murder (1945), Meat for Murder (1943)
http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7930948/Lewis%2C%20Lange
Elisabeth Sutton, Dead Fingers (1918) - maybe American?
Jean Webster, Daddy-Long-Legs (1915)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Webster
Anna Mary Wells, Murderer’s Choice (1943)
http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7932442/Wells%2C%20Anna%20Mary