Stephen Crane is in some ways the John Keats of American literature: He wrote a recognized classic that made his international reputation at the age of 24, only to die, like Keats, of tuberculosis at a young age (he was only 28), cheating the world of that promise of later literary milestones. But Crane was… Continue reading Stephen Crane’s “The Red Badge of Courage”

Joseph Conrad is one of the most respected and acclaimed novelists in the English language, which has always been remarkable since, as most readers know, he was born to Polish parents in what is now part of Ukraine but at the time of his birth was a part of the Russian empire. Thus his native… Continue reading Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”

Wilkie Collins was a struggling young Victorian novelist and playwright until 1851, when he met Charles Dickens and his life changed. Dickens became his close friend and literary mentor, and began publishing some of Collins’ efforts in his own periodicals. Particularly in the period from 1859 to 1869, Collins put out his best work, including… Continue reading Wilkie Collins’ “The Woman in White”

Margaret Atwood may be the most significant author in world literature who has not yet won the Nobel Prize. Two of her novels (The Blind Assassin and The Testaments) have won the Booker Prize—the elite annual British award for the best novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. And four other novels have been… Continue reading J.M. Coetzee’s “Waiting for the Barbarians”

Agatha Christie does not appear on most “100 Greatest Novels” list, which seems something of an oversight. Her plaudits are myriad: In 1955, the Mystery Writers of America awarded her its inaugural Grand Master Award. Her novel And Then There Were None, having sold more than 100 million copies, is the best-selling mystery novel of all… Continue reading Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express”