Astrolit: A Bibliophile's Guide to the Stars - Hardcover

by McCormick Templeman (Author), Rachel Feder (Author)

A unique, illustrated introduction to astrology that explores the zodiac through a literary lens, drawing lessons from celebrated authors including Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, W.E.B. Du Bois, Nella Larsen, Oscar Wilde, and dozens more.

AstroLit is a cosmic voyage through the lives and works of literary giants from the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries. Renowned literary history scholars McCormick Templeman and Rachel Feder bring the twelve signs of the zodiac to glimmering life by analyzing the astrological influence of over fifty illustrious writers' sun signs on the shape and depth of their work.

Each of the twelve sections focuses on a particular zodiac sign, featuring profiles of three celebrated authors, analyzing their works and lives through the prism of their astrological sign. You'll uncover connections between writers' signs and their realms of creative influence, including the Capricornian ambition of Edgar Allan Poe and Zora Neale Hurston, the Sagittarian influence on William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, and the Taurean gothiness evident in Mary Wollstonecraft's work. Each chapter also includes writing advice and reading recommendations for readers, no matter your sign.

A delight for both astrology and book lovers, AstroLit is a gratifying exploration of classic literature and a playful way for readers and astrology lovers to learn something new about their favorite authors.

Author Biography

Rachel Feder is an internationally recognized expert on nineteenth-century literary history. She teaches in the Department of English and Literary Arts at the University of Denver and is the author of an academic book about Mary Shelley, Harvester of Hearts; a book of poetry about astrology, motherhood, and literary history, Birth Chart; and is the editor of the new Norton Library Edition of Dracula.

McCormick Templeman is an author and academic whose writing and research focuses on traditional medicine, feminist horror, and literature of the long nineteenth century. She teaches English and Creative Writing at Sweet Briar College and serves as the fiction editor at Astrophil Press at the University of South Dakota.