Nonfiction Authors L-Z, TOL-WEE
Meet the essayists, biographers, historians, journalists, and other nonfiction writers whose work has informed readers, challenged assumptions, and brought the real world vividly to the page.
Nonfiction Authors L-Z Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Toland, John
John Toland was a controversial Irish-born British freethinker whose rationalist philosophy forced church historians......
Tolkien, J.R.R.
J.R.R. Tolkien was an English writer and scholar who achieved fame with his childrenâs book The Hobbit (1937) and......
Toller, Ernst
Ernst Toller was a dramatist, poet, and political activist, who was a prominent exponent of Marxism and pacifism......
Tolstoy, Aleksey Nikolayevich, Graf
Aleksey Nikolayevich, Count Tolstoy was a novelist and short-story writer, a former nobleman and âWhiteâ Russian......
Tomlinson, Charles
Charles Tomlinson was an English poet whose best work expresses his perceptions of the world with clarity and sensitivity.......
Tomlinson, H M
H. M. Tomlinson was an English novelist and essayist who wrote naturally and with feeling about London, the sea,......
Torga, Miguel
Miguel Torga was a poet and diarist whose forceful and highly individual literary style and treatment of universal......
Torres Bodet, Jaime
Jaime Torres Bodet was a Mexican poet, novelist, educator, and statesman. Torres Bodet studied law and literature......
Torres Villarroel, Diego de
Diego de Torres Villarroel was a mathematician and writer, famous in his own time as the great maker of almanacs......
Traill, Catharine Parr
Catharine Parr Traill was an English Canadian nature writer who, in richly detailed descriptions of frontier life,......
Tranströmer, Tomas
Tomas Tranströmer was a Swedish lyrical poet noted for his spare but resonant language, particularly his unusual......
Traubel, Helen
Helen Traubel was an American opera singer, remembered as one of the finest Wagnerian sopranos of her day, who......
Trelawny, Edward John
Edward John Trelawny was an English author and adventurer, the friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and Lord Byron, whom......
Tremain, Rose
Rose Tremain is a British novelist whose books often dramatize a moment of truth in the lives of lonely outsiders.......
Trevelyan, Sir George Otto, 2nd Baronet
Sir George Otto Trevelyan, 2nd Baronet was an English historian and statesman remembered for his biography of his......
Trevor-Roper, Hugh, Baron Dacre of Glanton
Hugh Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton was a British historian and scholar noted for his works on aspects of......
Trilling, Lionel
Lionel Trilling was an American literary critic and teacher whose criticism was informed by psychological, sociological,......
Tristan lâHermite
Tristan lâHermite was a dramatist and poet, one of the creators of French classical drama. Long overshadowed by......
Trotzig, Birgitta
Birgitta Trotzig was a Swedish novelist and essayist in the existential tradition of France in the 1940s. She lived......
Truman, Margaret
Margaret Truman was an American writer who was the illustrious only daughter of U.S. Pres. Harry S. Truman and......
Trumbull, John
John Trumbull was an American poet and jurist, known for his political satire, and a leader of the Hartford Wits).......
Tschudi, Gilg
Gilg Tschudi was a Swiss humanist and scholar, the author of a chronicle of Swiss history that was used as a source......
Tucholsky, Kurt
Kurt Tucholsky was a German satirical essayist, poet, and critic, best-known for his cabaret songs. After studying......
Turow, Scott
Scott Turow is an American lawyer and best-selling writer known for crime and suspense novels dealing with law......
Twain, Mark
Mark Twain was an American humorist, journalist, lecturer, and novelist who acquired international fame for his......
Twardowski, Samuel
Samuel Twardowski was a Polish poet, diarist, and essayist who was very popular in his time. An impoverished Polish......
Tyard, Pontus de
Pontus de Tyard was a Burgundian poet and member of the literary circle known as La Pléiade who was a forthright......
Tyconius
Tyconius, one of the most important biblical theologians of 4th-century North African Latin Christianity. Although......
Tynan, Katharine
Katharine Tynan was an Irish poet and novelist whose works are dominated by the combined influences of Roman Catholicism......
TĂłibĂn, Colm
Colm TĂłibĂn is one of the most widely read writers in contemporary Irish literature. He has published fiction and......
Ulrich von Hutten
Ulrich von Hutten was a Franconian knight and humanist, famed as a German patriot, satirist, and supporter of Martin......
Uno Chiyo
Uno Chiyo was a Japanese short-story writer and novelist who became better known for a personal life perceived......
