Literature

A wood engraving from the 19th century depicts a blind John Milton dictating his influential epic poem "Paradise Lost"

Why 'Paradise Lost' Is Translated So Much

New book shows the enduring power of the epic poem has made it spread across dozens of languages and hundreds of years

Jane Austen's brother, Edward, inherited this grand Palladian-style home from the wealthy relatives who raised him.

Take a Stroll Through Jane Austen's England With This Interactive Map

A look at the houses and towns that shaped the life and writing of the famed author on the 200th anniversary of her death

Criseyde and Her Maidens Listening to a Reading, by Warwick Goble, from The Complete Poetical Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, 1912.

The Timelessness of Millennial-Bashing

Even in the 14th century, writers blamed younger generations for ruining everything

The first page of 'Measure For Measure' in the First Folio of 1623. Set in Vienna and full of less-than-proper characters, this play proved the most challenging to bowdlerize.

The Bowdlers Wanted to Clean Up Shakespeare, Not Become a Byword for Censorship

Thomas and Henrietta Bowdler started out with relatively noble intentions

Maurice Sendak signing prints from "The Mother Goose Collection" in 1990.

Forgotten Children’s Book by Maurice Sendak Will Be Published in 2018

The "Where the Wild Things Are" author collaborated on the manuscript with long-time friend Arthur Yorinks

Baum produced a stage version of his children's book two years after it came out. This work was aimed primarily for adults, and was the first time the Tin Woodman was referred to as the Tin Man.

The Tin Man Is a Reminder of L. Frank Baum’s Onetime Oil Career

Baum had a number of careers before he hit it big with 'The Wizard of Oz'

Michael Bond, Creator of Paddington Bear, Dies at 91

The author's stories about a plucky, marmalade-loving bear sold more than 35 million copies worldwide

Which Books Do Americans Take on Vacation?

Our city-by-city breakdown uncovered some surprises

A statue "is the most efficient and courteous way yet discovered of ensuring a lasting oblivion of the deceased," Joyce said in 1907. Hardly the words of someone who wanted to be remembered long after his death.

Happy Bloomsday! Too Bad James Joyce Would Have Hated This

Joyce infamously disliked the idea of being memorialized

Mad Max: Fury Road offers a dystopian look at the future.

What Happens to Fiction When Our Worst Climate Nightmares Start Coming True?

Movies, books and poetry have made predictions about a future that could be rapidly approaching

Thank Andrey Markov for your smartphone's predictive text feature—and also somewhat sillier uses.

Three Very Modern Uses For A Nineteenth-Century Text Generator

Andrey Markov was trying to understand poems with math when he created a whole new field of probability studies

Dr. Seuss Museum Opens in Massachusetts

The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss features a life-sized Wump of Gump, a recreation of Sala-ma-Sond, and replicas of the author’s childhood haunts

Bob Dylan has finally delivered his Nobel Prize lecture.

Dylan Finally Delivers on Nobel Prize Lecture

The reclusive singer-songwriter muses on literature and music in characteristic style

Tolkien’s Newly Published Book Is Rooted in a Real Love Story

The tale of Beren and Lúthien was first conceived in 1917, after an encounter between Tolkien and his wife Edith

Edith Wharton circa 1900. Her play "The Shadow of a Doubt" didn't make it to the stage in 1901—but has finally been rediscovered by scholars.

Scholars Rediscover Forgotten Edith Wharton Play

“The Shadow of a Doubt” had been overshadowed by over 100 years of history

A man reads a newspaper in Chirakoot, India. In nearby Lucknow, researchers observed brain changes in newly literate adults.

Learning to Read May Reshape Adult Brains

How literacy changed the bodies of a group of Indian adults

Hay Festival 2016

More Than 250,000 Bibliophiles Are About to Descend on "The Town of Books"

The Hay Festival of Literature kicks of its 30th anniversary festival in Wales

According to Mary Sawyer's account, the lamb was a female. Sarah Hale's poem says it was a male. Sawyer is probably the source with reason to know.

'Mary Had a Little Lamb' Is Based on a True Story

As a child, Mary Sawyer rescued a lamb. Then it followed her to school one day

Mr. Darcy, the socially awkward love interest in Pride and Prejudice, has been retroactively diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum, but a new wave of fiction casts people with autism in a new light.

Why Your Next Favorite Fictional Protagonist Might Be on the Autism Spectrum

Fiction can reframe misunderstood mental conditions like autism

Still from the 1958 horror film 'Dracula' starring Christopher Lee. The character of Dracula has appeared in more than 200 films.

The Icelandic Translation of 'Dracula' Is Actually a Different Book

The mysteries of this Gothic classic aren't over yet

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