The Lost Art of Handwriting
A new book provides a glimpse into how some of the most resoundingly famous writers actually, you know, wrote.
By Sarah Rose Sharp via @hyperallergic
books
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French novelist and playwright Honoré de Balzac died #OTD in 1850.
Novelist, art critic, playwright, literary critic, essayist, journalist and printer, he left one of the most imposing works of fiction in French literature, with more than ninety novels and short stories published between 1829 and 1855 under the title La Comédie humaine.
Books by Honoré de Balzac at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/251
#OTD in 1887.
L. L. Zamenhof published Unua Libro, the first publication to describe Esperanto, a constructed international language.
First published in Russian on July 26 [O.S. July 14] 1887, the publication of Unua Libro marks the formal beginning of the Esperanto movement.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unua_Libro
Books in Esperanto at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/bookshelf/34
#OTD in 1852.
Exiled French novelist Victor Hugo moves to Saint Helier on Jersey in the Channel Islands with his mistress Juliette Drouet.
Hugo decided to live in exile after Napoleon III's coup d'état at the end of 1851. After leaving France, Hugo lived in Brussels briefly in 1851, and then moved to the Channel Islands, first to Jersey (1852–1855) and then to the smaller island of Guernsey in 1855, where he stayed until Napoleon III's fall from power in 1870.
#OTD in 1850.
Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville meet for the first time, together with Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. and publisher James T. Fields, on a picnic expedition to Monument Mountain (Berkshire County, Massachusetts).
Melville had just read Hawthorne's short story collection Mosses from an Old Manse, and his unsigned review of the collection was printed in The Literary World on August 17& 24 titled "Hawthorne and His Mosses".
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/28
#OTD in 1928.
The novel The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall
Publication, originally scheduled for late 1928, was brought forward when he discovered that another novel with a lesbian theme, Compton Mackenzie's Extraordinary Women, was to be published in September. The Well appeared on 27 July, in a black cover with a plain jacket.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Well_of_Loneliness
The Well of Loneliness at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/73042
French writer and historian Hilaire Belloc was born #OTD in 1870.
His notable works include "The Path to Rome" (1902), a travel book about his journey on foot from central France to Rome, and his biographies of historical figures like Oliver Cromwell and Joan of Arc. He is also remembered for his humorous verse, especially his collection of children’s poetry, "Cautionary Tales for Children" (1907), which includes famous poems such as "Matilda" and "Jim".
Italian poet, writer, literary critic and teacher Giosuè Carducci was born #OTD in 1835.
His poetry collections, such as "Rime nuove" and "Odi barbare", are notable for their classical forms and themes, often drawing inspiration from ancient Roman and Greek literature. In addition to his literary work, Carducci was a respected academic. He taught Italian literature at the University of Bologna for many years.
Books by Giosuè Carducci at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/43982
"The time is out of joint: O cursed spite,
That ever I was born to set it right!"
Hamlet, Act I, scene v.
#OTD in 1759.
The earliest known professional performance of Shakespeare's Hamlet in North America (in Garrick's version) is given by the American Company in Philadelphia, with Lewis Hallam Jr. as Hamlet.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet
Hamlet at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/1524
American writer Herman Melville was born #OTD in 1819.
Melville's first two books, "Typee" (1846) and "Omoo" (1847), were based on his adventures in the South Seas and were quite popular. These semi-autobiographical novels painted a romanticized view of life among the Pacific Islanders. Published in 1851, "Moby-Dick" is considered Melville's masterpiece. Initially, the book was not well-received, and its complex structure and themes puzzled readers and critics alike.
Edited 345d ago
"Away, dark thoughts, you autumn clouds!
A golden spring is here!
Shall it be thus in sorrow and in lamentation
That my youthful years pass away?"
Ukrainian poet, playwright, and activist Lesya Ukrainka died #OTD in 1913.
Among her best-known works are the collections of poems On the Wings of Songs, Thoughts and Dreams, Echos, the epic poem Ancient Fairy Tale, One Word, plays Princess, Cassandra, In the Catacombs, and Forest Song
José de Acosta: the pioneering, overlooked precursor to Darwin and Humboldt.
