Showing results by author "Edna Ferber" in All Categories

Selina sees beauty everywhere, including in the fields of cabbages. She has a natural curiosity about farming and oversteps the woman's traditional role by having the audacity to ask the men questions. She soon marries Pervus DeJong, a farmer. Selina eagerly offers suggestions for operational improvements, but Pervus ignores her, preferring to use the unprofitable farming methods employed by his father.

Join Emma McChesney, a clever and determined divorced mother, as she embarks on her journey across the Midwest as a sales representative for a prominent skirt and petticoat manufacturer. Her escapades—filled with humorous encounters with predatory salesmen and quirky hotel clerks—are both hilarious and heartfelt. Emma excels in her field, often outshining even the most polished male competitors, all while balancing her dedication to her work and her seventeen-year-old son, Jock. Through her experiences, she learns the importance of sticking to what she knows best roast beef, medium, rather...

Gigolo is a captivating collection of short stories by Edna Ferber, the celebrated author of classics like Show Boat and So Big, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize. Set against the vibrant backdrop of the Midwest—from Illinois to Oklahoma—these narratives explore the lives of diverse characters, from a spirited young auto mechanic to a woman embracing her newfound identity at sixty. Ferbers stories are imbued with the strength of women navigating and triumphing over challenging circumstances. In her poignant tale, The Sudden Sixties, she muses, “Having made the worst of it, you made ...

Experience the enchanting world of Edna Ferber in Dancing Girls, a captivating collection featuring four exceptional short stories penned for magazines between 1910 and 1919. Ferbers masterful storytelling weaves together poignant themes of real-life characters, joy, sadness, and humor. The titular story, Dancing Girls, stands out as a personal favorite, beautifully illustrating the intricacies of small-town life in mid-America and the serendipitous connections that bring good people together. Alongside this gem, youll find other delightful tales such as Old Lady Mandel, Long Distance, and One...

Have you ever encountered a heroine who defies the traditional notions of beauty? In Edna Ferbers captivating storytelling, we meet just such a character in the first of four enchanting short stories that showcase the remarkable courage and faith of ordinary people—individuals like you and me. Ferber, celebrated for her works like Show Boat and Giant, invites us to explore our own vulnerabilities and the complexities of love, where sometimes the prince doesnt end up with the right princess. The collection also includes A Bush League Hero, What She Wore, and The Man Who Came Back, each rich ...

Dive into the captivating conclusion of Edna Ferbers trilogy featuring the sharp-witted, stylish, and fiercely independent Emma McChesney. Transitioning from a stenographer to a successful business owner, Emma has proven herself time and again in the male-dominated world of commerce. In this final volume, set against the backdrop of 1915, Emmas son Jock has moved to Chicago with his new wife, prompting Emma to embark on a bold venture selling in South America. As she navigates romance, business challenges, and personal growth, Emma embodies the ideal woman of the early twentieth century ...

In Edna Ferbers debut novel, Dawn O’Hara, the Girl Who Laughed, we meet Dawn, a weary newspaperwoman from New York who finds herself back in her Michigan hometown on the advice of her doctor. After years of living in boarding houses and supporting her brilliant yet mentally ill husband, Peter Orme, Dawn feels like a shadow of her former self at just twenty-eight. With the loving support of her sister Norah and the charming attentions of the handsome German doctor, Ernst Von Gerhard, she begins to reclaim her zest for life. Securing a newspaper job in Milwaukee opens the door to new ...

Fanny Herself tells the captivating story of Fanny Brandeis, a spirited young girl navigating the challenges of coming of age in the Midwest at the turn of the 20th century. This novel is widely believed to draw from the rich experiences of its author, Edna Ferber, who grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin. Celebrated as one of the greatest American woman novelists of her time, Ferber earned the Pulitzer Prize in 1925 for her acclaimed work, So Big. She is also known for her masterpieces Showboat and Cimarron, both of which have seen successful adaptations for stage and screen. (summary by J. M. ...

First published in 1926, Show Boat weaves the rich tapestry of the Hawks-Ravenal family across three generations and the enchanting Cotton Blossom Floating Palace Theatre as it journeys along the Mississippi River and beyond. Spanning the Reconstruction Era of the 1880s to the vibrant Gilded Age and Roaring Twenties, this timeless tale has captivated audiences through its adaptation into a Broadway musical in 1927 and various film versions, including both a silent film and a partial talkie in 1929. Please note, the narrative contains themes of race, particularly anti-Black stereotypes and ...

