The whole family
Subtitle: a novel by twelve authors
By: William Dean Howells ... [et al.] ; Foreword by June Howard ; introduction by Alfred Bendixen.
Contributors: Howells, William Dean, 1837-1920.
Publisher: Duke University Press
Published: 2001
Place of publication: Durham, [N.C.]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 341
Description: "One of the most fascinating experiments in American literature resulted in The Whole Family. This unusual composite novel numbers among its twelve authors such luminaries as William Dean Howells, Henry James, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, and Elizabeth Stuart Phelps." "The idea for this collaborative venture originated with Howells in 1906. Under the guidance of Elizabeth Jordan, the energetic editor of Harper's Bazar (as it was then known), each of the authors was invited to write a successive chapter in a story Howells envisioned as a definitive depiction of American family life. But the original plan underwent a dramatic reversal with a controversial chapter by Freeman. From that point, The Whole Family became a more involved story of family misunderstandings and rivalries that actually mirrored the rivalries of the contributors themselves." "Alfred Bendixen's lively introduction offers the first accurate and complete account of the creation of this remarkable novel - uncovering new facts and revealing the turmoil out of which it was shaped. June Howard's preface provides an additional contextual and critical perspective."--BOOK JACKET.
Table of contents: title: The father / William Dean Howells; title: The old-maid aunt / Mary E. Wilkins Freeman; title: The grandmother / Mary Heaton Vorse; title: The daughter-in-law / Mary Stewert Cutting; title: The school-girl / Elizabeth Jordan; title: The son-in-law / John Kendrick Bangs; title: The married son / Henry James; title: The married daughter / Elizabeth Stuart Phelps; title: The mother / Edith Wyatt; title: The school-boy / Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews; title: Peggy / Alice Brown; title: The friend of the family / Henry Van Dyke.