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Fascinating Facts About Famous Fiction Authors and the Greatest Novels of All Time: The Book Lover’s Guide to Literary Trivia
If you love classic literature and reading novels from famous fiction authors then you are going to love this book!
In Fascinating Facts, literary trivia expert and author Dave Astor provides 100-plus short chapters which contain anecdotes, oddities, coincidences, and of course great trivia about the greatest authors who have ever put pen to paper. It’s no surprise that the best writers have interesting facts surrounding them, because famous authors have to be pretty fascinating themselves in order to create the literature we cherish and enjoy so much.
Here is a sample of some of the many interesting informational nuggets and gems you will
• The phrase “keeping up with the Joneses” originally referred to the wealthy family in which novelist Edith Wharton (nee Jones) grew up.
• Edward Bellamy predicted debit cards in his novel Looking Backward – published in 1888!
• The 1950s “Cat in the Hat” character created by Dr. Seuss looks like a feline version of the Uncle Sam character drawn by that same writer for his 1940s editorial cartoons.
• Shakespeare and Don Quixote author Miguel de Cervantes died on almost the same day in 1616.
• Dorothy Parker bequeathed her money to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
• O. Henry coined the term “banana republic.”
Whether you are a bibliophile wanting to know everything about famous authors or just want to wow your friends and amaze your relatives with interesting and entertaining literary trivia, Fascinating Facts is a fun book that you’ll return to over and over again. Order your copy today!
In Fascinating Facts, literary trivia expert and author Dave Astor provides 100-plus short chapters which contain anecdotes, oddities, coincidences, and of course great trivia about the greatest authors who have ever put pen to paper. It’s no surprise that the best writers have interesting facts surrounding them, because famous authors have to be pretty fascinating themselves in order to create the literature we cherish and enjoy so much.
Here is a sample of some of the many interesting informational nuggets and gems you will
• The phrase “keeping up with the Joneses” originally referred to the wealthy family in which novelist Edith Wharton (nee Jones) grew up.
• Edward Bellamy predicted debit cards in his novel Looking Backward – published in 1888!
• The 1950s “Cat in the Hat” character created by Dr. Seuss looks like a feline version of the Uncle Sam character drawn by that same writer for his 1940s editorial cartoons.
• Shakespeare and Don Quixote author Miguel de Cervantes died on almost the same day in 1616.
• Dorothy Parker bequeathed her money to the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
• O. Henry coined the term “banana republic.”
Whether you are a bibliophile wanting to know everything about famous authors or just want to wow your friends and amaze your relatives with interesting and entertaining literary trivia, Fascinating Facts is a fun book that you’ll return to over and over again. Order your copy today!
- GenresNonfictionHistory
174 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 28, 2017
56 people are currently reading
100 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
December 22, 2023
This has been great. So many favourite books – Jane Austen, Daphne du Maurier, PD James, DH Lawrence, Graham Greene, George Orwell, F Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway - this goes on and on! Fabulous – especially those from the UK, but not all of them, of course. Quite a few are new for me and I guess I need to read some of these! Lots of little trivia tidbits - interesting, informative and fun.
I recommend this book to lovers of literature.
I recommend this book to lovers of literature.
April 12, 2017
Each of the short, readable chapters in Fascinating Facts focuses on one obscure or quirky fact, sometimes paired with a related detail, that ties in to an author’s life or work. Even those well-versed in literary history will find lots of new trivia to contemplate and enjoy. Dave Astor has been working on this entertaining collection since 2011, discovering the details by reading biographies and scouring websites devoted to the featured authors. Great gift for teachers, literary friends, and co-workers!
November 26, 2019
It was informative, enjoyable and easy to read book. I learned some new trivia, explored some new names and genres I might not have been exposed to before, and added some things to my to be read list. I really appreciated how the book is laid out. There are no consequences for reading out of order, leaving us the opportunity to pick it up and put it down at will... I think it would make a perfect gift option too.
July 23, 2017
Fun, interesting and informative.
December 6, 2021
I am a great lover of classic books and I also enjoy reading biographies of the authors who wrote the classic books I've enjoyed. This short book is a selection of sound bytes, providing interesting and often little know facts and insights into the lives, loves, and writing processes of a large number of authors. For me, it was a bit like a box of chocolates with each short chapter being a tantalizing taste of what I could uncover if I wanted to research the various people further. I liked the idea of giving small titbits of information to trigger searches for more detail at the readers discretion, it is very empowering.
The book covers a huge range of writers, many of whom I already knew like Hemingway, Faulkner, Gilman, Huxley, Laurence, Tolkien, and Wells, and others who are new to me. I was delighted to discover all these new classic books and famous authors whose works I will be delving into over the next several years. I will certainly be reverting back to this gem of a book when deciding on my next read.
I recommend this book to lovers of literature who are interested in finding new books and authors.
The book covers a huge range of writers, many of whom I already knew like Hemingway, Faulkner, Gilman, Huxley, Laurence, Tolkien, and Wells, and others who are new to me. I was delighted to discover all these new classic books and famous authors whose works I will be delving into over the next several years. I will certainly be reverting back to this gem of a book when deciding on my next read.