Dive into the poignant story of Selina DeJong and her son, affectionately known as So Big. Following the tragic loss of her husband, Selina bravely takes on the challenge of raising So Big alone while also managing the family farm in rural Illinois. As So Big matures, he ventures into the bustling streets of 1920s Chicago, enticed by the allure of the high-stakes stock-broker lifestyle. Torn between his desire for wealth and the traditional values instilled by his mother—and the expectations of his love interest, an aspiring artist—So Big grapples with the conflict between ambition and ...

Menant une vie mi-ordinaire, mi-luxueuse auprès de son père, Selina Peak découvre la valeur de l’art et de la beauté à un très jeune âge. Déterminée, à peine diplômée, âgée de 19 ans et afin de devenir maîtresse d’école, Selina change d’horizon et emménage à High Prairie, une communauté hollandaise à quelques kilomètres de Chicago. Étant persuadée de la véracité des propos tenus par son père « la vie n’est qu’une grande aventure », Selina se jette dans l’inconnu ! Ce chemin pris, sera-t-il Si Grand ? Découvrez-le dans ce magnifique audiobook, Prix Pulitzer du roman 1925.

After years of living in boarding houses and working to pay for the care of her mentally ill husband, Dawn O’Hara feels closer to fifty than twenty-eight—and on the edge of a mental breakdown. The stress of her life in the big city sends her to the doctor, who advises her to return to her small hometown in Michigan to recuperate. With help, Dawn is able to get a job as a newspaper reporter, meet people, and have a year’s worth of adventure. She is ready to start fresh, but with the memory of her husband, she fears she will never truly be free to love—or to be herself—again.

"The Dancing Girls, and Other Stories" contains four short-stories by two-times Pulitzer Prize winner Edna Ferber, written between 1910 and 1919. The title story paints a pictures of small-town America and of life "on the other side of the tracks." "The Dancing Girls" is followed by "Old Lady Mandle," "Long Distance," and "One Hundred Percent." - Edna Ferber (1885-1968) was an American author.

"The Homely Heroine" is a short story by American author Edna Ferber. It features a writer whose heroines are generally extremely beautiful. But one day, whilst she is out shopping, a shop-keeper asks her why she doesn’t write stories about a homelier heroine. "The Homely Heroine" is followed by "A Bush League Hero," "What she Wore," and "The Man Who Came Back." - Edna Ferber (1885-1968) was an American author.

A beautifully crafted collection of eight short stories by Edna Ferber: In Gigolo, Edna Ferber delves into the minds of eight diverse characters from all walks and stages of life.

Although the story is over 100 years old, it offers an important truth that is still relevant to the modern listener. Rather than rely on dialogue to advance the plot, noted American Edna Ferber is an exceptional storyteller who delights and entertains the listener with narrative. Her stories featuring strong heroines are as fresh and original today as when they were written.

War has always changed men physically and mentally. They go away as healthy physically fit young men; when they come back, if they do they are not the same young man who went away. They may have suffered disabling physical injury in addition to a mental injury that may or may not manifest itself physically, but typically it is there. In World War I they called it shell-shocked, today we call it PTSD. This is a short story by Edna Ferber of a healthy, husky, and slightly arrogant in a nice way young man, and the beautiful girl awaiting his return home.

Who ever heard of a plain and downright homely heroine? Isn't a heroine by definition beautiful? Well, Edna Ferber, in her well known style that later produced Show Boat and Giant, tells us about just such a heroine in this special short story. It is special to me because of her insight into the deep courage and faith of 'ordinary' people, people like most of us. And of course our failings and frailties and sometimes, the prince does not marry the right person. Yep.

A man returns to his home town from prison. He hopes to sneak in, pay a quick visit and vanish before people recognize him. But this may not be possible. What happens to a man's soul after years in prison? Ferber explores this poignant and sad subject in this story. But the ending is full of hope.

Blanche Devine is a middle aged woman who has lived in the same small Midwestern town most of her life. She decides she wants to purchase a 'real' home in a pleasant neighborhood in the town. Because Blanche has a past as the town's 'scarlet' woman, many of the self-described good and respectable people do not want her as a neighbor. Edna Ferber wrote mostly about women and their place in society along with their plight when they did not follow society's norms.