Author Profiles 19th Century Oliver Optic (William T. Adams) (1822 - 1897) Massachusetts William T. Adams assumed the pen name "Oliver Optic" when he began writing children's books in the 1850s. A teacher by trade, Adams gained fame and fortune during his lifetime from the publication of numerous "boy adventure stories." John Townsend Trowbridge New York Beginning his career as a newspaper editor and anonymous contributor to various publications, Trowbridge first earned a name for himself upon publication of an anti-slavery novel. He wrote articles for the children's magazines Our Young Folks and Youth's Companion during and after the war. Of his Civil War novels, Cudjo's Cave was the most popular. According to the new introduction to a recent edition of the novel, Trowbridge was the first American novelist to depict a black man of pure African ancestry as noble and intelligent. Modern critics, however, label the character Pomp a stereotype. Jules Verne France Fantasy writer Jules Verne is famous for his adventure stories; three in particular have contributed significantly to the genre of science fiction and remain popular today: | |
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