Long recognized as a cultural watershed and touchstone of modernity, the 1893 Chicago World's Fair (World’s Columbian Exposition) was the site of the first large-scale international library of writing by women. The result of years of planning and cooperation by women’s organizations in twenty-four countries from North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, the library of the Woman’s Building contained more than 8,000 volumes, with more than 3,000 from countries other than the United States. This book collects the work of feminist scholars specializing in different national traditions and transnational comparative analysis and focuses on the contributions of the international (non-US) women’s committees to extend our understanding of women’s contribution to global print culture and the extension of women's rights up to 1893.

Long neglected as the first American novel, Mr. Penrose narrates the adventures of a British youth who flees an unhappy home life to seek his fortune on the high seas. Having learned the sailor s trade, Penrose survives a series of nautical mishaps, only to be cast adrift on the Mosquito Coast. When rescue finally comes, Penrose refuses to abandon the new home he has made among the Indians. Equal parts travel narrative, adventure tale, and natural history, the novel reflects on some of the most pressing moral and social issues of its time: imperialism, racial equality, religious freedom, and the nature of ethical, responsible government. Mr. Penrose contains the first unequivocal critique of slavery in a transatlantic novel and the most realistic portrayals of Native Americans in early American fiction. In the afterword to this paperback edition, Sarah Wadsworth imparts new research on the author and his career, shedding light on the novel s subjects and timely themes, and situating Mr. Penrose at the forefront of the American literary canon."

This first volume in The Complete Letters of Henry James, 1887-1888 contains 154 letters, of which 94 are published for the first time, written from early January to December 22, 1887. These letters mark Henry James's ongoing efforts to care for his sister, develop his work, strengthen his professional status, build friendships, engage timely political and economic issues, and maximize his income. James details work on "The Aspern Papers," Partial Portraits, and plans The Reverberator. This volume opens with James in the midst of a long sojourn in Italy and concludes with his inquiring about both the status of his essay to the American Copyright League and also the story "The Liar."