I love book trivia! I thought that I would share some here! 🙂
Frankenstein was written by a teenager. Mary Shelly was only 18 years old. She came up with the idea during a ghost-story contest with her friends, including Lord Byron. The first novel was published anonymously. Many readers thought Mary’s husband wrote it. Many people were shocked by it, struggling to believe that a woman could write something so dark. *Pictured above is Mary Shelly.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was actually inspired by a real perso named Alice Liddell. Lewis Carroll told Alice and her sisters the story during a boat trip. Alice wanted him to write it down. *pictured above is Alice Liddell.
The Hobbit was a bed-time story that J.R.R.Tolkien told to his children. One day while grading papers, he wrote the line “in a hole in the ground lived a hobbit.” He has no clue what a hobbit was yet!
The Lord of the Rings was supposed to be one large book. The publisher decided to split it into 3 books because of printing costs and paper shortages after WWII.
The Great Gatsby was not popular at all. It only sold about 20,000 copies during F. Scott Fitzgerald’s lifetime. It became popular during WWII when it was given to soldiers through a government program.
Moby Dick was also not popular. Herman Melville died thinking that his novel was a failure. In the 1920s, people discovered the novel and made it a beloved classic.
Dracula was originally named “The Un-Dead” by Bram Stoker. He changed the title after finding the name Dracula while researching the history of Eastern Europe. The word is derived from a Romanian ruler named Vlad the Impaler.
Pride and Prejudice was also named something else! It was titled “First Impressions.” After the original book was rejected by publishers, she revised the story and re-named it.
I like big books! But this one takes the cake. The longest book is called The Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. It has 1.2 million words, has 7 volumes, and took 14 years to complete.
Charlotte’s Web was inspired by a spider E.B. White saw in his barn. He watched the spider spinning a web in his barn.
Little Women was written in a few months. The publisher asked Louisa May Alcott to write a book for girls. She based the novel on her own life and 3 sisters.
Anne Frank‘s Diary was edited by her father Otto Frank before being published. Later editions, restored it to the orginal writing.