February 27, 2011

Happy Birthday, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

     AND

          John Steinbeck!

A great day for American authors!

Separated by about a century, today marks the anniversary of Longfellow's 1807 birth and Steinbeck's 1902 birth.

Can you pick out which of these fits Longfellow and which fits Steinbeck?

1. 

   Author of Grapes of Wrath
2. Wrote The Song of Hiawatha
3. Author of Paul Revere's Ride
4. Wrote Of Mice and Men
5. Won the Nobel Prize for Literature
6. Was born in Portland, Maine
7. Translated Dante's Divine Comedy
8. Wrote long poems
9. Wrote brilliant novels
10. Was born in Salinas, California
11. Won a Pulitzer Prize
12. Was a professor at Harvard

ANSWERS: 1.Steinbeck – 2.Longfellow – 3.Longfellow – 4.Steinbeck – 5.Steinbeck – 6.Longfellow – 7.Longfellow – 8.Longfellow – 9.Steinbeck – 10.Steinbeck – 11.Steinbeck – 12. Longfellow

• Listen to this short poem by Longfellow, “The Children's Hour.” 

• One reason some people like Longfellow's poems is because they are like songs. Check out this video: someone is actually singing an excerpt of his poem “The Song of Hiawatha.”

• Read a short story by Steinbeck, or even one of his novels. Several of his books, including Cannery Row and East of Eden, have become movies (both rated PG).