What are some books that deal heavily with the American Dream?
By FolioCrewless
This seems like it could work for both fiction and non-fiction. Edit: Thanks for all the suggestions!
Reader discussion: The Rise of Silas Lapham
Public reader discussion about The Rise of Silas Lapham in the WeRead Catalog by William Dean Howells.
Published in America in 1880s
By envelope_eclipse9476
I’m trying to find books from the 1880s that are set in America. I want to read them to get a feel for how people talked and what life was like back then. I know Mark Twain was writing around this period, but I’m hoping for more viewpoints too—especially female authors, but I’m open to anything.
What's your favorite underrated classic and/or underrated author?
By TurtleBrook
I really love Edith Wharton, but it feels like she doesn’t get talked about as much as Jane Austen or the Brontes. Back in sophomore year English, we had to read *Ethan Frome* and I ended up loving it, so I picked up *The Age of Innocence* later that same year for a book report. Turns out there are still a bunch of her books I haven’t read yet—next month I’m planning to start *The Glimpses of the Moon*. What’s a classic that you feel doesn’t get enough hype?
Fans of American Realism?
By looksbridge
Is anyone else here really into American Realism from the late 1800s? I feel like it’s kind of gone out of fashion lately, and people treat it like it’s a little prudish (which, okay, that’s a legit criticism). Also sometimes it gets labeled naive or overly middle-class, and yeah, a lot of it is probably pretty white too—though I’m not sure how much of that is just the era. That said, there are some seriously strong writers in that whole scene, and the stuff I’ve read still feels good in 2023. William Dean Howells seems like the big “champion” here, and he’s a great author even beyond that. I’ve also seen Sarah Orne Jewett, Hamlin Garland, Bret Harte, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, Charles C. Chestnutt… plus Twain, though I’m not sure if he’s grouped with realism the same way. From realism you get naturalism too (Dreiser, Crane, Norris, etc.), and it feels like naturalism gets way more attention now. Anyway—curious if anyone else has read some of my favorites and what you thought: - **_A Hazard of New Fortunes_ (Howells)**: Tons of characters, and it really paints late-1880s New York. - **_Pembroke_ (Mary E. Wilkins Freeman)**: Small-town New England life (1830s/40s-ish). Funny and sad, and you can feel how Puritan “rules” wreck relationships. - **_The Damnation of Theron Ware_ (Harold Frederic)**: I think it’s 1899, but it reads way more modern than I expected—an upstate NY Methodist minister losing his faith. Feels full of moral messiness and some sharp irony. - **_The House Behind the Cedars_ (Charles C. Chestnutt)**: About passing and interracial romance. Maybe a bit romance-y in a literary way, but it still hits an important theme in a surprising direction.
Books about or set in Boston?
By SilverFocus1993
Hey everyone! My friend from Germany is looking for book recommendations that are either about the Greater Boston area or just set in Boston. Fiction and non-fiction are both totally fine. If it’s fiction, it doesn’t have to be mainly about the city, but it should take place in Boston and help you get a sense of what the place is like. Any personal favorites you’d suggest?
Metropolitan: William Dean Howells and the Novel of New York by Adam Gopnik
By glad_bison
Has anyone else here read much Howells? I just got around to *A Hazard of New Fortunes* and it honestly blew my mind—it felt like I stumbled into a whole new side of American lit. The biography mentioned in this review sounds super interesting too, since Howells basically was both a big-name, widely read author for decades and also a critic who pushed a bunch of other realist writers (like Mary Wilkins Freeman, Hamlin Garland, Charles W. Chestnutt, and Sarah Orne Jewett) into the spotlight. It really does sound like it could double as a timeline for that late 1800s/early 1900s literary scene. And personally, I also loved *The Rise of Silas Lapham*. I know he’s not really “in” anymore and most people don’t seem to read him these days, so I’m curious if there are any Howells fans here. If so, I’d love recommendations for other American novels from around that same era or similar vibe.