Untermeyer, Louis
Louis Untermeyer was an American poet, essayist, and editor who is best known for his numerous poetry anthologies.......
Updike, John
John Updike was an American writer of novels, short stories, and poetry, known for his careful craftsmanship and......
Uspensky, Gleb Ivanovich
Gleb Ivanovich Uspensky was a Russian intellectual and writer whose realistic portrayals of peasant life did much......
Ustinov, Peter
Peter Ustinov was an English actor, director, playwright, screenwriter, novelist, raconteur, and humanitarian.......
Valencia, Guillermo
Guillermo Valencia was a Colombian poet and statesman, whose technical command of verse and skill at translation......
Valente, JosĂ© Ăngel
JosĂ© Ăngel Valente was a Spanish lyric poet and essayist who published translations and criticism in addition to......
Valla, Lorenzo
Lorenzo Valla was an Italian humanist, philosopher, and literary critic who attacked medieval traditions and anticipated......
Valle, Pietro della
Pietro della Valle was an Italian traveler to Persia and India whose letters detailing his wanderings are valuable......
Valéry, Paul
Paul ValĂ©ry was a French poet, essayist, and critic. His greatest poem is considered La Jeune Parque (1917; âThe......
Van Dine, S.S.
S.S. Van Dine was an American critic, editor, and author of a series of best-selling detective novels featuring......
Van Doren, Carl
Carl Van Doren was a U.S. author and teacher whose writings range through surveys of literature to novels, biography,......
Van Doren, Mark
Mark Van Doren was an American poet, writer, and eminent teacher. He upheld the writing of verse in traditional......
Van Vechten, Carl
Carl Van Vechten was a U.S. novelist and music and drama critic, an influential figure in New York literary circles......
Vance, JD
JD Vance is the 50th vice president of the United States (2025â ) in the second administration of Republican Pres.......
Vanderbilt, Amy
Amy Vanderbilt was an American journalist and author, an acknowledged authority on manners, mores, and etiquette.......
Vargas Llosa, Mario
Mario Vargas Llosa was a Peruvian Spanish writer who was one of the most influential authors of contemporary literature,......
Varnhagen von Ense, Karl August
Karl August Varnhagen von Ense was a German writer, diplomat, biographer, and, with his wife, Rahel, a leading......
Varro, Marcus Terentius
Marcus Terentius Varro was Romeâs greatest scholar and a satirist of stature, best known for his Saturae Menippeae......
Varthema, Lodovico de
Lodovico de Varthema was an intrepid Italian traveler and adventurer whose account of his Middle Eastern and Asiatic......
Vasari, Giorgio
Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, architect, and writer who is best known for his important biographies of......
Vasconcelos, José
José Vasconcelos was a Mexican educator, politician, essayist, and philosopher, whose five-volume autobiography,......
Vauvenargues, Luc de Clapiers, Marquis de
Luc de Clapiers, marquis de Vauvenargues was a French moralist and essayist whose belief in the individualâs capacity......
Venette, Jean de
Jean de Venette was a French chronicler who left a valuable eyewitness report of events of the central France of......
Vennberg, Karl
Karl Vennberg was a poet and critic who was the critical-analytical leader in Swedish poetry of the 1940s. Vennberg......
Vercors
Vercors was a French novelist and artist-engraver, who wrote Le Silence de la mer (1941; The Silence of the Sea),......
Verlaine, Paul
Paul Verlaine was a French lyric poet first associated with the Parnassians and later known as a leader of the......
Verri, Pietro
Pietro Verri was a political economist, journalist, government official, leader of a Milanese academy, and author......
Victor, Frances Auretta Fuller
Frances Auretta Fuller Victor was an American writer and historian who wrote prolifically, and sometimes without......
Vidal, Gore
Gore Vidal was a prolific American novelist and essayist who was as well known for his outspoken political opinions......
VigĂ©e-Lebrun, Ălisabeth
Ălisabeth VigĂ©e-Lebrun was a French painter, one of the most successful women artists (unusually so for her time),......
Vildrac, Charles
Charles Vildrac was a French poet, playwright, and essayist whose idealistic commitment to humanitarianism characterized......
Villani, Giovanni
Giovanni Villani was an Italian chronicler whose European attitude to history foreshadowed Humanism. In 1300 Villani......
Villehardouin, Geoffrey of
Geoffrey of Villehardouin was a French soldier, chronicler, marshal of Champagne, and one of the leaders of the......
