Fiction
The Psychology Behind Superhero Origin Stories
How does following the adventures of Spider-Man and Batman inspire us to cope with adversity?
February 2013 |
By Robin Rosenberg
Take a Tour of Victor Hugo's Paris
As a film version of his Les Miserables hits theaters, consider traveling in the French writer’s footsteps
December 24, 2012 |
By Nina Fedrizzi
Ten Famed Literary Figures Based on Real-Life People
Who were the sources for characters such as Robinson Crusoe or Dorian Gray?
September 13, 2012 |
By Jeanie Riess
Going Mad for Charles Dickens
Two centuries after his birth, the novelist is still wildly popular, as a theme park, a new movie and countless festivals attest
February 2012 |
By Joshua Hammer
How E.B. White Wove Charlotte’s Web
A new book explores how the author of the beloved children’s book was inspired by his love for nature and animals
June 03, 2011 |
By Chloë Schama
Where Agatha Christie Dreamed Up Murder
The birthplace of Poirot and Marple welcomes visitors looking for clues to the best-selling novelist of all time
June 2011 |
By Joshua Hammer
Agatha Christie on the Big and Small Screen
Even though Dame Agatha may not have enjoyed adaptations of her mysteries, audiences have been loving them for decades
May 16, 2011 |
By Daniel Eagan
Cleveland, the True Birthplace of Superman
Comic book fans and city activists hope that people think of the Ohio city, and not Krypton, as the home of the Man of Steel
August 19, 2010 |
By Anne Trubek
Sherlock Holmes' London
As the detective stalks movie theaters, our reporter tracks down the favorite haunts of Arthur Conan Doyle and his famous sleuth
January 2010 |
By Joshua Hammer
Crossing the Divide
Novelist Daniel Alarcón's writings evoke the gritty, compelling landscape of urban Latin America
October 2007 |
By Marie Arana
Remembering Jack Kerouac
A friend of the author of "On the Road," published 50 years ago this month, tells why the novel still matters
September 2007 |
By Joyce Johnson
Folio, Where Art Thou?
One man's quest to track down every copy on the planet.
September 2006 |
By Paul Collins
The Real Robinson Crusoe
He was a pirate, a hothead and a lout, but castaway Alexander Selkirkthe author's ancestor inspired one of the greatest yarns in literature
July 2005 |
By Bruce Selcraig
Fatal Triangle
How a dark tale of love, madness and murder in 18th-century London became a story for the ages
May 2005 |
By John Brewer
Prescient and Accounted For
A century after his death, novelist Jules Verne, who imagined Moon flight and deep-sea voyages, looks more prophetic than ever
March 2005 |
By Doug Stewart
Keeping Up with Mark Twain
Berkeley researchers toil to stay abreast of Samuel Clemens' enormous literary output, which appears to continue unabated
September 2003 |
By Ron Powers
The Curse of Count Dracula
The prospect of a tourist bonanza from a Dracula theme park in Transylvania excites some Romanians, but opponents see only red
April 2003 |
By Rudy Chelminski
Master of Middle Earth
When J.R.R. Tolkien finally completed his Lord of the Rings trilogy in 1949, the Oxford don scarcely imagined his fantasy epic would entrance 100 million readers
January 2002 |
By Alina Corday Taylor
