Classic Author Focus: Sun Tzu

Statue of Sun Tzu Probably the most interesting thing about Sun Tzu is that it is not even known whether he actually existed. Although he is famous for having written The Art of War, in recent years, some historians have begun to wonder if he wasn't a made-up descriptor. That is because he isn't mentioned …

Classic Author Focus: Dorothy B. Hughes

Dorothy B. Hughes I decided to write about Dorothy B. Hughes after reading her noir suspense novel In a Lonely Place. It is an excellent, dark novel that was made into a movie starring Humphrey Bogart in 1950, in which unfortunately they changed the ending. Sadly, Hughes's life wasn't as exciting as her novels. She …

Classic Author Focus: Kamala Markandaya

Kamala Markayanda One of the difficulties I've found with trying to introduce more female writers from cultures other than European is that once I've identified some of them, I can't find out anything about them. A classic example is Kamala Markandaya, who is cited as one of the best-known Indian authors. Yet, on all the …

Classic Author Focus: Tove Ditlevsen

Tove DitlevsenA writer in many genres, including poetry, Tove Ditlevsen was one of Denmark's most famous authors at the time of her death. Ditlevsen was born in a working class area of Copenhagen. She led a difficult life, and her work often reflects the loneliness of living in the poorer regions of the city. Not …

Classic Author Focus: Miklós Bánffy

I selected Miklós Bánffy to write about this month because I am reading Volume I of his Transylvania Trilogy, the work he is most famous for. This trilogy depicts the decline of Hungary heading toward the first world war. Bánffy was a nobleman, a member a distinguished family of Transylvania, which until 1916 was a …

Classic Author Focus: Mary Gilmore

Mary Gilmore was an Australian socialist writer and poet who was the first woman to be awarded the honor of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire. She is considered a national literary icon of Australia. Gilmore was born in New South Wales as the daughter of a Scottish farmer, David Cameron, and …

Review Rewind #2

Welcome to our latest Review Rewind at the Classics Club! What is Review Rewind? Review Rewind is a chance for all of us to take a closer look at a book or an author on our ever growing review list. We aim to see who has been reading it and what they think. How do …

Classic Author Focus: Murasaki Shikibu

When I thought it was about time I featured a classic Asian writer and looked for a woman writer, my searches did not find the name of anyone except modern writers or classic male writers. Then I remembered The Tale of Genji. No one actually knows who Murasaki Shikibu, the author of the Japanese classic The …

Classic Author Focus: Teffi

The book I read by Teffi for the last Classics Club Spin made me interested in learning more about her. Teffi was the pen name for Nadezhda Alexandrovna Lokhvitskaya, one of the most prominent Russian writers of her time and a favorite of both Tsar Nicholas II and of Lenin. She was a humorist, writing …

Classic Author Focus: Halldór Laxness

Perhaps the selection of Halldór Laxness doesn't quite fit in with my idea of writing about lesser-known classic authors. Certainly, Icelanders know who he is, but I'm not sure how well known he is in the rest of the world. He is Iceland's Nobel Prize winner, having received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1955. Although …

Classic Author Focus: Aphra Behn

Aphra BehnAphra Behn may not fit as easily into my idea of writing about lesser-known classic authors, but I haven't featured a Restoration writer yet and she is the first woman in England to be known as a professional writer. She also seems to be a really interesting woman. In fact, I'm surprised that no …

Review Rewind

Welcome to our very first Review Rewind at the Classics Club! What is Review Rewind? Review Rewind is a chance for all of us to take a closer look at a book or an author on our ever growing review list. We aim to see who has been reading it and what they think. How …

Classic Author Focus: James Baldwin

First, a little side note. My fellow moderators have suggested I do a short piece on the process for posting member reviews because of a few issues I've had. When I first took over this function, I found a huge backlog of reviews, but I was able to catch up on that over time, and …

Classic Author Focus: Sigrid Undset

A friend recently blogged about Kristin Lavransdattar, which gave me the idea for my next focus post. Although Sigrid Undset is known mostly for that powerful depiction of of medieval life in Norway, she was also the author of contemporary realistic novels. Her novels written later in life were informed by her conversion to Catholicism. She is …

Classic Author Focus: Ann Radcliffe

When I asked for suggestions for the classic author to feature next, one of the first responses was from Jillian, who suggested Ann Radcliffe as being appropriate for the season. I thought so, too. Not much is known about her life, however. I found more about her influence on literature. She was notable for combining …

Classic Author Focus: Charlotte M. Yonge

For the last Classics Club Spin, I read The Heir of Redclyffe by Charlotte M. Yonge. I was surprised to find out that Yonge, whom I had never heard of, was just as popular in her time as Dickens or Thackeray. In fact, The Heir of Redclyffe was her first successful novel, and it was …