Vinje, Aasmund Olafson
Aasmund Olafson Vinje was a poet and journalist who wrote some of the finest lyric poems in Norwegian literature.......
Vitier, Cintio
Cintio Vitier was a Cuban poet, anthologist, critic, and scholar of Cuban poetry. Vitier began as a writer of extremely......
Voinovich, Vladimir
Vladimir Voinovich was a Russian writer and dissident known for his irreverent and perceptive satire that often......
Voltaire
Voltaire was one of the greatest of all French writers. Although only a few of his works are still read, he continues......
Vonnegut, Kurt
Kurt Vonnegut was an American writer noted for his wryly satirical novels that frequently used postmodern techniques......
Voznesensky, Andrey Andreyevich
Andrey Andreyevich Voznesensky was a Russian poet who was one of the most prominent of the generation of writers......
Wace
Wace was an Anglo-Norman author of two verse chronicles, the Roman de Brut (1155) and the Roman de Rou (1160â74),......
Wain, John
John Wain was an English novelist and poet whose early works caused him, by their radical tone, to be spoken of......
Walafrid Strabo
Walafrid Strabo was a Benedictine abbot, theologian, and poet whose Latin writings were the principal exemplar......
Walker, Alice
Alice Walker is an American writer whose novels, short stories, and poems are noted for their insightful treatment......
Walker, Margaret
Margaret Walker was an American novelist and poet who was one of the leading black woman writers of the mid-20th......
Wallace, David Foster
David Foster Wallace was an American novelist, short-story writer, and essayist whose dense works provide a dark,......
Wallace, Lewis
Lewis Wallace was an American soldier, lawyer, diplomat, and author who is principally remembered for his historical......
Wallack, Lester
Lester Wallack was an actor, playwright, and manager of the Wallack Theatre Company, the training ground of virtually......
Wallas, Graham
Graham Wallas was a British educator, public official, and political scientist known for his contributions to the......
Walpole, Horace
Horace Walpole was an English writer, connoisseur, and collector known for his novel The Castle of Otranto (1764),......
Walsingham, Thomas
Thomas Walsingham was an English Benedictine monk and chronicler of the abbey at St. Albans (Hertfordshire). Walsingham......
Walter Of Coventry
Walter Of Coventry was an English monk or friar, compiler of historical materials, best known for his collection......
Walton, Izaak
Izaak Walton was an English biographer and author of The Compleat Angler (1653), a pastoral discourse on the joys......
Ward, Elizabeth Stuart Phelps
Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward was a popular 19th-century American author and feminist. Mary Gray Phelps was the......
Ward, Jesmyn
Jesmyn Ward is one of the most acclaimed American writers of the 21st century, publishing novels and nonfiction......
Ward, Mary Augusta Arnold
Mary Augusta Arnold Ward was an English novelist whose best-known work, Robert Elsmere, created a sensation in......
Warner, Rex
Rex Warner was a British novelist, Greek scholar, poet, translator, and critic who in his fictional work warnedâin......
Warner, Sylvia Townsend
Sylvia Townsend Warner was an English writer who began her self-proclaimed âaccidental careerâ as a poet after......
Warren, Mercy Otis
Mercy Otis Warren was an American poet, dramatist, and historian whose proximity to political leaders and critical......
Warren, Robert Penn
Robert Penn Warren was an American novelist, poet, critic, and teacher, best-known for his treatment of moral dilemmas......
Wassermann, Jakob
Jakob Wassermann was a German novelist known for his moral fervour and tendency toward sensationalism; his popularity......
Wasserstein, Wendy
Wendy Wasserstein was an American playwright whose work probes, with humour and sensibility, the predicament facing......
Waterhouse, Keith
Keith Waterhouse was an English novelist, playwright, and screenwriter noted for his ability to create comedy and......
Waters, John
John Waters is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter who is known for his boundary-pushing movies......
Watkins, Vernon Phillips
Vernon Phillips Watkins was an English-language Welsh poet who drew from Welsh material and legend. Watkins steeped......
Waugh, Alec
Alec Waugh was an English popular novelist and travel writer, older brother of the writer Evelyn Waugh. Waugh was......
Waugh, Evelyn
Evelyn Waugh was an English writer regarded by many as the most brilliant satirical novelist of his day. Waugh......
Wedekind, Frank
Frank Wedekind was a German actor and dramatist who became an intense personal force in the German artistic world......
Weems, Mason Locke
Mason Locke Weems was an American clergyman, itinerant book agent, and fabricator of the story of George Washingtonâs......