[Detail] Walt Whitman holding a butterfly on his finger
Online activities and background information from the Library of Congress to help students learn more about literature and poetry.
American Treasures: America's First Book (Exhibition) Known as The Bay Psalm Book, but really titled The Whole Booke of Psalmes Faithfully Translated into English Metre, this was the first book printed in what is now the United States.
American Treasures: Anne Bradstreet, Colonial Poet (Exhibition) Anne Bradstreet was the first woman poet to be published in Colonial America.
American Treasures: Children's Books (Exhibition) Explore the pages of Marmaduke Multiply, an 1839 children's book.
American Treasures: Costume Designs Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (Exhibition) View 1930s Federal Theater Project costume designs.
American Treasures: Literary Arts (Exhibition) Explore literary treasures in the Imagination Gallery B of the American Treasures exhibition.
American Treasures: Popular Literature (Exhibition) View examples of popular literature in the American Treasures exhibition.
American Treasures: Read and Be Wise (Exhibition) The hornbook was a constant companion to beginning readers in Colonial America.
American Treasures: The Grapes of Wrath (Exhibition) Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize winning novel traces one family's exodus from Oklahoma because of the Dust Bowl.
American Treasures: Walt Whitman and the Civil War (Exhibition) Read about Whitman's Civil War hospital notebooks in which he took notes about the needs and wants of wounded soldiers whom he visited and comforted in the hospitals in and near Washington, D.C.
Arthur Buchwald (Presentation) This Pulitzer Prize-winning satirist, who passed away on Jan. 17, 2007, shared wartime memories with the Library's Veterans History Project.
Dakota Cowboy Poetry (Local Legacies) Cowboy poets gather and perform in North Dakota over Memorial Day weekend. Read also about the Utah Cowboy Poetry Roundup.
John Hope Franklin (Presentation) Read highlights about the life and accomplishments of this contemporary African American scholar.
Jump Back in Time: April 17, 1897 (Thornton Wilder) (America's Library) Playwright, Thornton Wilder, was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: April 3, 1837 (John Burroughs) (America's Library) Nature writer John Burroughs was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: August 2, 1924 (James Baldwin) (America's Library) Novelist, essayist, and playwright James Baldwin was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: December 24, 1822 (Clement Moore) (America's Library) On this date, Clement Moore is believed to have written "A Visit From Saint Nicholas".
Jump Back in Time: February 7, 1867 (America's Library) Read about Laura Ingalls Wilder – author of the Little House series.
Jump Back in Time: February 9, 1888 (Walt Whitman) (America's Library) Learn about O Captain! My Captain! - Walt Whitman's poem about Abraham Lincoln.
Jump Back in Time: January 19, 1809 (Edgar Allan Poe) (America's Library) Edgar Allan Poe, master of tales of terror and the originator of the modern detective story, was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: January 20, 1961 (Robert Frost) (America's Library) Learn about the poem that Robert Frost read at JFK's inauguration.
Jump Back in Time: July 12, 1817 (Henry David Thoreau) (America's Library) Philosopher, naturalist and writer, Henry David Thoreau was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: July 21, 1899 (Ernest Hemingway) (America's Library) Ernest Hemingway, author of The Old Man and the Sea, was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: September 1, 1773 (America's Library) Read about Phyllis Wheatley – the first African American to be published.
Jump Back in Time: September 24, 1896 (F. Scott Fitzgerald) (America's Library) F. Scott Fitzgerald - author of The Great Gatsby - was born on this date.
Jump Back in Time: September 25, 1897 (William Faulkner) (America's Library) Pulitzer Prize winning novelist, William Faulkner, was born on this date.
Meet Amazing Americans: Langston Hughes (America's Library) Learn about Langston Hughes -- an important writer and thinker of the Harlem Renaissance.
Meet Amazing Americans: Mark Twain (America's Library) Learn about Samuel Langhorne Clemens - better known as Mark Twain.
The Parallel Lives of Lincoln and Whitman (Wise Guide) Although Lincoln and Whitman never met, they had common experiences and beliefs. Read how to find out more about their parallel lives in this article.
Poetry 180 (Poetry and Literature) Billy Collins, Former Poet Laureate of the United States, designed this site to make it easy for students to hear or read a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year.
Rediscovering an American Playwright (Wise Guide) Read about Zora Neale Hurston and the rediscovery of 10 of her previously unpublished plays.
Shakespeare and Genius (Wise Guide) Although he never attended college, Shakespeare's genius inspired him to write some of the world's greatest plays.
Shakespeare on the Green (Local Legacies) Nebraskans celebrate Shakespeare each summer in Omaha with a three week outdoor drama series
Shakespeare's Memorial Theater (Prints and Photographs) View a color image of Shakespeare's Memorial Theater in Stratford-on-Avon, England.
Shakespeare's Birthplace (Prints and Photographs) View a color photograph of Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford-on-Avon, England
Stratford on Avon (Document) Zoom into a 1908 bird's-eye view map showing Shakespearean landmarks and other points of interest.
Today in History (April 26) Shakespeare and the Folger (Today in History) Learn about the Folger Shakespeare Memorial Library in Washington, DC.
Today in History (July 25) Macbeth (Today in History) Learn about the 1936 performance of Macbeth produced by John Houseman and directed by Orson Welles for the Federal Theater Project of the WPA.
Today in History Archives (Today in History) Search the Archives using the terms "poet" , "writer", "novelist", "playwright" or "author" for literature related articles.
