Edna Ferber was an American novelist, short story writer and playwright. Her novels include the Pulitzer Prize-winning So Big (1924), Show Boat (1926; made into the celebrated 1927 musical), Cimarron (1930; adapted into the 1931 film which won the Academy Award for Best Picture), Giant (1952; made into the 1956 film of the same name) and Ice Palace (1958), which also received a film adaptation in 1960. She helped adapt her short story "Old Man Minick", published in 1922, into a play (Minic...

Selina Peake De Jong decides to be a school teacher in farming country. During her stay on the Pool family farm, she encourages the young Roelf Pool to follow his interests, which include art.

The Pulitzer Prize–winning "masterpiece" by the acclaimed author of Giant follows the life of a farming woman on the Illinois prairie ( The Literary Review).In the small Dutch community of New Holland, Illinois, Selina DeJong dedicates herself to her passion for learning by becoming a schoolteacher. But as life progresses, she finds other loves: first, her husband, Pervus, a Dutch farmer; and then her son, Dirk, whom she nicknames "So Big" in refe...

The story follows the life of a young woman, Selina Peake De Jong, who decides to be a school teacher in farming country. During her stay on the Pool family farm, she encourages the young Roelf Pool to follow his interests, which include art. Upon his mother's death, Roelf runs away to France. Meanwhile, Selina marries a Dutch farmer named Pervus. They have a child together, Dirk, whom she nicknames "So Big." Pervus dies and Selina is forced to take over working on the farm to give Dirk a ...

Until he was almost ten the name stuck to him. He had literally to fight his way free of it. From So Big (of fond and infantile derivation) it had been condensed into Sobig. And Sobig DeJong, in all its consonantal disharmony, he had remained until he was a ten-year-old schoolboy in that incredibly Dutch district southwest of Chicago known first as New Holland and later as High Prairie. At ten, by dint of fists, teeth, copper-toed boots, and temper, he earned the right to be called by his ...

This collection of short stories by Edna Ferber provides a fascinating glance into the everyday lives of men and women living in 1910s America. The much-loved character Emma McChesney makes a special appearance in ‘One Hundred Percent’.Witty and insightful, Edna Ferber is known for her ability to write wondrously real characters, particularly strong female protagonists. This collection includes nine short stories set around the years devastated by World War I. From...

9 Complete Works of Edna FerberButtered Side DownCheerful - By RequestDawn O'Hara, The Girl Who LaughedEmma McChesney& CoFanny HerselfHalf PortionsOne BasketPersonality PlusRoast Beef, Medium

It has become the fashion among novelists to introduce their hero in knee pants, their heroine in pinafore and pigtails. Time was when we were rushed up to a stalwart young man of twenty-four, who was presented as the pivot about whom the plot would revolve. Now we are led, protesting, up to a grubby urchin of five and are invited to watch him through twenty years of intimate minutiae. In extreme cases we have been obliged to witness his evolution from swaddling clothes to dresses, from dr...

In "Cheerful—By Request," Ferber explores the life of an optimistic and cheerful young woman named Becky. Despite facing challenging circumstances and living in poverty, Becky maintains a positive attitude and radiates cheerfulness, which impacts the people around her. The story delves into Becky's resilience and her ability to find joy in the midst of adversity, highlighting the power of optimism and a cheerful disposition.Ferber's writing often focused on character studies and human resi...

So Big is a 1924 novel written by Edna Ferber. The book was inspired by the life of Antje Paarlberg in the Dutch community of South Holland, Illinois, a Chicago suburb. It won the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel in 1925. The story follows the life of a young woman, Selina Peake De Jong, who decides to be a school teacher in farming country. During her stay on the Pool family farm, she encourages the young Roelf Pool to follow his interests, which include art. Upon his mother's death, Roelf ru...

Trapped in an isolating newspaper reporter job in New York City with her husband in an insane asylum, Dawn O’Hara has not yet reached 30 and she already fears she will never be happy again.Set in the USA in the 1910s, Dawn O’Hara, The Girl Who Laughed is narrated by fiery journalist Dawn. After the doctor sends the New York-based writer back to her hometown in Michigan, she finds herself in the loving charge of her married sister, Norah. Fighting to improv...

A seminal short story collection containing 12 humorous and dark tales from the prominent Jazz Age author, Edna Ferber.This 1912 volume highlights Edna Ferber’s famous wit as well as her masterful control over tragedy. The 12 stories featured in this collection reflect early twentieth-century moral values in America, and demonstrate everyday life in the 1910s. Often armed with a strong, female protagonist, Ferber writes realistic characters and fascinating tales.