Some Quirky Books I Have Known Quiz

Answer: The Cat in the Hat

The author of the book "The Cat in the Hat" is the American writer, political cartoonist, illustrator, and poet Theodor Seuss Geisel (1904-1991), known as Dr. Seuss. He authored over 60 books.

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, there was a great deal of debate about the efficiency of the approaches used in early childhood literacy. On this occasion, Theodor Seuss Geisel was invited to create a literacy booklet that should be more entertaining and fun. To fulfill this task he was given a list of 348 words that every six-year-old child should know. However, the book's vocabulary should be limited to 250 words. In the book only 236 different words were used.

"The Cat in the Hat" (1957) is a children's book; it is about an eccentric cat that wears a red and white striped top hat and a red bow tie. The Cat and his companions, "Thing One" and "Thing Two", visit a home where two children are alone and upset. During the visit, they discuss trust, responsibility, social expectations, and honesty.

Answer: Gadsby

The novel "Gadsby" (1939) was written by the American Ernest Vincent Wright (1872-1939). The plot is about a dying fictional city, which is revitalized due to the action of the protagonist, John Gadsby. Wright took a long time to write the book, and to publish it he used a self-publishing press. The book became famous not so much for its plot, but for being a story with more than 50,000 words without using the letter "E". Wright stated that he tied down the "E" key on his typewriter.

A work that deliberately avoids certain letters is known as a "lipogram". Writing the "Gadsby" was a challenge because the letter E is the most used in English. The book is a favorite of constrained writing aficionados. Writing a lipogram is an easy task if you avoid uncommon letters such as Z, X, and Q. In some cases, it can happen by chance, as in Poe's poem "The Raven", which contains no letters Z.

Answer: True History of the Kelly Gang

The book "True History of the Kelly Gang" (2000) was written by the Australian Peter Carey (1943 -)and received numerous awards including his second Booker Prize (UK) in 2001. It was based on the life of the outlaw Ned Kelly (1855- 1880). It was written as if it were Ned Kelly's "autobiography": The novel has many real facts from the history of the Kelly Gang and many fictional facts and characters.

The text has a different vernacular style, as influenced by Kelly's Irish background, with few punctuation marks. The novel has no commas, with the exception of the frame narrative of "S.C." (a secondary narrator).

Answer: Green Eggs and Ham

"Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss, first published in 1960, is one of the best-selling children's books in the world. It was the result of a challenge made by Dr. Seuss' publisher: to write a book with fewer words than he had used in his book "Cat in the Hat". In this new book only 50 words were used, of which 49 have only one syllable. The exception is the word "anywhere". They are simple words for novice readers.

In this story, Sam-I-Am attempts to convince Guy-Am-I (originally a nameless character) to eat the delicacy "green eggs and ham". To convince him, Sam suggests different environments and locations (house, box, car, tree, rain, dark, etc.) matched with various animals. After several refusals and to get rid of his friend's insistence, Guy accepts to try the delicacy. He likes it very much declaring: "I do like green eggs and ham".

The book can be used to encourage children and even adults to try new foods and new activities. "Try at least one bite, because you'll never know if you'll like it unless you try it".

Answer: Roderick Hudson

We generally think that once a novel is published, modifications can no longer occur. However, this is not always true. Many works are revised shortly after publication and others are updated decades after they were printed. Some undergo minor changes but some books have major modifications.

The American writer Henry James (1843-1916) was an author whose approach to fiction and style evolved over a lifetime. This fact made him review some of his early publications. His novel "Roderick Hudson", which traces the life of the title character, a sculptor was published in 1875 as a serial, and then as a book in 1876 and 1879. In 1907, it was extensively revised for the New York Edition. In the preface of the revised edition, the author severely criticized some aspects of the original novel.

Answer: Hard Times: For These Times

"Hard Times: For These Times", best known as "Hard Times", was the tenth novel by the English writer Charles Dickens (1812-1870). It is about the English society, in which he satirized on the economic and social conditions of the era. It was first published in installments, from April 1854 to August 1854, and in the book format in the same year.

