Herman Melville and Moby-Dick
Harper & Brothers turned down Herman Melville’s first book, Typee: A Peep at Polynesian Life, and it was released to strong sales by another publisher. More
Cigarette packet with Timothy Findley’s handwritten book proposal for Pilgrim
While at lunch with his editor, Iris Tupholme, Canadian author Timothy Findley reached into his pocket to read from a note that he had written on the inside flap of his cigarette package. More
Candy package with Timothy Findley’s plans for his novella You Went Away
Canadian author Timothy Findley’s only novella, You Went Away (1996), was based on his parents’ marriage. More
Dorothea Benton Frank
You’ve asked me to tell you why I write but I think the answer might be longer than the fifty or one hundred words you’ve allotted me. More
A Woman of Substance
With her unforgettable heroine Emma Harte, Bradford popularized the rags-to-riches family saga. More
Doctor Zhivago
Collins was the first to publish this epic romantic drama by the Nobel Prize winner in English. More
1943: Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is published…
Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, a story about growing up poor in turn-of-the-century Brooklyn, shines a light on first- and second-generation Americans living in poverty. More
A Light in the Attic
Classic collection of poems and illustrations by Shel Silverstein; ALA Notable Children’s Book. More
George R. R. Martin
It was in 1993 that George R. R. Martin–already an acclaimed author of science fiction and horror novels, and well known for his work in Hollywood as a screenwriter on The Twilight Zone and Beauty and the Beast–decided he needed a broader outlet for his creativity and conceived of A Song of Ice and Fire, a truly monumental fantasy series. More
Social Change: African American Identity in the U.S.
HarperCollins has published a number of books that explore the racial identity of African Americans during periods of great social conflict. More
1924: “Queen of Crime” Agatha Christie joins the house of Collins…
“Queen of Crime” Agatha Christie joins the house of Collins, and two years later publishes her seminal Hercule Poirot novel, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. More
Danny and the Dinosaur
I Can Read! classic that was named a 1958 New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year. More
Amistad
HarperCollins’s Amistad Press is the oldest imprint devoted to titles for the African American market at any major New York publishing house. More
Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus
While giving a talk to a group of men and women about relationships, author John Gray realized he had a hook for a new book. More
1958: Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. selects Harper & Brothers to publish his memoir…
After leading the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955 and becoming the voice of the civil rights movement, the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. selects Harper & Brothers to publish Stride Toward Freedom, his memoir about the Montgomery bus boycott. More
Marketing and publicity brochure for Charlotte’s Web
This 1963 marketing and publicity brochure for Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White includes a letter from White explaining how he got the idea for the story. More
The Complete Works of Mark Twain: Authorized Edition
Twain worked directly with Harper & Brothers to produce this authorized edition of his works. More
Henry Huggins
The debut novel from Newbery Medal–winning author Beverly Cleary. More
1956: Harper & Brothers publishes Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy…
Harper & Brothers publishes Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy, which wins the Pulitzer Prize in 1957 and helps propel the young senator to the White House. More
1886: David Angus and George Robertson form a bookselling partnership in Sydney
David Angus and George Robertson form a bookselling partnership in Sydney, going on to publish Australian authors like Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson to much acclaim and success. More
The Poisonwood Bible
Pulitzer Prize finalist and runaway bestseller. More
C.S. Lewis and Christianity
Born in 1898 in Belfast, Clive Staples Lewis lost his faith in Christianity at a young age after his mother died and he was sent away to boarding school. More
Peace with God
First book from Billy Graham, said to be the most influential Christian voice of this century. More
What Do People Do All Day?
Over 100 million Scarry books have sold worldwide; a favorite in his classic Busytown series. More
The Giving Tree
Poignant, game-changing picture book for readers of all ages that has been a favorite for generations. More
Social Change: Women Writers
In the mid-late 1800s, Harper & Brothers reprinted several milestone titles in the history of British feminist literature as well as the global canon, such as Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights (1847), Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre (1847), and Anne Brontë’s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall (1848), as well as George Eliot’s Middlemarch (1872). More
Kevin Henkes
