“To Eat This Big Universe as Her Oyster”
Margaret Fuller and the First Major Work of American Feminism
By Randall Fuller via @publicdomainrev
https://publicdomainreview.org/essay/margaret-fuller-and-the-first-major-work-of-american-feminism/?utm_source=newsletter
"If one cannot state a matter clearly enough so that even an intelligent twelve-year-old can understand it, one should remain within the cloistered walls of the university and laboratory until one gets a better grasp of one's subject matter."
Margaret Mead died #OTD in 1978.
In November 1850
A new edition of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's Poems is published by Chapman & Hall in London, including in volume 2 her Sonnets from the Portuguese.
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/21161
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/2002
In the public domain soon, in libraries now
The Penn Libraries, where I work, has first editions of many of the works featured in my #PublicDomainDayCountdown . From today through Public Domain Day, the Libraries social media will feature photos of some distinctive books from 1930.
By John Mark Ockerbloom
https://everybodyslibraries.com/2025/12/26/in-the-public-domain-soon-in-libraries-now/
#OTD in 1850.
Charles Dickens's novel David Copperfield concludes serial publication and on November 14 appears complete in book form from Bradbury and Evans in London.
The 29 Best (Old) Books We Read in 2025
https://lithub.com/the-29-best-old-books-we-read-in-2025/
"Wuthering Heights" at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=Wuthering+Heights
"The Country of the Pointed Firs" at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=The+country+of+the+pointed+firs
#OTD in 1895
Thomas Hardy's last completed novel, Jude the Obscure is published by Osgood, McIlvaine, and Co. in London, dated 1896, on completion of an expurgated serialization under the title Hearts Insurgent in Harper's Magazine.
#OTD in 1902
Leo Tolstoy's drama The Power of Darkness (written in 1886) has its Russian-language première at the Moscow Art Theatre by Konstantin Stanislavski with some success, although Stanislavski is self-critical.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Darkness
The Power of Darkness at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26661
HAPPY PUBLIC DOMAIN DAY! And Happy New Year!
Books published in 1930 will enter the U.S. public domain, such as:
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett: This novel introduced the world to the famous detective Sam Spade.
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner: A masterpiece of American literature.
The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie: This was the first novel to feature the beloved character Miss Marple.
"Man is free at the instant he wants to be."
French writer, deist and philosopher Voltaire was born #OTD in 1694. He established himself as one of the leading writers of the enlightenment.
Books by Voltaire at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/913
#OTD in 1748.
The first instalment of Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, also known as Fanny Hill, is published anonymously by John Cleland to raise money to free himself from the London debtors' prison. It is considered by some to be the first modern erotic novel.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fanny_Hill
Memoirs of Fanny Hill at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/25305
What was your favorite book from PG's catalog in 2025?
Top 10 Most Read Pieces from 2025
via @publicdomainrev
It’s that time in December when we inevitably end up asking the question: what, exactly, captured people’s attention over the past year? The list below is one answer.
https://publicdomainreview.org/blog/2025/12/top-10-most-read-pieces-from-2025/
Virginia Faulkner: Writer, Editor and... Ghostwriter?
Brad Bigelow on the Collaborative Process That Produced Polly Adler’s A House is Not a Home
https://lithub.com/virginia-faulkner-writer-editor-and-ghostwriter/
More about Virginia Faulkner:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Faulkner
https://neglectedbooks.com/?p=10900
Abby Morton Diaz was born #OTD in 1821.
Born in Plymouth, Massachusetts, she became involved in the reform movements of the 19th century, particularly those related to women's suffrage, education, and labor.
Abby Morton Diaz at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/2166
In November 1887.
Arthur Conan Doyle's first detective novel, A Study in Scarlet, is published in Beeton's Christmas Annual by Ward Lock & Co. in London, introducing the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes & his friend & chronicler Dr. Watson.
In November 1874.
After completing a four-year prison sentence for thefts and frauds at Waldheim, Saxony, Karl May has his first story, "Die Rose von Ernstthal" ("The Story of Rose Ernstthal"), published.
8 Famous Women Writers Who Wrote Under Male Pseudonyms.
Historically, women faced barriers to publication and prejudicial attitudes, leading some to adopt male pseudonyms.
https://www.thecollector.com/famous-women-writers-under-male-pseudonyms/
#OTD in 1910.
Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy dies of pneumonia aged 82 at Astapovo railway station, after a day's train journey south, fleeing from his home.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Tolstoy
Books by Leo Tolstoy at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/136
#OTD in 1906.
Frank Wedekind's play Spring Awakening: A Children's Tragedy (Frühlings Erwachen), completed 1901, receives its first staging, directed by Max Reinhardt.
The Awakening of Spring at PG:
https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/35242
🎬 Artist: #ZABOU / #ZabouArtist in City: #NewRoss Co. Wexford (Near O'Hanrahan Bridge) Ireland 🇮🇪 11/2024 - Title: "Small Things Like These" ( #CillianMurphy ) - #Art #Streetart #Mural #Artist #Movie #Book #Literature #ClaireKeegan
Isobel Wylie Hutchison (1889–1982)—author, poet, film-maker, botanist, #arctic explorer—was born #OTD, 30 May. A 🎂 🧵
WalkHighlands shares an extract from PEAK BEYOND PEAK, describing how she tackled the Corrieyairack Pass between the #Cairngorms & Loch Ness
1/4
#Scottish #literature #20thcentury #womenwriters #hillwalking #mountaineering
#OTD in 1902.
J. M. Barrie's comedy The Admirable Crichton is first performed, at the Duke of York's Theatre in London, starring H. B. Irving, Henry Kemble and Irene Vanbrugh.
José-Maria de Heredia was born #OTD in 1842.
He published in 1893 Les Trophées comprising 198 sonnets that retrace the history of the world or depict privileged moments as well as four longer poems.
José-Maria de Heredia at PG:
https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/5697
#OTD in 1900.
August Strindberg's To Damascus (Till Damaskus, first two parts) receives its première at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm with August Palme and Harriet Bosse, Strindberg's future wife, in the leading rôles.
![Leo Tolstoy in his office. CREATED/PUBLISHED: [1908 May]; CREATOR: Prokudin-Gorskii, Sergei Mikhailovich, 1863-1944, photographer. REPOSITORY: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.](/proxy/post_attachment/518491/e7b27576ac.jpeg "Leo Tolstoy in his office. CREATED/PUBLISHED: [1908 May]; CREATOR: Prokudin-Gorskii, Sergei Mikhailovich, 1863-1944, photographer. REPOSITORY: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.")