I recommend this book to lovers of literature who are interested in finding new books and authors.
April 24, 2019
Time to officially call it quits. I haven't picked this back up since I logged it in January. Sorry. At best it was 'oh huh okay' level of interesting when reading, like polity listening to an alright coworker prattle on about trivia facts.
Probably best for those who do trivia and minutiae about old classics. I am my neither. I wanted to like it or at least be the kind of person who liked it. Lessoned learned.
Probably best for those who do trivia and minutiae about old classics. I am my neither. I wanted to like it or at least be the kind of person who liked it. Lessoned learned.
May 10, 2017
Triva About Famour Writers
The greatest writers of all time are celebrated in this book filled with fascinating facts and trivia about your favorite authors.
The greatest writers of all time are celebrated in this book filled with fascinating facts and trivia about your favorite authors.
July 7, 2017
Very short tidbits. Wish there are been more.
June 18, 2018
I love trivia and I love books. This tome was truly OK. I did learn some new stuff but I thought some of the coincidences were stretched. If you like Dad jokes, you'll enjoy the author's humor.
December 6, 2022
Clever, entertaining essays on major writers. Enjoyed reading about these authors and their quirky connections.
May 28, 2025
This was a really interesting book, would very much recommend!
August 3, 2025
Interesting Little Read
I picked this up after visiting Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey. I was concerned about how many famous authors I hadn’t yet read, etc. It’s a book with very short chapters about many fiction authors and interesting facts about them. Because of this little book I read Tenant of Whitefell Hall, a book by Anne Brontë that I had never heard of before. I absolutely loved it, so I suspect that Dave Astor has good taste in novels and that I will be consulting this book from time to time.
I picked this up after visiting Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey. I was concerned about how many famous authors I hadn’t yet read, etc. It’s a book with very short chapters about many fiction authors and interesting facts about them. Because of this little book I read Tenant of Whitefell Hall, a book by Anne Brontë that I had never heard of before. I absolutely loved it, so I suspect that Dave Astor has good taste in novels and that I will be consulting this book from time to time.
May 10, 2017
Written entirely in soundbyte-quality paragraphs. Don't waste your time.
January 23, 2024
Who knew that novelist Fanny Burney underwent a mastectomy, at a time before anaesthetic was discovered? Who even knew that mastectomies existed in the early nineteenth-century? Who knew that Vladimir Nabokov had Ruth Bader Ginsberg as a student when he was teaching at Cornell? Or that Marie-Henri Beyle used more than two hundred pen names, of which Stendhal is one? Dave Astor, that’s who, in his Fascinating Facts About Famous Fiction Authors And The Greatest Novels Of All Time.
It’s an intriguing little text, in which the author puts a humorous slant on the anecdotes contained therein, giving due credit to subscribers of his website for providing some of them. It’s not necessarily a book for reading all in one go, in my opinion—although I did—but more for dipping in and out of to find little nuggets of interesting information about a host of authors you know—and probably some you’ve never heard of.
I’m not too proud to include myself in the latter category, but now that I’ve heard of them they’re on my wish list—along with some authors I know of but had never got around to reading. If—like me—you’re keen to experience some of the best writing around, I can recommend this handy little mine of literary information.
It’s an intriguing little text, in which the author puts a humorous slant on the anecdotes contained therein, giving due credit to subscribers of his website for providing some of them. It’s not necessarily a book for reading all in one go, in my opinion—although I did—but more for dipping in and out of to find little nuggets of interesting information about a host of authors you know—and probably some you’ve never heard of.
I’m not too proud to include myself in the latter category, but now that I’ve heard of them they’re on my wish list—along with some authors I know of but had never got around to reading. If—like me—you’re keen to experience some of the best writing around, I can recommend this handy little mine of literary information.
May 3, 2017
Sometimes, we get to know about (however from a distance) great people from what they write. The author of this book has been one of them for me. I didn’t know of Dave Astor’s blog or his other work until I read this book. If I was ever entertained by a serious book written in a light-hearted voice, it is this book which boasts an abundance of fascinating tidbits on authors and literature.
In spite of being not much of a trivia fan, I loved the trivia in this book, especially those about the Russian authors like Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, etc. The other authors and sections were very good and enjoyable, also, especially because the information in them rarely made it into the school books or into what may be called serious literature. This book was literary, all right, but it had the sparks of surprise and hilarity of gossip, too.
I decided to read this book again probably next year or so, just for the fun of it, even though I have never read any book twice in my rather long life.
In spite of being not much of a trivia fan, I loved the trivia in this book, especially those about the Russian authors like Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, etc. The other authors and sections were very good and enjoyable, also, especially because the information in them rarely made it into the school books or into what may be called serious literature. This book was literary, all right, but it had the sparks of surprise and hilarity of gossip, too.
I decided to read this book again probably next year or so, just for the fun of it, even though I have never read any book twice in my rather long life.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews