Easy Literature Trivia: Author! Author! | 10 Questions

Answer: "Treasure Island"

Scottish novelist Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson (1850-1894) was born in Edinburgh. He went to Edinburgh University to study engineering (the family business), but wound up studying law instead. Stevenson had a penchant for traveling and, instead of practicing law, he decided to become a writer. In 1878, at the age of 28, his first work was published, i.e., "An Inland Voyage".

He went on to produce many famous novels, to wit, "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (1886) about a doctor and his alter ego. He also penned "Treasure Island" (1883) about Jim Hawkins and his voyage on the Hispaniola.

Answer: "Atlas Shrugged"

Russian born Alisa Rosenbaum used the pen name Ayn Rand (1905-1982) for her novels. A novelist, playwright and philosopher, Rand espoused the philosophy called "Objectivism", i.e., the morality of self-interest. She moved to the United States in 1926 and had a Broadway play, "Woman on Trial", premiere in 1934.

"Anthem", a novella published in England in 1938, takes place in some dystopian future where individuality has been eliminated. "Atlas Shrugged" was Ayn's fourth and final novel, published in 1957. Here we find a dystopian present where everything seems to be breaking down, and all the people with the best minds seem to be disappearing.

Answer: "Matilda"

Roald Dahl (1916-1990) was a British novelist, short story writer and former fighter pilot. He was born in Wales to Norwegian parents and served in the Royal Air Force during World War II. His books were best-sellers for both children and adults, and more than 250 million copies were sold worldwide.

Many of his tales have been turned into movies, e.g., "The BFG" (1982), "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" (1970) and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (1964). "James and the Giant Peach" (1961) was about an orphan boy with two mean aunts and a giant peach to help him escape. "Matilda" (1988) is a four year old genius who pulls pranks on her neglectful parents.

Answer: "Breathing Lessons"

Anne Tyler is a Pulitzer Prize winning American novelist and short story writer who was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1941. Her themes revolve around marriage and the everyday life of the family; she is also known for the depth
of her character development.

"The Accidental Tourist" was published in 1985 and tells the story of a writer of travel guides whose son is killed in a fast-food restaurant, and the subsequent disintegration of his life. "Breathing Lessons" is about an average Baltimore, Maryland couple reviewing aspects of their lives as they attend a funeral. The novel won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize.

Answer: "The Singles Game"

Lauren Weisberger is a novelist who was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1977. She worked for a time as an assistant to Vogue editor Anna Wintour, providing the background material for her 2003 bestseller "The Devil Wears Prada".

"The Devil Wears Prada" is a roman a clef about a young woman who is hired as a personal assistant to a despotic fashion magazine editor. The book was made into a 2006 movie starring Meryl Streep. In her 2016 novel "The Singles Game", Weisberger delves into the exciting life of a female professional tennis player.

Answer: "The Rainbow"

David Herbert Lawrence (1885-1930) was a British writer and painter. During his life, he faced censorship and persecution due to the sexually explicit nature of his novels. At the time he was seen more as a pornographer than a novelist when, in fact, he was just way ahead of his time.

Prior to writing the racy "Lady Chatterley's Lover" in 1928, Lawrence penned two of his best known books, i.e., "The Rainbow" (1915) and "Women in Love" (1920). Both plots were unusual in that they dealt with unorthodox female characters wanting more for themselves. Not only were the novels controversial, for a time they were banned for obscenity.

Answer: "Silas Marner"

Born Mary Ann Evans, George Eliot (1819-1880) was a British novelist of the Victorian Era. She wrote seven novels, all of which are set in the provincial England of the times. Her style was both realistic and insightful, and her works have been studied in schools for over one hundred years.

Using a masculine name so she would be taken seriously, she wrote "Adam Beede" in 1859. The following year she authored "The Mill on the Floss" about two siblings, set prior to the Napoleonic Wars. In 1861, Eliot penned the classic "Silas Marner", the story of a hermit and miser who finds that a young girl named Eppie has changed his life.

Answer: "Jurassic Park"

Born in Chicago, Illinois, John Michael Crichton (1942-2008) was a doctor, author, director and producer. He has dealt with the genres of science fiction, medicine and thrillers. He was the first person ever to have charted No. 1 in TV (with "ER"), film ("Jurassic Park") and books ("Disclosure"), at the same time.

Michael has given us so many wonderful stories including "Andromeda Strain" and "Congo". Both "Westworld" (1973) and "Jurassic Park" (1993) fall into the genre of science-fiction thrillers. Both are set in theme parks where something goes terribly wrong.

Answer: "Song of Solomon"

Born in Ohio in 1931, Toni Morrison is an author, editor and Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. She is known for her grand themes and evocative language. In 2012, Morrison was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

In 1988, Toni was given the Pulitzer Prize and the American Book Award for her 1987 novel "Beloved", set after the American Civil War. Inspired by a true story, the novel depicts escaped slave Margaret Garner and her fight for freedom. "Song of Solomon" (1977) deals with the life of a black man from Michigan from the 1930s to 1963.

Answer: "Picture of Dorian Gray"

Did you know that Oscar Wilde only wrote one novel? Irish playwright, poet and essayist, Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was one of the most celebrated authors in the early 1890s. Known for his sharp tongue and witty remarks, his company was sought after.

"The Ballad of Reading Gaol" (1898) is a poem written after he was released from prison, having been sentenced to two years for homosexual offenses. It tells of the execution of his cellmate. "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (1890) is about a man whose portrait ages, while he remains young. This was Wilde's only novel.