Mental Floss

BOOKS









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Shakespeare’s cultural position is pretty secure. He doesn’t need to be rescued from obscurity. Yet certain plays tend to dominate bookshelves, stages, and classrooms, leaving many others largely unread and unperformed.

Susan Harlan






Wikimedia Commons // Public Domain

On this date in 1789, Boston bookseller Isaiah Thomas and Company published The Power of Sympathy: or, The Triumph of Nature, which is generally considered to be the first American novel.

Erin McCarthy










Wikimedia Commons // Public Domain

The Folger Shakespeare Library has announced that copies of the First Folio will visit all 50 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico as part of a Shakespeare celebration.

Anna Green