This book has some different aspects from other Dickens books: it has no preface, and it is the shortest of Dickens's novels. It is the only novel to have scenes set away from London. Of all Dickens' novels, "Hard Times" and "Great Expectations" are the only ones without illustrations.

Answer: The Anarchist Cookbook

William Ralph Powell, known as William Powell (1949- 2016) was an American who spent his early childhood in Britain. At age 17, Powell was drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. Distressed and revolted by the summons, he began to collect information for the book "The Anarchist Cookbook". The book contains recipes and illustrations for making explosives, recreational drugs, hand-to-hand weapons, sabotage techniques, etc. In the book's preface, he warns readers that the topics are illegal and the recipes dangerous.

The book was published in 1971 by Lyle Stuart and created quite a stir, drawing the attention of the FBI. It later became clear that the perpetrators of several shooting and bombing incidents had access to the book. William Powell himself and several entities asked for the removal of the book from the catalog. However, the publisher, who owned the copyright, refused to do so.

Answer: The Mystery of Edwin Drood

"The Mystery of Edwin Drood" was the final novel by the English author Charles Dickens (1812-1870) and illustrated by Luke Fildes. It was scheduled to be published from April 1870 to February 1871, in 12 installments. After publishing six installments with 23 chapters, Dickens died of a stroke on June 9, 1870, at age 58.

Edwin Drood, one of the main characters of the book, dies and his killer, if any, is not revealed. Three people attempted to complete the novel: the American Robert Henry Newell, the American journalist Henry Morford, and the printer Thomas Power James, who was said to have embodied the spirit of Dickens. At the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, four other writers tried to explain, decode, and complete the book. It is interesting to note that although the book was not finalized by the author, it has been adapted for film, television, radio, and theatre.

In March 1870, Charles Dickens had a meeting with Queen Victoria during which he is said to have offered to share with her the ending of the novel he was currently writing, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood". For some reason, the Queen would have said "No thank you". Charles Dickens then took the ending of his final novel to the grave and to this day the ending is a mystery.

Answer: Suite Française

The Jewish family of novelist Irène Némirovsky (1903, Ukraine - 1942, Auschwitz, Poland) fled the Russian Revolution and went to France in 1919. Némirovsky, becoming fluent in French, began publishing short stories and novellas in 1923, the year she married Michel Epstein with whom he had two daughters, Denise and Elisabeth. She published several novels, some of which have been made into films.

When the Germans invaded and occupied France in 1940, she sent her daughters to the countryside and soon followed after her friends and publishers abandoned her for being Jewish. In this refuge, she began writing her five-part epic novel. In July 1942, shortly after finishing the second volume, she was arrested and deported. Her husband was arrested two months later. The French guards who came to arrest him instructed the girls, Denise and Élizabeth, to take some things from the house and try to disappear. They took some clothes and a box containing manuscripts, photos, etc. The daughters managed to survive and hide the material from the German and French police.

In 1992, the youngest daughter, Élizabeth Gille, published a biography of her mother using letters and material found in the box they had kept. After Élizabeth's death in 1996, Denise began transcribing the handwritten minuscule. Analyzing the material with the help of biographer Myriam Anissimov, it was noticed that it was not a personal diary, but two complete novels. In 2004, "Suite Française" was published, which won the Prix Renaudot for 2004, the first time that the prize has been awarded posthumously. The book was published 62 years after the author's death.

Answer: The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Irishman Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) wrote many poems, short stories, and plays but only one novel: "The Picture of Dorian Gray". This work was first published as a novella-length version in 1890. The publisher Stoddart, fearing that the novella would be considered indecent, deleted about 500 words without the author knowing. After that, Oscar Wilde prepared a new version, in which he retained Stoddart's edits, made further edits, added a preface, and expanded the text from 13 to 20 chapters. The novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray" was published in April 1891.

Wilde's only novel was subject to much controversy and criticism but was eventually recognized as a classic of Gothic literature.