Meredith Nicholson: a Writing Life

by Ralph D. Gray

From 1880-1920, Indiana experienced a golden age of literature, with Hoosier authors achieving both national prominence and national acclaim. These writers provided readers with stories that emphasized traditional values and offered shelter from the ever-changing world. Although those who lived in the state took an immense pride in what Indiana writers produced, they heaped special attention on 4 men, including the great Hoosier poet, James Whitcomb Riley; Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Booth Tarkington; and noted newspaper columnist and humorist George Ade. The other member of this special group - Meredith Nicholson - also won enormous success with his novels. Nicholson stands as the most "Hoosier" of all the Indiana writers, serving as an outspoken advocate for the state. In addition to writing such national best sellers as Zelda Dameron and the House of a Thousand Candles, his best known novel, Nicholson won praise as an insightful essayist, with his work published in such national magazines as The Saturday Evening Post and Atlantic Monthly. A longtime supporter of the Democratic Party, Nicholson's loyalty to his party was rewarded in 1933 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed him to be America's top diplomat in war-torn paraguay. Nicholson gave able service to the United States and went on to serve in two other Latin American countries before retiring from public life in 1941.

Genres: Biography

281 pages, Hardcover

First published August 15, 2007

Reviews

[Jay C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable but scholarly biography of one of the great authors of Indiana's "Golden Age" of literature. I had recently read Nicholson's perhaps best known novel, The House of a Thousand Candles", and was curious to learn more about the author, who coincidentally, like Indiana's Lew Wallace, also served as a U.S. diplomat in his later years. This book made me feel that Nicholson was someone who should be better known today than he is.