Beginning in the 15th century, the Renaissance in Europe saw a shift in the continent’s mindset towards greater interest in the world beyond its own borders.
By Beatriz Fernández Herrero. via @Conversation_E
Books by José de Acosta at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/45903
#OTD in 1890.
Ambrose Bierce's short story "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge", one of his best known works, is first published, in The San Francisco Examiner and collected in the compilation Tales of Soldiers and Civilians (1891).
The story is set during the American Civil War and is known for its irregular time sequence and twist ending.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Occurrence_at_Owl_Creek_Bridge
An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/375
"Books are the treasured wealth of the world and the fit inheritance of generations and nations. "
#OTD in 1854.
American Transcendentalist philosopher Henry David Thoreau publishes his memoir Walden.
Walden details Thoreau's experiences over the course of two years, two months, and two days in a cabin he built near Walden Pond amidst woodland owned by his friend and mentor Ralph Waldo Emerson, near Concord, Massachusetts.
Walden at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/205
British novelist and scientific Agnes Giberne died #OTD in 1939.
She is best known for her popular science books on astronomy. Her most famous work, Sun, Moon, and Stars: Astronomy for Beginners (1879), became a significant educational resource, introducing countless readers to the basics of astronomy. She also authored numerous Christian books, including religious biographies and devotional literature.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnes_Giberne
Agnes Giberne at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/47772
#OTD in 1897.
The first International Congress of Mathematicians is held in Zürich, Switzerland.
The organizers included such prominent mathematicians as Luigi Cremona, Felix Klein, Gösta Mittag-Leffler, Andrey Markov, and others. The congress was attended by 208 mathematicians. Only four were women: Iginia Massarini, Vera Schiff, Charlotte Scott, and Charlotte Wedell.
Full text is available at @internetarchive
https://archive.org/details/mathematicalpap00socigoog
I wish old books were properly digitised and available as ePubs.
My brain suddenly had a hankering to read "The Intergalactic Omniglot".
It seems there's only a 2nd hand paper-version for sale 😢
Also - isn't it cool how the kid on the cover has a foldable device? Pretty cool for 1988.
Shameless Self Promotion.
For the Python folks who are just starting as well as those looking to pick up some more skills, I’ve got something for you: The third edition of the Modern Python Cookbook. We’ve expanded the book include over 130 recipes, and tested all of the code with Python 3.12. Some older — less useful examples — have been pruned, and new topics have been added.
https://www.packtpub.com/en-us/product/modern-python-cookbook-9781835466384
"Zum Hassen oder Lieben
Ist alle Welt getrieben,
Es bleibet keine Wahl,
der Teufel ist neutral."
"To hate or to love
All the world is driven,
There is no choice,
the devil is neutral."
~Clemens Brentano (9 September 1778 – 28 July 1842)
Introducing Beatrix Potter.
Beatrix Potter remains one of the world's best-selling and best-loved children's authors. She wrote and illustrated 28 books, including her 23 Tales which have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. In her later years, she became a farmer and sheep breeder and helped protect thousands of acres of land in the Lake District.
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/introducing-beatrix-potter
Beatrix Potter (28 July 1866 – 22 December 1943)
Edited 349d ago
"Wild air, world-mothering air,
Nestling me everywhere,
That each eyelash or hair
Girdles; goes home betwixt
The fleeciest, frailest-fixed
Snowflake; that's fairly mixed
With, riddles, and is rife
In every least thing's life."
The Blessed Virgin compared to the Air we Breathe, lines 1-8 - Wessex Poems and Other Verses (1918)
~Gerard Manley Hopkins (28 July 1844 – 8 June 1889)
Books by Gerard Manley Hopkins at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/25314
#OTD in 1886.
The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works is signed. The treaty provides authors, musicians, poets, painters, and other creators with the means to control how their works are used, by whom, and on what terms.
Italian philosopher and physician Alessandro Achillini died #OTD in 1512.
The “Anatomical Notes by the Great Alexander Achillinus of Bologna” demonstrate a detailed description of the human body. He was also distinguished as an anatomist, among his writings being De humani corporis anatomia (Venice, 1516–1524), and Annotationes anatomicae (Bologna, 1520).
