If you haven’t heard it already, 2009 is the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, and there are big happenings across the country for the celebration, including our own in-house display. But more on Lincoln coming in February…
It also happens to be the bicentennial of two other intriguing, change-the-world men; one who revolutionized the field of science – Charles Darwin, and another who created the genre of literature we call the detective novel – Edgar Allan Poe. So, in honor of these two men, we’ve compiled a list of books and other resources to help you get to know them better.
Charles Darwin (born Feb 12, 1809)
NONFICTION
- Charles Darwin: The Beagle Letters by Frederick Burkhardt
- Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man
by Tim M. Berra - Darwin’s Origin of Species: A Biography by Janet Browne
- One Long Argument: Charles Darwin and the Genesis of Modern Evolutionary Thought by Ernst Mayr
- The Reluctant Mr. Darwin: An Intimate Portrait of Charles Darwin and the Making of His Theory of Evolution by David Quammen
FICTION INSPIRED BY DARWIN
- Darwinia by Robert Charles Wilson
- The Darwin Conspiracy by John Darnton
- The Evolution of Jane by Cathleen Schine
- Mr. Darwin’s Shooter by Roger McDonald
- A Taxonomy of Barnaclesby Galt Niederhoffer
WEBSITES
Edgar Allan Poe (born Jan 19, 1809)
NONFICTION
- The Beautiful Cigar Girl: Mary Rogers, Edgar Allan Poe, and the Invention of Murder by Daniel Stashower
- Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-Ending Remembrance by Kenneth Silverman
- Edgar Allan Poe, A to Z: The Essential Reference to His Life and Work by Dawn B. Sova
- In the Shadow of the Master: Classic Tales by Mystery Writers of America
- Midnight Dreary: The Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe by John Evangelist Walsh
- Poe: A Life Cut Short by Peter Ackroyd
FICTION WRITTEN BY AND INSPIRED BY POE
- The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe by Edgar Allan Poe
- On a Raven’s Wing: New Tales in Honor of Edgar Allan Poe edited by Stuart Kaminsky
- The Pale Blue Eye: A Novel by Louis Bayard
- The Poe Shadow: A Novel by Matthew Pearl
- An Unpardonable Crime by Andrew Taylor
WEBSITES
The Reference Desk at TFPL 