Would you recognize the world of one hundred years ago? The Panama Canal was still being constructed, Many towns had not seen their first automobiles and President Theodore Roosevelt will hand over the reins to America to William Taft, an election which most women were barred from participating in since suffrage was still 10 years away.
Across the Atlantic construction of an unsinkable ship to be called the Titanic is beginning in Belfast, western Europe is beginning to take notice of the arms build up in Austro-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire that in five years time will lead to “the war to end all wars”.
Still though you even though in this alien world you would find familiar faces upon entering the bookstore. E.M. Forester, Kenneth Grahame, Gertrude Stein and George Bernard Shaw would all be there to greet you, and you could even still meet Leo Tolstoy as he would still have another year to live.
Here’s our top 10 in what was hot the world of publishing in 1909.
1. L. Frank Baum - The Road to Oz
The Road to Oz is the fifth of L. Frank Baum’s Wizard of Oz series and documents Dorothy’s fourth visit to Oz where she is to attend Princess Ozma’s birthday. This was the only Oz book to be printed in coloured pages rather than containing coloured pictures and includes guest appearances of several characters from Baum’s other books. Many believe this was a marketing ploy to boost languishing sales in his other titles.
2. Jack London - Martin Eden
Though London was by no means struggling at this time, having achieved fame and fortune with Call of the Wild and White Fang, he was becoming disillusioned and wrote Martin Eden which describes a struggling writer trying to find his way in the bureaucracy of publishing.
3. John Masefield - Multitude and Solitude
Masefield’s second book which eventually reviewed in the New York Times in 1912 when they said ” Even had we not known that John Masefield was the author of Multitude and Solitude we should have pointed it out as a promising novel, if not a brilliant or interesting one. Strange how varied it is in its tone and temperament! How intense it is in its personal arraignment.” Again today it deserves a second look.
4. Lucy Maud Montgomery - Anne of Avonlea
The sequel to Montgomery’s hugely successful Anne of Green Gables. This book covers Anne’s life from the ages 16 to 18 while she teaches at Avonlea School. The series continued to be hugely successful continuing for another six books, as well as several spin off titles including Chronicles of Avonlea and Further Chronicles of Avonlea.
5. Baroness Orczy -The Nest of the Sparrowhawk
Orczy who is best remembered for the Scarlet Pimpernel published her 10th novel in 1909. The Nest of the Sparrowhawk is a historical novel set in mid 17th century Kent where Sir Marmaduke of Chevasse attempts to woo Lady Sue, and her vast fortunes, for himself by disguising himself as the exiled French Price of Orleans.
6. H.G. Wells - Ann Veronica
H.G. Wells is best known for his science fiction works such like The Invisible Man, The Island of Dr. Moreau and War of the Worlds, but a lesser known fact about him is that he was also dedicated to political and social causes. Ann Veronica was deals with the suffragette movement, which was a major issue of the time. In the course of the action the heroine matures from an innocent and naïve girl to a representative of the New Woman. The novel created a sensation when it was published, due to its feminist sensibilities the similarity of Vernoica’s name to that of Amber Reeves, a woman with whom Wells was rumoured to be having an affair.
7. Ginger & Pickles – Beatrix Potter
A particularly productive year for Potter as that year she published The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies as well as Ginger & Pickles. Though the Flopsys are more popular today Ginger & Pickles is especially relevant today. The book tells the story of shopkeepers Ginger, a tomcat, and Pickles, a terrier. They allow their customers to purchase on credit and as a result, are unable to collect enough to pay the bills. They subsequently go out of business. Their competitor Tabitha Twitchit, increases her prices as customers have only one choice for their shopping needs.
8. The Heart of the Antarctic - Ernest. H. Shackleton
The world was still caught up in exploration fever and Shackleton took full advantage of this upon his return to England from the Nimrod expedition. He published the accomplishments of his Antarctic expedition in The Heart of the Antarctic including finding the approximate location of the South Magnetic Pole and ascending Mount Erebus. Along with publishing The Heart of the Antarctic, Shackleton launched an extensive lecture tour to in efforts to turn his fame into wealth.
9. Liberalism and the Social Problem – Winston S. Churchill
At the time of publication Churchill was still a young man in his 30s working up the ranks of British parliament. Published during the arms race which lead up to the first world war this book contains a collection of early speeches to Parliament from one of the greatest orators and the man who would eventually guide Brittan though the second world war. Winston S. Churchill went on to have an illustrious literary career with perhaps his most notable success being his six-volume work The Second World War
10. Captain Stormfield’s Visit to Heaven – Mark Twain
The last story to be published by Twain before his death in 1910 (though a number of his works were published posthumously). The story follows Captain Elias Stormfield on his journey to heaven and his subsequent learning’s while acclimatizing himself to his new surroundings, learning that many of the conventional beliefs about heaven are mere illusions and heaven is actually populated by beings from hundreds of planets around the universe. Twain of course is one of America`s most renowned literary characters having created Huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer, was a major contributor to literary magazines and newspapers as well as having a cache of some of the most memorable quotes of all time.
Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh but according to experts, the sad reality is that his work has never been fully appreciated in his homeland and a lot of his work hasn’t ever even been seen in Scotland. A new website launched in Edinburgh today hopes to rectify that.
Ros is in grave danger after Bob Hogan discovers she’s a traitor… Jo’s caught by an Algerian extremist and thrown into a car with a bomb… Danny, on Close Quarter Protection, is shaken when his charge is shot at…
What’s the hottest book right now in the world of used and out-of-print books? It’s the 1967 bestseller 
It’s a heavy book. Quite literally I mean. Weighing more than 57 pounds (27 kgs), it’s one of the largest surviving texts from the 14th century.