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Dec 31, 1000
Beowulf manuscript
The epic saga relating the heroic exploits of a brave and faithful warrior. Only one example has ever been found, and is a permanent part of the Treasures Collection at the British Library. Luckily for posterity, the manuscript was rescued from a library fire in 1731. Beowulf likely comes to us in written form through scribes who recorded an oral traditional legend in Old English, which bears little resemblance to the language we speak in the 21st century. Way cool! 1731 fire. -
Jul 31, 1483
Caxton's Illustrated Chaucer
The first book ever printed in English, as Caxton, England's first printer, said, ". . . to the end that every man may have them at once.” He understood the potential of printing to bolster his own publishing business, and also change the way people lived. -
Jul 31, 1525
Tyndale's Bible
William Tyndale translated the New Testament into English - a subversive act that cost him his life. Believing that everyman should be able to explore the Bible for himself, he worked from the original Hebrew and Greek to produce printed Scripture in vernacular English for the first time ever.
His efforts displeased the Crown, and he was publically strangled and burned.
Protestant supporters in England and Germany arranged for mass printing of his work, now the basis of the King James Bible. -
Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies
England's best. Shakespeare's plays on stage were a feature of life in London in his heyday. Upon his death, "complete" versions were compile and issued in print in 1623. The world without these works? Unthinkable. -
Jane Austen Writes
The first legitimate woman novelist in the English language, Jane Austen charted a course for intelligent women with something to say. Her incisive 19th-century social commentary resonates still, and her wit saves the reader from despair. -
The Romantics
A cadre of creative, brilliant, and free-thinking artists, poets, and writers found inspiration in Nature and sought Meaning in Life. Like all Seekers, they found answers that revealed both darkness and light within humanity. Their collective vision inspires high-minded hopefulness in many readers. -
Charles Dickens on Life in Victorian England
Descriptive and opinionated, all of Dickens' works reveal the humanity of all and the iniquity of some. His social commentary reminds us of what's best in the world, and how we must choose our way wisely. Far better than a history book! -
London's Wilde!
Oscar Wilde, author and poseur, triumphed with his play The Importance of Being Earnest. He viewed the social mores of the times as bondage, and failed to conform. He went down in a blaze of glory, but not before he asked deeply uncomfortable questions and searingly satirized social hypocrisy. -
The War Poets and the end of an era
The War to End All Wars inspired patriotic soldiers to re consider the meaning of loyalty and the value of life. Wilfred Owen, Sigfried Sassoon, and Rupert Brooke captured the paradoxical nature of fighting for king and country. Their poetry reveals the horror and futility of their "duty," as well as their heartbreaking boyish innocence. -
The Brave New World
The War and the aftermath changed England forever. The prescient Aldous Huxley envisioned a possible future which has startling similarities to the world of today. Do we live in a dystopian society? Think about it. -
The Boy Who Lived
Two world-wide wars bummed everyone out, and then things got kind of crazy, but in the end, Harry Potter saved us all. Kids read again, we believe in magic, and good conquers evil. What's not to like?
